INERATEC performs groundbreaking ceremony of e-fuel production plant at Industriepark Höchst, Germany

Frankfurt, Germany - INERATEC held the groundbreaking ceremony for its pioneering power-to-liquid (PtL) plant in the industrial park Frankfurt Höchst together with Hesse's Economics Minister Tarek Al-Wazir. Starting in 2024, the plant will produce up to 2,500 tons of sustainable e-fuels annually, making an important contribution to achieving climate-protection targets.

The PtL plant will use CO2 and green hydrogen as feedstocks to produce liquid hydrocarbons, also known as e-fuels. The industrial park in Frankfurt Höchst offers ideal production conditions thanks to its existing infrastructure and the biogas plant that Infraserv Höchst operates at the site. The demand for climate-friendly synthetic fuels in the shipping, aviation and chemical industries is gigantic. As a pioneer in this field, INERATEC will meet this the need.

CEO Tim Boeltken accentuates the global significance of the project: "As a company, we have recognized that power-to-X technologies need to be deployed in global sweet spots that offer optimal conditions in the form of low-cost renewable electricity. With our modular and scalable technology, we can meet the requirements of these locations and offer customized solutions to drive the decarbonization of industry and mobility. The pioneer plant in Frankfurt is a milestone in the availability of sustainable e-fuels and an important step towards a climate-neutral future."

“The pioneer plant in Frankfurt is a milestone in the availability of sustainable e-fuels and an important step towards a climate-neutral future.” Tim Böltken, CEO

The pioneer plant is the first large-scale industrial PtL project in Germany. The plant modules are being manufactured in Karlsruhe since the summer of 2022 and will be gradually integrated at the site in the following months. The commissioning process will begin at the end of the year and the planned start of production for the entire plant is in 2024.

Hesse's Economics Minister Tarek Al-Wazir emphasizes the importance of the project for sustainable mobility in the state: "With the largest pilot plant for synthetic kerosene in Germany, Hesse will be a pioneer in climate protection in aviation. The aim of the pilot plant is to produce synthetic kerosene on a much larger scale than before in order to gain experience for mass production. In the short term, blending can save CO2 emissions, and in the long term it will make it possible to make flying CO2-neutral. However, one thing is clear: In general, the economical and efficient use of energy must come first, and e-fuels will remain a rare commodity for some time to come. They must be used specifically where direct electrification is not possible, especially in the air or at sea."

"Innovation has a long tradition at Industriepark Höchst, because the chemical industry has always played a pioneering role in developing technologies of the future," said Dr. Joachim Kreysing, Managing Director of Infraserv Höchst. The company operates Industriepark Höchst, one of Europe's largest research and production sites for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, and is committed to the industry's sustainable transformation. Dr. Joachim Kreysing said, "We are pleased that INERATEC has chosen Industriepark Höchst as the site for the project, thus expanding our innovation cluster."  Since Infraserv Höchst has been committed to advancing hydrogen technology for many years and brings a wealth of experience to the table, he said, the conditions for the INERATEC project are ideal, especially since the new plant can be superbly integrated into the production network.   

INERATEC is investing over €30 million in the construction of the plant, supported by the Environmental Innovation Program. The funding from the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection confirms the climate protection potential and the pioneering character of the project. With high-ranking guests from industry and politics, INERATEC is signaling its pioneer spirit and vision for the global use of the technology.