Gevo finalizes agreement with Zero6 Energy for renewable hydrogen, selects Cummins as tech partner

Gevo Inc. announced Feb. 27 that it has finalized a hydrogen development services agreement with Zero6 Energy (formerly Juhl Energy) for the development of a 20-megawatt hydrogen production facility in Lake Preston, South Dakota, using Cummins Inc. electrolyzer technology.

The facility, known as the Dakota Renewable Hydrogen project, will be an integral part of Gevo’s Net-Zero 1 renewable hydrocarbon plant (NZ1) under development.

“We are excited to again be working with the Zero6 team on the development of a project that is crucial to the decarbonization of Gevo’s liquid transportation fuels and our long-term goal of developing net-zero emissions fuel and chemical products,” said Chris Ryan, Gevo’s president and chief operating officer. “After our mutual success on the development of wind power for the defossilized electrification of our development facility in Luverne, Minnesota, we are confident that Zero6 will be an excellent partner for our Net-Zero 1 hydrocarbon production facility.”

Clay Norrbom, president of Zero6 Energy, added, “This project is a great fit for the Zero6 team, and we are excited to highlight our capabilities as NZ1 comes online. In addition to the utilization of the proven Cummins electrolyzer technology to produce green hydrogen, a portion of our electricity needs will be supplied by the Kingsbury County Wind Fuel wind farm. Gevo’s decarbonization efforts truly are the sum of many important initiatives.”

Cummins will supply the project with an electrolyzer system comprised of four HyLYZER®-1000 proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzers to produce hydrogen. Cummins’ HyLYZER®-1000 product is currently in operation at a similar facility in Becancour, Quebec, Canada.

An electrolyzer splits water into oxygen and hydrogen. When powered by renewable electricity, the hydrogen produced is green and carbon free. This green hydrogen can be stored as a compressed gas or a liquid and used as an energy-dense, clean power source.

“This project builds on Cummins’ hydrogen-technology innovation and demonstrates the maturity and scalability of our products to meet customer needs,” said Alex Savelli, managing director of Cummins’ electrolyzers business unit serving the Americas. “We are proud to partner with Gevo and Zero6 to provide zero-emission power to critical applications. Cummins is committed to advancing the green-hydrogen economy, and our electrolyzer system is a turn-key solution for projects like the Dakota Renewable Hydrogen Project.”

Over 80 percent of the DRH hydrogen-production capacity will be directly piped to the Gevo NZ1 plant to be used in the hydrocarbon-refining process.

The DRH will be located on the NZ1 plant property under a long-term lease agreement from Gevo.