Mammoet has played a key role in the construction of Shell’s Holland Hydrogen 1, Europe’s first large-scale green hydrogen plant.
The facility, with electrolyser units totalling 200MW, will produce up to 60,000kg of hydrogen a day. It will be powered by the Hollandse Kust Noord offshore wind farm and is seen as an important step in developing sustainable fuel for industries like construction and road transport.
Mammoet was involved from the project’s early stages, helping Shell plan how the facility could be built to schedule despite tight space, limited access and multiple contractors working on site.
“We started our involvement supporting with the route survey, as part of wider pre-study activity,” said Paul van der Waal, Tender Specialist at Mammoet. “I was actively involved in the constructability meetings to look at the build from a transport and lift perspective.”
The team worked with Shell for more than two years on constructability planning, including the best modular construction strategy. They identified the Euromax Terminal in Rotterdam as the receiving port for the heaviest components, which were unloaded with a 750t mobile crane and transported 15km to the site.
Once construction began, Mammoet provided the equipment and expertise to unload, transport and install major components. Zero-emission equipment was used for indoor work, including an electric heavy duty carrier, robot mover and LTC1050-3.1E crane. Mobile cranes ranging from 60t to 750t handled lifts of items over one tonne.
Heavy transformers, weighing up to 165t, were skidded and jacked into place. Ten large air cooler units were lifted onto the roof with a dedicated steel structure. Inside the electrolyser building, Mammoet helped install about 200 items, including ten electrolyser units made up of 20 parts each.
To save time and space, a large pipe rack was built off site and installed in two sections.
“We had an active on-site team who was fully immersed in the process,” said Marco Barendregt, Project Manager at Mammoet. “We maintained good communication with Shell, as well as with all the other parties on the mechanical, steel, and construction sides of the build. This ensured the installation schedule went to plan, with every heavy movement integrated smoothly with the next.”
The project shows how Mammoet’s experience in modular construction can support the delivery of sustainable energy projects, using emission-free equipment to help build a future without industrial emissions.