Plug Power Inc. (Latham, N.Y.) announced that the 30-megawatt (MW) Barrow Green Hydrogen project in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria (U.K.), where Plug is supplying electrolyzers, has reached final investment decision (FID).
The Barrow Green Hydrogen project is being delivered by Green Hydrogen Energy Company (GHECO), the joint venture established in 2023 by Schroders Greencoat, the specialist renewables and energy transition infrastructure manager, and Carlton Power, the British independent energy infrastructure company (previously referred to as the Carlton Power/Schroders Greencoat joint venture).
The Barrow project will supply c100GWh of green hydrogen per annum to Kimberly-Clark’s manufacturing plant in the town, where the company manufactures consumer products including Andrex® and Kleenex®. The Kimberly-Clark Barrow site will reduce its consumption of natural gas by up to 50% with a reduction of 18,300 tonnes of CO2 emissions. Meanwhile, a long-term power purchase agreement with SEFE, an international energy company and the former Gazprom Germania, which was nationalized in 2022, has been agreed on for the supply of renewable electricity.
Under the finalized agreement, Plug will supply 30 MW of its GenEco™ Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolyzers.
The Barrow project will feature six 5 MW Plug GenEco PEM electrolyzers, using renewable electricity to produce green hydrogen. The project was originally announced as part of Plug’s award to supply a combined 55 MW of GenEco electrolyzers across three UK green hydrogen projects: Barrow, Trafford and Langage. With FID now in place, Barrow is the first of GHECO’s three projects to move into execution. Trafford and Langage continue to progress toward their respective FIDs. Together, the three projects serve as blueprints for industrial decarbonization and energy security, advancing the UK’s low-carbon hydrogen ambitions.
The three hydrogen projects are supported under the UK Government’s Hydrogen Business Model through its Hydrogen Allocation Round 1 (HAR1). Once operational, the Barrow-in-Furness facility is expected to be a major driver of the hydrogen economy in North-West England.
“With Barrow now having reached FID, we are moving our largest UK project from award into execution and advancing the delivery of industrial-scale green hydrogen to Kimberly-Clark, a multinational corporation,” said Jose Luis Crespo, President and Chief Executive Officer of Plug. “This milestone reflects continued confidence in our GenEco electrolyzer technology and its proven performance at scale across projects. We expect Barrow to be the first of several Plug-supplied projects in Europe to transition into execution this year, with our technology ready to support delivery at scale.”
Kristian Høeg Madsen, Co-Head of Hydrogen Investments at Schroders Greencoat, said: “We have significant ambitions to grow the GHECO platform, reaching Final Investment Decision on Barrow is therefore a key milestone for Schroders Greencoat, as well as the UK’s emerging hydrogen economy. Through our origination, structuring and execution capabilities, we have combined a Contract for Difference, a long-term PPA with SEFE and a credible industrial offtake in Kimberly-Clark to build exactly the kind of contracted, inflation-linked infrastructure our investors are looking for. This represents an exciting milestone for the project, and we are delighted to start construction of this pioneering asset.
“We believe hydrogen is central to the next phase of the energy transition and projects like Barrow demonstrate how Schroders Greencoat can unlock opportunities for investors and deploy institutional capital at pace to decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors. Building on our long track record in renewable and energy transition aligned infrastructure, Barrow marks our first move into hydrogen at scale and is the first of many such projects we expect to deliver.”
Eric Adams, Hydrogen Director at Carlton Power, said, “Plug Power’s electrolyzer technology and proven execution capabilities make them a strong partner as we and Schroders Greencoat together advance our hydrogen ambitions in the UK.”
Plug brings proven expertise in large-scale hydrogen production, including operation of the largest electrolytic liquid hydrogen plant in the United States, with additional facilities in Tennessee and Louisiana. Its GenEco electrolyzers are designed for high efficiency and reliability, supported by long-term service solutions that help optimize performance and reduce lifecycle costs.
Europe remains one of Plug’s most strategic growth markets. The company is advancing multi-gigawatt electrolyzer projects across the U.K., Spain, and other European markets, supported by a global opportunity pipeline exceeding $2 billion. The Barrow project underscores Plug’s expanding role as a trusted industrial solutions provider, helping make green hydrogen more cost-effective and accessible for industrial, utility, and infrastructure customers worldwide.