EU-backed consortium sets up new producer of green fertilisers

A consortium of investors including the likes of Siemens Financial Services and Dutch brewer Heineken NV (AMS:HEIA) has founded a company to build several green hydrogen-based fertiliser production plants across Europe.

The new firm, called FertigHy, has been originated by the EU-backed sustainable energy innovation ecosystem EIT InnoEnergy and counts as founding investors Spanish solar developer RIC Energy, French agri-food group InVivo and Italian engineering company Maire Tecnimont SpA (BIT:MAIRE) in addition to the financial services arm of Siemens AG (ETR:SIE) and Heineken.

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The purpose of the company is to produce affordable and low-carbon fertilisers for European farmers. It intends to build its first plant in Spain to make more than 1 million tonnes of nitrogen-based fertiliser annually using 100% renewable power and green hydrogen. InViVo will participate in the project as a purchaser and distributor of fertilisers to 300,000 farmers, according to the announcement.

Construction work is scheduled to begin in 2025. The idea is to replicate this project in other European countries.

“There has never been greater urgency to decarbonise and collectively regain our production of fertiliser. With a plethora of factors at play in Europe in 2023 the time to establish a greener and self-sufficient industry for all is now. FertigHy will rebuild resilience against disrupted supply chains, while promoting sovereignty for the agriculture industry and security of supply by accelerating the decarbonisation of the food value chain,” commented Jose Antonio de las Heras, CEO of FertigHy.