Plug Power's 30-megawatt (MW) Barrow Green Hydrogen project in Cumbria, UK, has officially reached its final investment decision (FID). Plug Power, a global hydrogen solutions provider, is supplying the electrolyzers for the facility, which is located in Barrow-in-Furness.

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 £125m Barrow green hydrogen project in Cumbria will supply up to 100 GWh of hydrogen annually to Kimberly-Clark's local manufacturing plant. By replacing up to 50% of the facility's natural gas use, the plant will manufacture consumer goods—including Kleenex and Andrex—while cutting carbon emissions by 18,300 tonnes each year.

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.