Image courtesy INNIO

Serbian gas company Pan-Ledi d.o.o. has selected an INNIO Jenbacher J420 engine for a combined heat and power project in Nova Pazova, Serbia.

INNIO will deliver a 1MWe containerised CHP unit and a complete heat recovery system to be commissioned in Q4 2023.

The electricity will be used by Pan-Ledi for their electric vehicle (EV) charging station, with excess energy injected into the grid and the engine waste heat sold to a nearby commercial customer.

The Jenbacher CHP plant will be fueled with hydrogen produced by an electrolyzer which is powered by a solar photovoltaic (PV) plant near Cuprija. The green hydrogen will be used for interim storage before being transported from Cuprija to Nova Pazova.

Most of the hydrogen will be produced during the summer when the solar output is highest. In times of low hydrogen supply, the CHP plant will run on natural gas to ensure the continuous provision of energy.

“Our H2-engines provide the flexibility and sustainability to meet Pan-Ledi’s pioneering requirements. INNIO’s technology will deliver carbon-free electricity when hydrogen is available, while maintaining continuity of power generation when hydrogen is scarce,” said Dr. Olaf Berlien, president and CEO of INNIO.

“Using hydrogen or natural gas to operate our combined heat and power plant is critical for our EV charging station strategy,” said Slobodan Vujovic, CEO of Pan-Ledi. “INNIO’s Jenbacher CHP solution will provide our operation the flexibility required for a sustainable EV mobility and use hydrogen at high CHP utilization rates.

The Jenbacher team will work with its distributor, STI d.o.o., to implement, install and service the hydrogen CHP unit.