Estonia-based Stargate Hydrogen Solutions has chosen Finland as a strategic base for advancing hydrogen technology in Northern Europe, announcing a partnership with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. The collaboration aims to support large-scale hydrogen projects and contribute to Europe's climate targets.
Rainer Küngas, Stargate's Chief Technology Officer, highlighted Finland's growing importance in the green hydrogen sector: “Finland is quickly becoming a hub for green hydrogen projects. We see real potential here, not only for growth in green hydrogen production but also for developing and testing innovative solutions for decarbonising the hard-to-abate sectors.”
The partnership will enable Stargate to utilize VTT's testing facilities to accelerate the development of its next-generation alkaline electrolysers. “VTT's capabilities allow us to validate our products thoroughly in real-world conditions,” Küngas added. The collaboration is a key step in Stargate's strategy to scale up its electrolyser technology in response to the increasing demand for large-scale, reliable hydrogen solutions.
Earlier this year, Stargate was chosen as the alkaline electrolysis technology supplier for a megawatt-scale containerized electrolysis project by Fortum, with the first Stargate stacks already delivered to Finland.
The partnership with VTT will focus on three main areas: testing large-scale electrolyser prototypes, conducting collaborative research on system modeling and fluid dynamics, and establishing Finland as a testing ground for scalable hydrogen solutions. Olli Himanen, VTT's research team leader for hydrogen production, emphasized VTT's expertise in the field: “VTT has been working with hydrogen, electrolysers, and fuel cells since 1998, and we have top-class expertise and research facilities for hydrogen research.”
Stargate's expansion into Finland is a significant milestone in its plan to address the growing industrial hydrogen market in Europe. The company aims to develop and test scalable solutions that meet the needs of major industrial and utility customers, positioning Finland as a key hub for hydrogen innovation.
