Low-carbon and carbon-neutral energy technologies focused arm of oilfield services company Schlumberger Limited, Schlumberger New Energy has appointed Florence Lambert as the new CEO of clean hydrogen production technology venture called Genvia. She is to assume her duties here from March 1, 2021.
Lambert comes to US based Schlumberger Group from the French government funded ‘low carbon’ technological research organization, CEA-Liten, which focuses on nuclear and renewables. She has over 20 years of experience in new energy technologies. She also held the position of EU PVSEC 2019 Conference General Chair (see Florence Lambert EU PVSEC 2019 Chair).
The CEA is one of the founding partners of Genvia along with Schlumberger, French infrastructure firm Vinci Construction, French cement manufacturer Vicat and the administration of Occitanie region in France.
Genvia will use high-performance solid oxide electrolyzer technology developed by CEA. The technology is fully reversible, providing it flexibility to switch between electrolysis and fuel cell functions, explained Schlumberger. This technology, it further added, will enable a 30% higher electricity conversion efficiency per kg of hydrogen produced, bringing the cost of producing clean hydrogen to a level making it possible to compete with other sources of energy.
Genvia’s manufacturing pilot line to come up in 2021 will be located a Schlumberger manufacturing facility in Béziers. It will also set up a Technology Centre within the premises of the CEA in Grenoble, France which is aimed at accelerating the maturing of the technology through the industrialization process.
In 2025, the partners target to launch a Gigafactory to produce solid oxide electrlolyzer and fuel cell stacks to enable the company to meet GW deliveries of electrolyzers and fuel cells. Between 2021 and 2025, Genvia will participate in demonstration projects for various applications as industrial, energy and mobility sectors with capacities ranging between 300 kW systems in 2023 to larger MW scale systems in 2024.
An October 2019 report by French technology consultancy group Capgemini saw solar PV as among 55 technologies to revitalize the European economy stating the potential is the largest in Southern Europe enabling cheap hydrogen production to be transported through pipelines to Northern Europe. The region, it suggested, should target €1.5 per kg cost for large scale hydrogen production by 2025-2030 with the help of renewables and electrolyzers. Analysts believe the target should be to deploy 5 electrolyzer plants of 1 GW capacity each by 2025 to be powered by GW sized solar PV, offshore and onshore wind power generating facilities (see 19 GW Annual Solar Module Capacity For Europe By 2030).
