A full scale project that converts non-recycylable waste plastics to hydrogen could be built in County Tipperary in the Republic of Ireland, after Hydrogen Utopia International (HUI) reached an agreement with Trifol Resources Limited (TRL). The agreement includes a site in an EU Just Transition Fund region, potential access to an investment grade plastic feedstock supplier and the potential to agree offtake for the facility’s anticipated hydrogen and syngas outputs “with a substantial customer”.

HUI will invest €500,000 in TRL and its patented ‘waste plastic to wax’ technologies, which use a pyrolysis process under low pressure to transform post-consumer plastic into high grade new slack wax and a fuel. HUI’s hydrogen production process uses pyrolysis of plastics and the parties believe that the investment offers potential synergies and opportunities for both companies.

TRL’s site in Tipperary has the necessary utilities, including a potential 3MW power supplyand can accommodate both an HUI waste plastic to hydrogen facility and the operation of TRL’s business.

HUI has had preliminary meetings with a potential investment grade waste plastic supplier that could provide all of the feedstock necessary to run an HUI facility and a potential substantial customer that could utilise the facility’s anticipated hydrogen and syngas output and whose covenant would be regarded as of a very high quality. HUI is in discussions with a third party in relation to a joint venture to build the HUI facility in Ireland. It has also had indications of funding support for the shorter term funds likely to be required to move the project in Ireland forward.