OMV Petrom has reached a 55 MW green hydrogen milestone at its Petrobrazi refinery after taking delivery of all seven modules for a second electrolyzer unit. The Romanian energy giant confirmed the new 35 MW installation joins an existing 20 MW hydrogen plant, doubling down on cleaner refining operations.
The timing matters. European refiners face mounting regulatory pressure to cut carbon intensity, while demand for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) continues climbing. Petrobrazi now positions itself at the front of that shift in Southeastern Europe.
Radu Căprău, OMV Petrom executive board member for Refining and Marketing, framed the capacity expansion as a decisive step. Green hydrogen will feed directly into refinery processes, including SAF and HVO production, lowering emissions compared with fossil-based equivalents. The company is already constructing a 250,000 tonne per year SAF/HVO facility at the same site.
The new electrolyzer consists of seven 5 MW modules supplied by Neuman & Esser, a German manufacturer. These components arrived at Petrobrazi over the past two months and now undergo integration into existing refinery infrastructure. Kraftanlagen Romania leads construction, logistics, component fabrication, and module assembly, working alongside local subcontractors.
Romania’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan provided roughly EUR 29 million in non-reimbursable funding for the 35 MW project. Once operational, the unit should generate about 4,700 tonnes of green hydrogen annually using renewable electricity.
Combined output from both electrolyzers projects at approximately 8,000 tonnes per year. That hydrogen will support SAF and HVO production from vegetable oils and waste oils. These fuels cut lifecycle CO₂ emissions by at least 65% and work with current distribution and storage systems.
OMV Petrom expects to become the first major producer of sustainable fuels in Southeast Europe once the SAF/HVO plant comes online. The refinery’s expanded hydrogen capacity removes a key bottleneck for that ambition.
