The Iberostar Bahía de Palma Hotel, in Mallorca, is set to become the world’s first fully green-fuel-driven hotel.
Spanish hotel and resort group Iberostar has signed a deal with energy infrastructure company Redexis resulting in the first installation of a green hydrogen-based co-generation fuel cell at the hotel.
Redexis will install the fuel cell, which is capable of consuming at least 10 tonnes of renewable hydrogen annually to produce up to 50 kW of power, which will supply over 70% of the hotel’s thermal energy, thus reducing dependence on other fossil fuels and thus, reducing emissions.
The complex will also harness this technology to draw some of its electricity straight from the fuel cell. All Iberostar hotels in Spain already consume renewable-sourced electricity certified with a renewable energy guarantee of origin, meaning that 100% of the electricity powering this hotel complex is totally sustainable without a single CO2 footprint.
Fidel López Soria, CEO of Redexis, met with Gloria Fluxà, Vice-President & Chief Sustainability Officer of the Iberostar Group to seal the deal for this system, heralding a pioneering leap forward in the use of fuel cells in the global tertiary sector, while also setting up a pilot test for future uses of this type.
“We are looking at a landmark worldwide milestone, one contributing efficient and advanced decarbonisation solutions to tourism, which is a key sector for the Spanish economy. The Iberostar Group has been fully committed to sustainability through innovative solutions for its hotels, in this case through renewable hydrogen, which Redexis is firmly committed to. We believe that partnerships such as these will prove to be essential in transforming decarbonisation and real technological progress into a reality of new energy vectors in the short term”, explained Fidel López Soria.
In turn, Gloria Fluxà pointed out that “this innovative approach illustrates our commitment to gradually extend the use of clean energy across all our hotels worldwide and also lead the energy transition in the tourism sector. The Iberostar Group is moving towards achieving carbon neutrality in our operations by 2030, in keeping with our commitment to promote a responsible tourism model”.
The initiative is part of the Green Hysland project, in which Redexis is building the first hydrogen pipeline in Spain that will transport 100% green hydrogen and in which Redexis will carry out the first injection of green hydrogen into a natural gas distribution network in Spain.
