Modern energy is a response to the needs of environmental protection and economics. We are constantly looking for new energy sources and trying to find solutions to make the best use of the sources we already have. For this reason, the Institute of Energy is under the supervision of the Green Evo program. This company’s activities will certainly contribute to the development of the energy industry both in Poland and abroad. Dr. Eng. Marek Skrzypkiewicz, Head of the Department of the Institute of Energy, will tell us about the company itself, its plans and activities. We invite you to read our interview!

What is the profile of the Institute of Energy, what do you do?

The Institute of Energy deals with many aspects of modern technologies for the energy sector and various industries, including solutions with new energy sources and the introduction of hydrogen technologies. We have been working on hydrogen technologies at the Institute for several years. During this period, we developed solid oxide cell technology, which has the potential to revolutionize the industry in the 21st century, ensuring very high efficiency of hydrogen and electricity production. Devices using our cells can alternately produce hydrogen and consume it, producing electricity and heat. The institute has not only developed the technology in the comfort of laboratories, but also produces devices and installs them at industrial and energy facilities in the country, starting a new era of the hydrogen economy.

Since when have you been a winner of the GreenEvo program and why did you decide to apply for the program?

We were the winner of GreenEvo in 2023 for the product “Stack of solid oxide electrochemical cells (SOC) as a device for generating hydrogen or electricity.” We decided to join the program, aware of the readiness of our product for commercialization and the belief that the Polish market is only the first step for such a revolutionary technology. It was a natural consequence of our actions to bring the Institute’s product to the broadly understood market. It should be noted that this is one of several awards for our technology that confirms its status and potential.

What are the benefits of the technology your company offers?

SOC stacks are seen as one of the most promising technologies for the hydrogen economy, enabling the production of zero-emission hydrogen in the electrolysis process and electricity and heat in the fuel cell mode. Depending on the needs of the network/consumers, this cell can operate as a generator of electricity and heat, i.e. in the fuel cell mode (Solid Oxide Fuel Cell, SOFC) or as a hydrogen generator in the electrolyzer mode (Solid Oxide Electrolyzer Cell, SOEC), as well as in reversible mode, i.e. be switchable between SOFC and SOE (reversible Solid Oxide Cell, rSOC) mode, which allows it to be used as an energy store (conversion of electrical energy into chemical energy contained, e.g. in hydrogen, and vice versa).

One of the characteristics of the developed technology is modularity and easy power scalability – the power increases with the number of interconnected SOC stacks. What is important is high efficiency, compared to analogous low-temperature solutions, both in SOFC and SOEC modes. Moreover, the developed SOC stack can be thermally and process-integrated with other installations, thus increasing the overall efficiency of the system. Thanks to the use of innovative and waste-free cell and seal forming techniques, the SOC stack developed by the Applicant competes with foreign technologies, offering similar operating parameters (e.g. operational stability in a wide load range) with more compact dimensions and much lower investment outlays.

How do you evaluate your participation in the GreenEvo program?

Program, dzięki serii profesjonalnych szkoleń oraz organizacji misji gospodarczych, jest doskonałym uzupełnieniem dotychczasowych działań Instytutu. Szkolenia pozwoliły nam zdobyć umiejętności miękkie oraz wiedzę wartościową zarówno na rynku krajowym jak i rynkach eksportowych. Misje gospodarcze pozwalają nawiązywać kontakty z potencjalnymi kontrahentami w Europie i na świecie, a ponadto pozwalają spędzić czas w gronie zaangażowanych przedsiębiorców (pozostali laureaci GreenEvo), którzy dzielą się doświadczeniami biznesowymi z kraju i ze świata.

What are the company’s further development plans?

Our goals in the near future are to build a factory where cells, stacks and SOC systems can be produced in mass quantities. In parallel, we are developing several products based on the SOC stack that will find a wide range of recipients, such as SOE electrolysers, rSOC hydrogen energy storage units and SOFC fuel cell cogenerators. Importantly, these solutions are already delivered in a commercial formula. Entire series of these devices will be manufactured in our factory and constitute key elements of the hydrogen economy, which will revolutionize the energy and industry in the coming decades. There are still many challenges ahead of us and our partners, but we can already see that we are successfully implementing the next stages of this project.