IMAGE: From left to right: Anne Francken, Kaufmännische Geschäftsführerin BASF InfraService & Solutions Lausitz GmbH, Jürgen Fuchs, Vorsitzender der Geschäftsführung BASF InfraService & Solutions Lausitz GmbH, Nils Aldag, CEO Sunfire, Christian von Olshausen, CTO Sunfire.
© BASF InfraService & Solutions Lausitz GmbH
Schwarzheide, August 19 2026 – Today, Industrial Park Lausitz and Sunfire officially broke ground on a green hydrogen test facility in the presence of representatives from government, business, and industry. At the BASF site, Sunfire will validate its latest and most powerful SOEC product generation in an industrial environment.
Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cell (SOEC) technology operates at high temperatures of around 850 degrees Celsius and achieves electrical efficiencies of up to 89 % LHV, AC [1]. As a result, Sunfire’s SOEC electrolyzers enable the lowest levelized costs of hydrogen (LCOH). As a pioneer in SOEC development, Sunfire has implemented more industrial SOEC demonstration projects than any other company worldwide. By establishing the SOEC testing facility in Schwarzheide, the project further strengthens the Lausitz region as a location for future technologies.
Nils Aldag, CEO of Sunfire: “Sunfire stands for green hydrogen technologies ‘Made in Germany’. While our pressurized alkaline electrolyzers are already being successfully deployed in large-scale industrial projects across Europe, we also see high-temperature electrolysis as a critical enabler of the energy transition. SOEC technology has the potential to become another key technology for industrial decarbonization. As the global market leader in SOEC, we are playing a key role in shaping this development. With the test facility at BASF’s Schwarzheide site, we are consistently executing our SOEC strategy and advancing the commercialization of this technology. The site offers ideal conditions to further accelerate the market ramp-up of high-temperature electrolysis.”
Christian von Olshausen, CTO of Sunfire: “Our SOEC technology demonstrates the full potential of German engineering expertise. By utilizing available waste heat, high-temperature electrolysis achieves record efficiency levels and can significantly reduce the production costs of green hydrogen and synthesis gas. Breaking ground on the testing facility at Industrial Park Lausitz marks an important milestone. Through validation under real industrial conditions, we are completing the final steps before implementing the first commercial projects. As a leader in high-temperature electrolysis, we are building on our extensive experience from industrial demonstration projects while gaining additional insights through long-term operational testing to successfully scale the technology.”
Jürgen Fuchs, Chairman of the Management Board of BASF InfraService & Solutions Lausitz GmbH: “With Sunfire, we have secured a true industry pioneer and international technology leader for the Industrial Park Lausitz in the future market of hydrogen. This sends a strong signal about the attractiveness of our location. In addition to our high-performance infrastructure and industrial environment, our speed of implementation was a key factor. Thanks to close cooperation between all parties involved, we were able to create the conditions for the test plant’s grid connection in a very short time and implement an ambitious project timetable. Our aim is not only to enable investments, but to turn them into reality faster.”
Anne Francken, Commercial Managing Director of BASF InfraService & Solutions Lausitz GmbH: “The foundation for this project was laid long before today’s groundbreaking ceremony – through a relationship based on trust and a solution-oriented approach. Together with Sunfire, we have created the framework needed to get an ambitious project off the ground. Projects like this can only succeed when all parties contribute their expertise and work together to develop solutions. We are therefore all the more delighted to celebrate this milestone together today.”
[1] Expected efficiency of the 3rd generation of Sunfire’s SOEC electrolyzers. Electrical efficiency of 84 % LHV, AC proven in EU-funded GrInHy2.0 project in 2022 with GEN 1.
About BASF InfraService & Solutions Lausitz GmbH
BASF InfraService & Solutions Lausitz GmbH operates the Industrial Park Lausitz in Schwarzheide and employs more than 900 people. The company provides comprehensive site services and highly efficient, industry‑specific infrastructure for businesses in the chemical and industrial sectors. BASF InfraService & Solutions Lausitz GmbH supports its customers with tailored and sustainable solutions, short decision-making paths, and reliable infrastructure management to ensure competitive and future‑oriented operations. For more information, visit www.industriepark-lausitz.com
About Sunfire
Sunfire is a global leader in the production of industrial electrolyzers based on pressurized alkaline (AEL) and solid oxide (SOEC) technologies. With its electrolysis solutions, Sunfire is addressing a key challenge of today’s energy system: Providing renewable hydrogen as climate-neutral substitute for fossil energy. Sunfire’s innovative and proven electrolysis technology enables the transformation of carbon-intensive industries that are currently dependent on fossil-based oil, gas, or coal. The company employs more than 700 people located in Germany. For more information visit http://www.sunfire.de/
The SOEC technology deployed in Schwarzheide has been significantly advanced as part of the flagship project H2Giga, subproject HTEL MODULE, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR). Building on these research results, the test facility enables long-term industrial validation under real operating conditions and supports technological maturity for large-scale deployment within the Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) framework. The European Investment Bank is co-financing the development and industrialization of the innovative SOEC electrolyzers through a loan.
Sunfire is a global leader in the manufacture of industrial electrolysers based on pressurized alkali (AEL) and solid oxide electrolysis (SOEC) technologies. With its electrolysis solutions, Sunfire addresses one of the key challenges facing today’s energy system: the provision of green hydrogen as climate-neutral substitutes for fossil fuels. Sunfire’s innovative and proven electrolysis technology enables the transformation of carbon-intensive industries that currently rely on fossil fuels such as oil, gas, or coal. The company employs more than 700 people in Germany.
For more information, visit www.sunfire.de
