The transition to green energy is a critical challenge facing industries worldwide, particularly when it comes to securing stable, high-temperature heat. Today 90% of this heat, which is vital to industries like the food & beverage industry, is supplied by fossil fuels.  

As the EU ramps up CO2 taxation and industries look to secure supply and shield themselves from energy market volatility, the demand for scalable and cost-effective green heat solutions is urgent.  

The EU’s evolving energy market, with increasing instances of negative pricing during renewable energy surplus hours, presents a unique opportunity. By leveraging thermal storage, we can capture these low-cost periods and make renewable heat competitive with fossil-based alternatives. 

At Arla, one of the world’s leading dairy producers, their goal to reduce CO2e emissions in scope 1 and 2 by 63% in 2030 led them to seek out partnerships with innovative companies to solve the heat conundrum. 

Hyme Energy is a leader in thermal energy storage (TES) technology on a mission to make sustainable energy available, always. Thermal energy storage is increasingly recognized as a critical technology for industrial decarbonization. By delivering reliable, renewable heat at scale, it addresses one of the most challenging aspects of the energy transition. 

At the end of 2024, Hyme and Arla announced a collaboration aiming at  developing and building a 200 MWh thermal energy storage plant at Arla’s milk powder facility in Holstebro. This is the largest announced project in the world for a standalone thermal energy storage plant to deliver green industrial steam. 

Hyme’s technology leverages molten salt as a heat storage medium, delivering renewable heat on demand. The system is tailored for energy-intensive industries, such as food and beverage, chemicals, and metals production, where reliable, high-temperature process heat is crucial.  

The proposed thermal energy storage system will convert electricity from renewable sources – such as wind and solar – into heat, which is stored in molten salt tanks above 500°C. 

The project highlights the economic and operational advantages of integrating thermal energy storage into industrial settings.  

The stored heat can be used to replace fossil fuels in Arla’s milk powder production, enabling up to a 90% reduction in CO2 emissions from process heat at the HOCO plant in Holstebro. The modelling of the business case shows that significant energy cost savings can be achieved by replacing natural gas with electricity and thermal energy storage. Furthermore, the plant can generate revenue from providing grid stabilization services to Energinet, the Danish electricity Transmission System Operator (TSO). 

Hyme and Arla are jointly seeking EU funding for the project and will establish the final foundation for its implementation once the funds are secured. The plant is expected to start operation in 2029.