What is Hope Group
A company specialising in the integration of renewable energy sources into the process of green hydrogen production.
Our Aims
Sustainability, innovation, development, environmental awareness, respect for the land and the community, listening.
History
Different backgrounds, shared goals.
Hope Group (or Gruppo Hope) is a new company operating in the renewable energies sector, with its operational headquarters in Puglia.
Its main activity is the integration into the renewables industry of green hydrogen, which is held to play a key role in the penetration of renewable energy into the electricity market.
The current development pipeline has a total capacity of more than 5 GW, of which more than 4 GW is directly owned by the Hope Group and consists of both onshore and offshore wind and photovoltaic plants.
These two more traditional RES technologies are supplemented by the production of biofuels through anaerobic digestion processes made possible by the use of agricultural and animal by-products, an area in which the group can boast extensive experience.
Green Hydrogen: an essential step for a sustainable world.
The climate emergency and the need, as a result of the dramatic geopolitical situation, for a diversification of energy sources demonstrate that a transition to renewable energy is practically unavoidable.
Hope Group is committed to producing energy from renewable sources and to integrating this with the production of (green) hydrogen as a means of making an effective contribution to the pursuit of the UN’s sustainable development goals for 2030. As well as being widely available and offering flexibility of use, it is currently the form of energy with the lowest environmental impact and provides the best guarantee of a secure future for the next generations.
Different backgrounds, shared goals.
The Hope Group is a company that has already become the protagonist of a concrete change in the complex and debated area of the energy transition and was born from the urgency to build a better world for future generations.
The company was generated by the partnership between Nelke Srl, Gardill Srl, Ilirm Srl, Engeo Srl, Basomaso Srl and Next Energy Srl, it boasts a solid experience in the sector, with a wide range of skills in the managerial, financial, technological, engineering, media and institutional fields. The ambitious goals, achieved in the very few years of activity, are the result of a fresh enthusiasm, assisted by a vast multidisciplinary experience.
Gruppo Hope is a new multidisciplinary platform committed to the creation in Italy of new RES plants (Floating Offshore Wind, Onshore Wind, Solar Photovoltaic, Biogas and Biomethane) combined with facilities for the production of green hydrogen for various purposes: heavy transport (BRT, maritime, aeronautical, rail), other vehicles, fuel cells, input to the grid, and production of hydrogen derivatives (ammonia, ethanol).
Gruppo Hope is able to rely on the scientific and technological support of the Technical University of Bari and on collaboration with high-level national and European research centres, such as the University of Strathclyde, in Glasgow, which is considered one of the best in the field internationally.
Origination of new initiatives for the production of RES plants combined with sites for the generation of hydrogen with green-field logic, from the preliminary design to the ready-to-build stage.
The multidisciplinary skills required for the management of initiatives in the development phase.
The multidisciplinary skills required for the structuring of funding and PPAs (Power Purchase Agreements).
M&A operations, structured finance, technical services in the construction and operational phases, relations with organisations and authorities.
Handling of relations with the authorities and local communities in order to find optimum solutions and ensure participation in the acceptance of initiatives.
Green hydrogen technology, in which we are investing all our efforts, itself embodies our values.
First and foremost, it is about sustainability, since today this is the technology most compatible with our environment and our modern standards of life.
A lower impact on the environment and landscape is ensured by continuous intensive dialogue with the community.
No decision is taken without listening to those representing the interests of a land that we know intimately because it is ours too. Only in this way is it possible to identify the solution that works best for both sides and to establish good, enduring relations. Our projects always bring economic and social advantages and benefits to local communities.
Innovation is another of our distinguishing values, not only in the sense that hydrogen technology is extremely new but also with regard to the goals we set for ourselves: fully developing new models and schemes, experimenting with new combinations of expertise and new approaches to the use of this energy in the market.We aim to make Puglia, which is already the leader in Italy in terms of the number of renewable energy plants, into an energy hub in the hydrogen sector.
A graduate in electrical engineering trained in problem solving, macroeconomics and microeconomics, and creative techniques. Since he began working in the energy sector in 2000, he has been developing soft skills in the fields of organization, strategy and finance, with particular regard to wind and photovoltaic energy. For over a decade he has occupied senior positions in the companies he has worked for.
A graduate in civil engineering, member of the task force of the Ministry of the Environment until 2004 to assiast the Objective 1 Regions in setting up ARPAs and Environmental Authorities, he embarked on a path that led him to manage the permitting, design and construction of infrastructure works. In his activities, he has always sought a meeting point between the functionality of the work and its impact on land and environment.
As a result of his involvement in dozens of wind energy, solar energy and public utility projects, he can boast wide experience in the design phase and in securing planning permissions.
With over 20 years of experience in the media and institutional sectors, he was the founder of the Apulia Film Commission, one of the most important international Destination Management Organizations, and has worked as a public administrator. He is currently also CEO of the Fidelio production company.
A graduate of Scuola Nazionale di Cinema, he has produced about 60 audiovisual projects as a producer or delegate producer and about 550 audiovisual projects as a film commissioner. He is the inventor of some of the most innovative public film funds in the audiovisual industry, as well as project markets and incubators. Partner and head of communication & corporate identity at Hope Group, he is also a partner and creative director of the production company Fidelio.
He has held project manager roles for the development of renewable plants from the preliminary to the operation and management phases especially related to biomass, with special reference to cogeneration and renewable sources
Certain methods of hydrogen production can cause pollution. The business model that Hope has adopted involves the production of “green” hydrogen through electrolysis carried out with energy generated from renewable sources.
Hydrogen is colourless but, in specialist jargon, colours are attributed to it to distinguish the methods used for extraction and their environmental impact.
Grey hydrogen is produced from fossil energy sources through so-called steam reforming. The hydrogen is obtained from natural gas or from the gasification of coal via a process of thermochemical conversion that also produces CO₂. This method is the most harmful for the environment.
Blue hydrogen is obtained using a process in some ways similar to that used for grey hydrogen: it is extracted from fossil sources through pyrolysis. This method too produces CO₂ but in this case it is captured and stored underground or used as a raw material in conversion processes. It is a more environmentally friendly process thanks to the absence of climate-damaging emissions.
Green hydrogen is produced by a process called high-temperature electrolysis: the water molecules (H₂O) receive energy produced from renewable sources (such as photovoltaics or wind), the bonds are broken and the result is hydrogen and oxygen. It is worth noting that the bases for the process of electrolysis are to be found in the battery that Alessandro Volta invented in 1779. The hydrogen and oxygen present in water were first separated by the scientists Nicholson and Carlisle.
Hydrogen for powering locomotion is already a reality. In the rail, tram and bus sectors, there are vehicles equipped with fuel cell systems that, through a process of reverse electrolysis, recombine hydrogen and oxygen, thus generating energy to power an electric motor and producing water vapour as a by-product. In the automobile sector, in addition to fuel cell technology, Toyota already has a hydrogen internal combustion engine.
Hydrogen is a highly flammable gas which requires only a miniscule amount of energy to ignite, and so, to ensure safety, there are strict precautions for its use.
Water is certainly a precious asset, especially in certain parts of the world and in certain economies, so it is imperative to seek out circular models that, for example, reuse waste water that would otherwise be disposed of in the sea. Rapid technological progress means that it will soon be possible to make direct use of sea water.
The impact depends on the technology used for building the foundations. The least impactful option is that involving the use of floating foundations anchored to the seabed with mooring systems, which results in almost no effect on plants and algae; in addition, studies show an absence of negative impacts on cetaceans.
The parts of the sea occupied by wind turbine installations are off-limits to sea traffic but the layouts of wind farms are designed with corridors to allow the passage of vessels.
The parts of the sea occupied by wind turbine installations are off-limits for fishing; this automatically triggers a process of rewilding of the seas, increasing fish stocks near to the coasts and thus providing a benefit to fishing communities.
The impact on seabeds, particularly of floating installations, is wholly negligible.
Over 90% of all the materials are reclaimed and recycled.
