Schrand Energy Plant

Schrand Energy Plant

from | Mar 8, 2023 | General, Research, News, Storage, Power Generation, Hydrogen Production

PROJECTS

Prof. Dr. -Ing. Reckzügel (Professor at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences, Professor of Innovative Energy Technology and Thermal Energy Technology), Patrick Wösten (Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences, research assistant in the project), Minister Meyer, Jörg Wilke (Managing Director "Northern Institute of Thinking") (second row), Timo Schrand (Managing Director of schrand.energy GmbH & Co. KG), Paul Hoffmann (Project Manager Hydrogen at schrand.energy GmbH & Co. KG.) (second row), Uwe Bartels (Former State Minister)

Self-sufficient energy system in the building

In Essen (Oldenburg), the company schrand.energy GmbH & Co. KG is planning a CO2-neutral and energy-autonomous, company-owned new building. The concept called Schrand Energy Plant is developed from the beginning as a modular, reproducible and scalable overall solution in order to be able to transfer it to other buildings.

The Schrand Energy Plant uses a photovoltaic system to supply renewable energy to the respective company site. The excess energy is then used in a PEM electrolysis unit to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, store these gases temporarily in pressurized gas tanks, and then convert them into electrical power and heat in a hydrogen fuel cell as needed. The Energy Plant is thus intended to provide a total system consisting of energy storage, electrolyzer, fuel cell and hydrogen tank that can be adapted to the respective consumer.

On March 7, Lower Saxony's Environment and Energy Minister Christian Meyer handed over the funding. Schrand.energy will receive funding of around 2.7 million euros for the implementation and the cooperation partner Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences 230,000 euros. 

Environment and Energy Minister Christian Meyer: "Renewable energies are essential if we want to protect the climate. Sometimes, however, we have large quantities without being able to store them. The project kills two birds with one stone by combining solar energy and hydrogen technology: surplus solar energy can thus be reused, and hydrogen can be produced with renewable energies. That's good for the climate and your wallet, and it strengthens the local economy with cheap, clean energy."

 

Clean Hydrogen Coastline

Clean Hydrogen Coastline

from | Feb 28, 2023 | Industry, Mobility, News, Storage, Transportation, Hydrogen Production

PROJECTS

About 400 megawatts of electrolysis capacity will be built in the Clean Hydrogen Coastline project in the Northwest region by 2026. Image source: ©EWE

Clean Hydrogen Coastline

The German North Sea coast is of particular importance in the development of a nationwide hydrogen economy. Due to the high supply of renewable energies, hydrogen can not only be produced in the region, but also stored, integrated into the energy system via existing electricity and gas infrastructure, or used directly on site. The "Important Project of Common European Interest" (IPCEI) "Clean Hydrogen Coastline" is intended to contribute to the development and expansion of the hydrogen economy in the Northwest region.

In the IPCEI "Clean Hydrogen Coastline", the industry partners ArcelorMittal, EWE, Faun, Gasunie, swb and Tennet want to build 400 megawatts of electrolysis capacity in the Northwest region by 2026. To this end, there are various projects to help with implementation.

For example, the hydrogen generated by offshore electricity will be used, among other things, for climate-neutral steel production at the Bremen steel site. If required, surplus hydrogen can be temporarily stored by connecting it to the cavern storage facility in Huntorf.

Clean Hydrogen Coastline's many links, for example with the Dutch partners, but also with projects in Hamburg and North Rhine-Westphalia, offer extensive potential for a European IPCEI. This will enable the partners to take a decisive step towards becoming an important building block of a future European hydrogen economy. The main goal of the project is to Integration of hydrogen into existing energy infrastructures.

Partner

©ArcelorMittal
©EWE
©Tennet

ArcelorMittal is an international steel producer with a production volume of seven million tonnes of crude steel (2019), employing around 9,000 people across Germany.

Logo: © ArcelorMittal

 

With around 9,100 employees, EWE AG is one of the largest utilities in Germany that focuses on the corresponding infrastructure in the hydrogen sector.

Logo: © EWE AG

TenneT TSO GmbH is a transmission system operator with a grid length of 24,000 kilometres and approximately 5,700 employees.

Logo: © TenneT TSO GmbH

©Gasunie Germany
©SWB

Gasunie Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG is the transmission system operator responsible for an approximately 4,300 kilometre long transmission system.

Logo: © Gasunie Germany

swb AG is a regional utility company for Bremen and Bremerhaven with around 2,255 employees.

Logo: © swb AG

H2Nord: Hydrogen infrastructure for East Frisia

H2Nord: Hydrogen infrastructure for East Frisia

from | Feb 1, 2023 | General, Mobility, News, Storage, Hydrogen Production

PROJECTS

Handover of notification in Hanover: (from left to right: Eugen Firus, Sales Manager H2Nord, Energy Minister Christian Meyer, Claas Mauritz Brons, Managing Director H2Nord).Source: MU

Handover of notification in Hanover: (from left to right: Eugen Firus, Sales Manager H2Nord, Energy Minister Christian Meyer, Claas Mauritz Brons, Managing Director H2Nord). ©MU

H2Nord - Development of a hydrogen infrastructure in East Frisia

At the end of January 2023, Lower Saxony's Energy Minister Christian Meyer gave the go-ahead for the development of a green hydrogen infrastructure in Emden and East Frisia. To this end, he handed over a funding notice for a hydrogen production plant to H2Nord GmbH & Co. KG. The construction of a 10 megawatt electrolysis plant including a filling station for mobile storage containers is to be supported with 8 million euros. 

In a next step, H2Nordplans to set up several filling stations for green hydrogen and supply them with self-produced hydrogen from the region. "We urgently need to reduceCO2 emissions in transport in order to achieve our climate targets. Hydrogen is one of the solutions in heavy-duty transport that we absolutely need for a successful energy transition. By setting up hydrogen logistics, we are also increasing the attractiveness of the region, also for the establishment of further industrial and commercial companies," said Lower Saxony's Energy Minister Christian Meyer at the handover ceremony.

A green, regional hydrogen ecosystem is to be created on the basis of locally generated electricity from renewable energies. From 2024, green hydrogen is to be available at filling stations.

The energy future project has a total volume of 19.5 million euros. The state's 8 million euros come from funds under the hydrogen guideline of the Lower Saxony Ministry for the Environment, Energy and Climate Protection. A total of around 80 million euros has been applied for and approved under the directive for pilot and demonstration projects in the hydrogen sector. 

 

You can find more info here. 

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    CHESS - Development of a hydrogen infrastructure in the Wesermarsch region

    CHESS - Development of a hydrogen infrastructure in the Wesermarsch region

    from | Jan 19, 2023 | General, News, Storage, Power Generation, Hydrogen Production

    PROJECTS

    ©MUQuelle: shutterstock_2160102429

    CHESS - Development of a hydrogen infrastructure in the Wesermarsch region

    As part of the CHESS (Compressed Hydrogen Energy Storage Solution) project in Huntorf (Wesermarsch district), EWE and Uniper want to jointly convert their respective existing gas and electricity infrastructures. The aim is to build a new hydrogen infrastructure on site quickly, efficiently and cost-effectively.

    As part of the CHESS joint project, regionally produced electricity from wind and sun will be fed into a 30-megawatt electrolyzer via the existing power grid for green hydrogen production. This will be built jointly by EWE and Uniper in a planned joint venture. The electrolysis process uses electricity to split water into hydrogen. If green electricity is used for this, green hydrogen is produced. This hydrogen can then be transported directly to consumers via the gas grid.

    Hydrogen production and hydrogen storage thought together

    In addition to the production and transport of green hydrogen, the bridge to another EWE project is to be realized as part of CHESS: The connection of the hydrogen infrastructure to an underground cavern storage facility of EWE in Huntorf with the aim of storing green hydrogen and making it available on demand.

    This storage project is part of a connecting large-scale project called "Clean Hydrogen Coastline". It brings together the generation, transport, storage and use of green hydrogen in industry and heavy-duty transport. With this large-scale project, EWE applied for funding under the European IPCEI program (Important Project of Common European Interest) in February 2021 and reached the second stage of the procedure in May 2021. Funding is currently being reviewed at European level.

    The connection of the EWE Uniper project CHESS to the cavern storage facility in Huntorf creates some synergies:

    • Hydrogen generation can be grid-serving, i.e. when there is plenty of wind or sun and consumer energy demand is low, energy can be stored in very large quantities for times of "lulls" and used again later. Seasonal differences in wind and solar conditions can thus be compensated for.
    • Making hydrogen available on demand improves the security of supply for hydrogen users. Large-scale hydrogen storage makes this possible.
    • The cavern site in Huntorf offers potential for an expansion of hydrogen production. Depending on the rate of expansion of the regional hydrogen economy, it would be possible to gradually expand the electrolysis capacity up to the gigawatt scale.

    This is how it should continue

    EWE and Uniper signed a cooperation agreement at the beginning of 2021 to implement the CHESS project. According to the agreement, a joint 30-megawatt electrolyzer will supply the first hydrogen customers from mid-2026. The speed at which the subsequent expansion of hydrogen production capacities can be implemented will be determined by the customers' hydrogen sales and demand.

    More about the project

    Uniper is an international energy company with around 11,500 employees in more than 40 countries. The company plans to become CO2-neutral in European power generation by 2035. With around 33 gigawatts of installed capacity, Uniper is one of the world's largest power producers.

    © Uniper

      ©TU Clausthal

      With around 9,100 employees, EWE AG is one of Germany's largest utilities focusing on corresponding infrastructure in the hydrogen sector.

      © EWE

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          Wilhelmshaven Green Energy Hub

          Wilhelmshaven Green Energy Hub

          from | Nov 28, 2022 | General, Storage, Transportation, Hydrogen Production

          PROJECTS

          Source: Tree Energy Solution

          Wilhelmshaven Green Energy Hub

          The import of green hydrogen via hydrogen terminals is a crucial prerequisite for the development of a hydrogen economy in Germany. The coast of Lower Saxony with its deep water port in Wilhelmshaven offers ideal conditions for this. Tree Energy Solution (TES) has therefore decided to build a hydrogen terminal in Wilhelmshaven that will enable the import of green hydrogen on a large scale. The planned terminal comprises six berths and a total of ten tanks with a storage capacity of 2,000,000 cubic meters. According to plans, the terminal will be able to import up to 250 TWh of green gases per year in the future and produce more than 5 million metric tons of hydrogen from them - equivalent to one tenth of Germany's total annual primary energy demand.

          News (11/28/2022): TES and EWE plan to build 500 MW electrolyzer

          As TES and EWE announced at the end of November, a 500 MW electrolyzer is to be built as part of the project. The electrolyzer is scheduled to go into operation from 2028. The capacity of the electrolyzer is to be 500 megawatts, which is to be expanded to a total capacity of 1 gigawatt with another planned plant. 

          To meet its hydrogen needs, Germany will have to import green hydrogen from various countries in the future. This requires the appropriate infrastructure, which enables the landing, storage and transport into the hydrogen pipeline network. This is precisely what is envisaged in the Wilhelmshaven Green Energy Hub project, which is being implemented by Tree Energy Solution (TES). To this end, six ship berths are to be built in Wilhelmshaven that are "Suezmax-compatible" - so that large ships can also land in Wilhelmshaven ("Suezmax" describes a ship size that is permissible for passage through the Suez Canal when loaded).

          TES also wants to produce the green hydrogen itself - in countries with a very high supply of hydro, wind or solar power. Renewables are used for electrolysis in the producing countries to initially produce green hydrogen. After electrolysis, carbon dioxide is added to the hydrogen to produce green CH4 (methane), which can then be transported by shipping fleet to Wilhelmshaven. Here, the CH4 is converted back to hydrogen, and the resultingCO2 is captured and returned to the producing countries in a recirculation system for further use.

          Source: Tree Energy Solution

          Wilhelmshaven Green Energy Hub in the model

          From 2026, the terminal is scheduled to begin operations and thus the first import of green molecules. In this initial phase, 25 TWh of green methane per year are expected to be imported - from this, more than half a million tons of hydrogen can be produced. During the ramp-up phase starting in 2030, output will be successively increased so that eventually up to 250 TWh per year - and thus more than 5 million tons of hydrogen - can be imported or produced.

          The project intends to take advantage of the good site conditions in Wilhelmshaven and make use of the storage and transport infrastructure currently being built in Lower Saxony. Thus, a link to the underground salt cavern storage facilities in Etzel is to be established and the pipelines built and rededicated as part of the H2ercules project are to be used to enable transport to industrial consumers in the west and south of Germany. With high import volumes of up to 250 TWh, the project is expected to contribute to security of supply in Germany and the EU.

          More about the project

          About TES

          Source: Tree Energy Solution

          Tree Energy Solutions (TES) is a green hydrogen company that provides CO2-neutral energy to industry and consumers - in the form of green hydrogen, green gas and green electricity. To build a network with global reach, TES is currently developing sites in Germany, Belgium, France, the Netherlands and the United States to import and distribute energy.

          H2Mare

          H2Mare

          From | Nov 22, 2022 | General, Research, News, Hydrogen Production

          PROJECTS

          ©MUSource: Project Management Jülich on behalf of the BMBF.

          H2Mare - Green hydrogen from the sea

          For the successful market ramp-up of green hydrogen, it must be produced cost-effectively. In this context, offshore wind energy can offer a good instrument for producing inexpensive green hydrogen - especially if the hydrogen can be produced directly on site without cost-intensive infrastructure. This is precisely what is currently being investigated in the hydrogen lead project "H2Mare" project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

          Offshore wind turbines offer great potential for the cost-effective generation of renewable energy - and thus also for the production of low-cost green hydrogen. Compared to onshore wind turbines, offshore wind turbines offer a higher average rated power and generate electricity comparatively continuously. These advantages are to be used in the H2Mare project to produce low-cost green hydrogen directly on site at sea. Due to the local generation by means of wind power, the infrastructure costs - and thus also the costs for the green hydrogen overall - can be significantly reduced.

          In addition to the production of green hydrogen at sea, the production of downstream products such as green methanol or green ammonia, which can be used and transported flexibly, is also planned. To this end, the project partners want to test the use of technologies that enable carbon dioxide and nitrogen production at sea - a prerequisite for the production of green methanol and green ammonia.

          In addition, future-oriented approaches such as seawater or steam electrolysis are to be tested and further advanced, as this could eliminate the need for desalination of seawater - and thus a further production step. Due to the work in a sensitive ecosystem, safety and the question of possible environmental impacts are also at the center of the research work.

          Source: Project Management Jülich on behalf of the BMBF.

          This is being implemented in four sub-projects:

          "OffgridWind"

          In the "OffgridWind" project, the prerequisites are to be created for integrating an electrolyzer in a new wind turbine. This requires not only a different foundation than for "conventional" offshore plants, but also a new wind turbine design.

          "H2Wind"

          The H2Mare project "H2Wind" is investigating the electrolyzer to be used in the plants. The aim is that the water electrolyzer used should ultimately be able to operate very efficiently and almost self-sufficiently.

          "PtX Wind"

          The third sub-project "PtX-Wind" focuses on power-to-X technology and in particular on the production of green methanol and green ammonia. For this purpose,CO2 and nitrogen are to be extracted from the air on site, which are necessary for the production of methanol and ammonia. The PtX Wind project is also investigating seawater electrolysis: This should make it possible to use the water extracted from the sea directly in the electrolysis process - so that desalination would no longer be necessary.

          "TransferWind"

          The last H2Mare project "TransferWind" deals with overarching issues such as safety and environmental issues or infrastructure requirements at sea. In addition, the results from the other projects are to be brought together in this sub-project and an exchange between the diverse project partners is to take place.

          Further information

          Two research institutions from Lower Saxony are participating in the project, which is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). In addition to Leibniz Universität Hannover, these include the Offshore Wind Energy Foundation from Varel.

          You can find more about the project here.