29.01.2024
Source: Energy & Management Powernews
The Federal Network Agency has approved the energy supplier EWE to convert a large cavern storage facility at the Huntorf site from natural gas to hydrogen.
The Oldenburg-based energy supplier EWE has been using underground salt caverns in north-west Germany to store natural gas for more than 40 years. In future, hydrogen is also to be stored on a large scale in such caverns. The Federal Network Agency has now given the green light for a large-scale project: EWE may convert a cavern at the Huntorf site to store hydrogen. Subject to funding approval, the conversion of the Huntorf cavern could take place in 2027, EWE announced on 26 January at the request of E&M.
As part of the "HyCAVmobil" research project, EWE has already built the first small-scale underground hydrogen storage facility at the gas storage site in Rüdersdorf, Brandenburg. With this project, EWE wants to demonstrate that hydrogen can be stored safely in salt caverns. The test cavern has now been filled with hydrogen (we reported).
Currently, extensive tests are taking place for the operation of the hydrogen cavern, which will also serve as the basis for future storage in large cavern storage facilities with 1,000 times the volume, EWE told the editorial team. Overall, this is the basis for making hydrogen generated from renewable energies storable in large quantities and usable as needed.
Goal: large-scale hydrogen storage
One of these large caverns is to be built at the Huntorf gas storage site. The aim is to provide hydrogen in line with demand and thus improve the security of supply for hydrogen users. Large-scale hydrogen storage should make this possible, EWE also announced. EWE's cavern site in Huntorf offers the necessary potential for expanding hydrogen production. Depending on the rate of expansion of the regional hydrogen economy, it would be possible to gradually expand hydrogen production from renewable energies up to the gigawatt scale and use the hydrogen cavern for storage.
The project in Huntorf is part of the connecting large-scale project "Clean Hydrogen Coastline". This aims to bring together the production, storage, transportation and use of green hydrogen in industry and heavy goods transport. EWE applied for funding for this project as part of the European IPCEI (Important Project of Common European Interest) program in February 2021 and reached the second stage of the process in May 2021. The actual implementation of the project is dependent on funding approval by the European Commission, which is currently being reviewed at European level.
This project also includes two electrolysis projects - a 320 MW electrolyzer in Emden and a 50 megawatt electrolyzer in Bremen. Here, too, EWE is still waiting for confirmation of funding from the EU Commission.
High electricity generation capacities from onshore and offshore wind power are available for the production of hydrogen in the northwest, for example at the Emden and Diele grid nodes. There is also a sales market for green hydrogen at industrial locations in Lower Saxony, Bremen, Hamburg and North Rhine-Westphalia. Cross-border infrastructures for storage and transportation - in particular the connection to the Netherlands and Denmark - also enable the integration of European locations.
Author: Heidi Roider
