Italy commits to renewable hydrogen: millions in investments and key projects up to 2050
Dec 13, 2024
Innovative
Emmanuel Kermarrec, Director of Geosciences and Solution Mining at Storengy, provides deep insight into one of the most promising and crucial challenges of the energy future: underground hydrogen storage. Storengy, the leading European operator of natural gas storage facilities, positions itself as a key player in innovative solutions to produce and store carbon-free energy, such as hydrogen.
With a distinguished career in the organization since 2001, Emmanuel leads a highly specialized team, focusing his efforts on developing renewable innovative solutions, establishing gold-standard global partnerships, and ensuring customer satisfaction. In this interview, he details the possibilities and challenges of this technology, emphasizing its importance in Europe’s energy transition.
Emmanuel Kermarrec, Director of Geosciences and Solution Mining at Storengy
There are several possibilities to store pure hydrogen. The choice depends on the quantity required. Surface tanks can store hundreds of kilograms of hydrogen under pressure, while underground gas storage can store thousands of tonnes of hydrogen. By 2050, 270 Twh of H2 storage shall be required, necessitating large and numerous underground storage facilities.
There are several possibilities to store pure hydrogen. The choice depends on the quantity required
Regarding porous reservoirs such as aquifers or depleted fields, the possibilities for storing hydrogen are still at the R&D level. Indeed hydrogen may chemically or bacterially react with the reservoir materials, potentially leading to the formation of H2S or in situ methanisation instead of retaining hydrogen as a molecule. Feasibility must be assessed on a case-by-case basis, likely requiring pilot tests for each targeted porous reservoir.
Regarding salt caverns, there are currently four underground salt cavern storages in the world that store large quantities of hydrogen. Thus, storing hydrogen in a salt cavern is then already feasible.
Last underground hydrogen storages are often compared with batteries. Today the biggest battery plant in the world stores the equivalent of 40 tonnes of hydrogen, which is tiny compared to the capacity of a underground hydrogen storage.
Today the challenges are both financial and technical. Financially, the circumstances prevent storage operators from making investment decisions, as the viability of hydrogen storage business cases and regulations remain uncertain. Technically, operators must still demonstrate that underground hydrogen storage is safe and beneficial to the future energy system.
The value of underground gas storage today is linked to supply security, the system value (infrastructure sizing optimization), and the arbitrage value (trading).
However, underground hydrogen storage will also carry an environmental value (using base load hydrogen instead of fossil fuels) and a kick-start value (enabling the deployment of RES and balancing their intermittencies).
There are currently four underground salt cavern storages in the world that store large quantities of hydrogen
Arbitrage, environmental and kick-start values require high asset flexibility. Demonstrating this high flexibility remains to be proven.
Several companies are running pilot projects, either in salt caverns and some in porous reservoirs. Storengy has decided to launch two pilot projects.
The first, called HyPSTER, aims to demonstrate the integrity of wells and equipment facing high-frequency cycling of hydrogen. It will also provide some key insights into the hydrogen composition withdrawn from a cavern.
The second, called FrHyGe, in which Enagás is also participating, will involve real cycling of several tonnes of hydrogen at moderate flow. It shall help to improve the construction and process knowledge with hydrogen. As no pipe is connected yet, the tests will be somewhat limited.
FrHyGe, a project in which Enagás is also participating, will involve real cycling of several tonnes of hydrogen at moderate flow
Today, Storengy is pushing for industrial-level projects in the UK and Germany where regulation and government support seem more appropriate for such CAPEX-intensive projects.
For 2030, we need 45 TWh of storage capacity in Europe by 2030 to comply with REPower EU ambition. There is a 36 TWh hydrogen storage gap in the EU. Today, underground hydrogen storage development times are long (5-10 years), and urgent action is needed. H2eart for Europe proposes the following actions to be taken for successful hydrogen storage development until 2030 and beyond:
Policy:
Economics:
Implementations: