As we enter spring, the European energy industry is looking for ways to reduce the duck curve effect (oversupply of solar energy in the mid-day, resulting in low/negative prices
I discussed in previous posts some of the solutions to increase demand in those hours, but I haven’t yet touched upon the controversial topic of hydrogen. Well, the whitepaper from Battolyser Systems collaborated on is a great opportunity for that! Montse Mussons Olivella
The pitch for hydrogen in the energy transition is: “use excess renewable electricity to turn water into hydrogen with electrolysis. Then use the hydrogen in industrial processes or as a fuel for heating”
H2 is indeed a nice way to store renewables, especially for long durations (not best fit for batteries). Yet, there are legitimate arguments to be careful about it:
- Efficiency: you lose 20-50% of the energy during electrolysis. If you turn H2 back into electricity, divide that again by 3. Bottom-line: renewable energy must really be in excess & cheap for electrolysis to make economic & climate sense.
- Limited demand: according to Energy Post, <3% of low emission hydrogen projects planned by 2030 have binding offtake agreements today
- Infrastructure: storage facilities & transportation pipelines are very limited today, and the unclarity on demand doesn’t help investments
The talk in the energy transition about hydrogen progressed a lot over the last few years. The least viable use cases (like individual cars) are almost definitely ruled-out. The current consensus is on hard-to-abate industrial usages like high-temperature heating & chemistry. The challenge is now to make electrolysis economically viable.
The paper shows that flexibility in the timing of electrolysis can reduce costs up to 30%. Beyond, electrolysers can provide balancing services to grid operators. From our experience at Sympower, this creates revenues equivalent to 5-10% of energy costs.
But if electrolysers are to live-up to their decarbonation promise, the industry must double-down on other essential topics:
- Make electrolyzers compatible with variable input of electricity; i.e. allow them to operate safely & efficiently at lower loads. BloombergNEF shows that most electrolyzers have a working range of 50-100% of their max power demand. Manufacturers should strive to increase it, ideally to 10-100%
- Secure electricity inputs are always from renewables. This can be done by directly connecting renewables to electrolyzers off-grid, or through PPAs with hourly matching. Google is showing a very promising path there (last episode of ??Redefining Energy for more on that)
- Develop an ecosystem of market optimizers. Just like for grid-scale batteries, developing an electrolyser project is a very different business than running a trading strategy in complex power markets. Project developers will need support from experts & tech (like Sympower),?to optimize electricity costs
![查看Sympower的公司主页，图片]()
Electrolysers and balancing markets? Perfect duo! ??
We're excited to be part of the Symbatt project led by Battolyser Systems, in which we’re analysing the flexibility potential of electrolysers through their participation in multiple electricity markets.
Recently, Battolyser Systems brought together industry leaders during its #H2ckathon to share insights and align on best practices that will drive progress across the sector. Collective efforts at H2ckathon resulted in a comprehensive whitepaper that delves into electrolyser flexibility. As the report highlights, "balancing markets are expected to become more relevant as the energy transition advances and provide an additional source of revenue for electrolyser owners."
???Flexible electrolysers can achieve a 10-30% reduction in the Levelized Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH). Their flexibility allows load adjustments during costly hours and opens doors for participation in multiple energy markets, boosting revenue. These advancements are pivotal for North-Western Europe's decarbonisation goals.
"While the wide deployment of electrolysers is still on the horizon, their integration will revolutionise the demand side, as significant disruptors. We anticipate they will be crucial for enhancing flexibility in the energy market." -?Montse Mussons Olivella, Sympower's Project Manager Innovation.
???Scan the QR code to download the full white paper and learn more about the potential of flexible electrolysers.
#Electrolysers #EnergyTransition #Innovation #Symbatt
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![H2ckaton - Balancing act: the impact of electrolyser flexibility on green hydrogen cost, industry decarbonization and system integration]()
