Hydrogen

Once thought of in a niche sense, the solar-water nexus is a rapidly expanding network of applications. They include practical tools capable of solving persistent issues like water scarcity, as well as newly pressing issues like overcoming the water challenge of green hydrogen production. Blake Matich looks at such applications here in Australia and abroad.

Elsewhere, several hydrogen projects were announced in Norway, Germany, India, China and the UK. Royal Dutch Shell started operations at the power-to-hydrogen electrolyzer in China and Germany’s Linde Engineering signed a contract for the construction a green hydrogen demonstration plant in Norway. Furthermore, Green Hydrogen Systems signed a supply agreement with Edinburgh-based Logan Energy to deliver electrolysis equipment for a project in England.

The InterContinental Energy company behind two proposed green hydrogen megaprojects in Western Australia – the 26GW Asian Renewable Energy Hub and the 50GW Western Green Energy Hub – has received the backing of Singapore’s US$744 billion sovereign wealth fund GIC.

New research from the U.K. shows the increasing competitiveness of long-distance hydrogen interconnectors over the next three decades. Compared to high-voltage electricity cables, hydrogen interconnectors may soon achieve a much lower levelized cost of storage and their ability to further reduce the final LCOE will depend on how much electrolyzer costs will reduce over the years.

The Chinese solar developer, which has sold off four-fifths of its PV project capacity to state-owned entities, wants the permission of the holders of $420 million of 2024 senior notes to change the terms of their investment so it can buy Ethiopian natural gas from a connected business.

A speech delivered by the European Commission’s executive VP for the European Green Deal reiterated the EU executive’s belief natural gas will play a part in the energy transition, 24 hours before a member of an advisory panel hit out at plans to deem gas and nuclear sustainable energy sources.

According to BloombergNEF, electrolyzer shipments may reach up to 2.5GW in 2022, up significantly from 458MW last year. China and the United States will become the world’s first and second markets, respectively.

Germany-based Linde Engineering has started up a full-scale pilot plant in Dormagen to showcase how hydrogen can be separated from natural gas streams using its membrane technology. Furthermore, Abu Dhabi-based renewable energy developer Masdar has teamed up with French energy giants Engie and Totalenergies on two separate hydrogen projects and Sweden’s nuclear power company OKG signed its first contract with an external buyer to enter the hydrogen market as a producer and supplier.

The Suiso Frontier cargo vessel docked at Victoria’s Port of Hastings on Friday to take on the world’s first shipment of liquid hydrogen. The ship’s arrival is a landmark for the Japanese-Australian Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain pilot project, which sees liquefied hydrogen generated from brown coal, and an engineering milestone in itself. But while the Australian government describes the product as “clean”, experts maintain that carbon capture and storage technology has proven only to be an expensive failure.

Australian startup Endua’s plan to make modular hydrogen-powered energy generation and storage systems has been given a financial boost, as the federal government has provided it with almost AUD 1 million ($719,800) to help it commercialize its technologies.