The government is making 450 million euros available for the construction of a large-scale underground hydrogen storage facility in Zuidwending. This will be the first hydrogen storage facility of its kind in the Netherlands.
The funds are earmarked for the implementation of the HyStock project. The project is intended to ensure that the Netherlands has sufficient hydrogen storage capacity in good time.
Making the energy system more sustainable
Hydrogen plays a key role in making the Dutch energy system more sustainable and in the energy transition. At the same time, the Netherlands holds a strong position as an energy and industrial powerhouse in Europe.
The investment in underground hydrogen storage in Zuidwending is intended to help maintain this position. According to the government, for a hydrogen supply chain to function effectively, production, transport, use and storage must be developed simultaneously.
Avoiding a weak link
By investing in underground hydrogen storage, the government aims to prevent storage from becoming the weak link in the chain. Among other things, the investment is intended to contribute to greater security of energy supply. It is also intended to prepare the Netherlands for a future in which green hydrogen plays an important role and is produced using renewable energy.
Stientje van Veldhoven, Minister for Climate and Green Growth: “A sustainable energy system is built in a coordinated manner. That is why we are now also investing in hydrogen storage. In this way, we ensure that clean energy is available when we need it, we strengthen our energy security and we create the conditions for an innovative and competitive economy.”
Long-term project
The hydrogen storage project is expected to take ten to fifteen years to complete. The government points out that the hydrogen market is still in its early stages. As a result, market players are currently neither able nor willing to bear the full risk of investing in hydrogen storage themselves. The government is therefore supporting the development of this storage facility.
In this regard, the government highlights three specific risks that private investors are not yet willing to bear:
- the uncertain price of so-called ‘cushion gas’;
- the risk that the storage facility will not fill up sufficiently in the first few years;
- Possible delays due to planning permission.
The government emphasises that the investment is no guarantee against higher-than-expected construction costs, nor is it a ‘free pass for business risks’. HyStock remains responsible for the implementation of the project.
Four salt caverns
Hydrogen is to be stored in Zuidwending in four new salt caverns to be constructed. The investment will also be used to build facilities to pump hydrogen into and out of the caverns.
Zuidwending has been chosen as the site due to its existing experience with underground gas storage. An underground gas storage facility was commissioned in 2011 between Zuidwending and Ommelanderwijk. It is the first site in the Netherlands where gas is stored in salt caverns. The storage facility is intended to balance out fluctuations in the demand for natural gas.
Connection to the national hydrogen network
In addition, the government highlights Zuidwending’s excellent connection to the national hydrogen network. This network links five industrial clusters with one another, with other countries and with sites for the import and storage of hydrogen. The aim is to give all industrial regions access to hydrogen infrastructure and to make the Netherlands the hydrogen hub of Europe.
