Nieuwegein has had a hydrogen refuelling station since June. This is the first hydrogen refuelling station in the province of Utrecht. The use of solar energy will eventually enable the production of green hydrogen. The filling station is suitable for passenger cars, buses and trucks.
The filling station was built by Hysolar and Greenpoint. The opening is in line with the 'Covenant on hydrogen in mobility province of Utrecht', under which nearly 100 organisations have now signed. Hysolar and Greenpoint see an important role here for green hydrogen, hydrogen generated using renewable energy. The production of green hydrogen is planned for 2022. Until then, customers will fill up with CO2-compensated hydrogen at the filling station.
Optimising efficiency, price and sustainability
Hysolar was founded by contracting company Jos Scholman and Allied Waters. They have had their own company cars running on hydrogen since 2019, after which tractors and other heavy equipment followed. They are joining forces with, among others, Van Kessel/Greenpoint, which brings experience in operating filling stations. Scholt Energy is involved as an energy supplier and balancing service provider lyser for the deployment of the electrolyser that should be operational by 2022.
By combining knowledge from the transport, construction, water and energy sectors, the parties involved aim to achieve an optimum of efficiency, price and sustainability in the field of both green hydrogen and transport.
Producing green hydrogen
The filling station should eventually produce green hydrogen. To do so, the station uses sustainable electricity from a nearby solar park with a capacity of 9 megawatt peak. A 2 megawatt (MW) electrolyser produces around 250 tonnes of hydrogen on an annual basis, which is enough to power 1,000 passenger cars or 50 public transport buses.
The parties will make smart use of the electrolyser. In doing so, they will use buffer capacity. Thus, the balance between efficiency, price and sustainability depends on, among other things, energy prices, yield of solar parks, demand for hydrogen, demand for regulating capacity and local congestion of the electricity grid. The parties are deploying buffer capacity. Here, the operation of the electrolyser is tailored to the available amount of solar energy, energy price and demand for regulating power. Buffer capacity ensures that the filling station nevertheless remains operational.
For instance, an electrolyser can be used to absorb fluctuations in the production of sustainable energy such as solar energy. If there is a surplus of sustainable energy, the electrolyser converts energy into green hydrogen. Conversely, does a shortage of renewable energy occur at a later date? Then the system returns the energy to the electricity grid. This helps absorb peaks and troughs on the grid.
Hydrogen plant at North Sea Port
Other parties are also experimenting with green hydrogen and increasing the balance between supply and demand. These include VoltH2 Terneuzen and Virya Energy, which are realising a hydrogen plant in North Sea Port. This will have a 25MW electrolyser capable of producing up to 3.6 million kg of green hydrogen on an annual basis. In time, the capacity can be scaled up to 100MW, with a production capacity of 14.4 million kg of green hydrogen per year.
Plant will include storage and distribution capabilities. For instance, excess sustainable energy can be used to produce green hydrogen, which the plant then stores. If demand for energy exceeds production, the stored hydrogen can be used to supply additional energy to the electricity grid.
VoltH2 Terneuzen and Virya Energy also want to build a hydrogen filling station at this factory in the long term. This is intended for trucks, buses and ships, among others. In addition, the parties want to distribute hydrogen via both road, rail and hydrogen to filling stations in the area and the Dutch gas network.
Battolyser Systems
Battolyser Systems is also betting on the use of hydrogen to achieve more balance in the demand and production of sustainable energy. Battolyser Systems is a spin-off of TU Delft and set up by the university in cooperation with Proton Ventures and Fokko Mulder, Professor of Chemical Sciences at TU Delft.
The system is called a Battolyser. Fully charged, the system functions like an electrolyser and then produces hydrogen from water and renewable energy with high efficiency. Once a shortage of renewable energy occurs, the Battolyser releases the stored energy to the electricity grid.
Author: Wouter Hoeffnagel
