The Anonymous Widower

Pipeline Of UK Energy Storage Projects Grows By Two-Thirds Over Last 12 Months

The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from RenewableUK.

These four paragraphs summarise the data.

A new report released today by RenewableUK shows that the pipeline of energy storage projects which are operational, under construction, consented or being planned has increased by more than two-thirds over the last year in terms of capacity.

Batteries play a key role in our modern flexible energy system, helping grid operators to finely balance the supply of electricity to meet demand at all times.

Our EnergyPulse Energy Storage report shows that the total pipeline of battery projects has increased from 50.3 gigawatts (GW) a year ago to 84.8GW, an increase of 68.6% (34.5GW).

Operational battery storage capacity has grown to 3.5GW, and the capacity of projects under construction has reached 3.8GW. A further 24.5GW has been consented, 27.4GW has been submitted in the planning system and 25.7GW is at an early stage of development but yet to be submitted. This chart shows the total UK battery portfolio in megawatts (MW).

Note.

  1. I find the bare statistics very heartening, as how often do you find any industry, that will be positive for the future of the planet, that increases in size in a year by 68.6 %.
  2. Having been involved a couple of times in my life, with funding high growth markets, I suspect that in part this growth is happening, because banks, insurance and other financial companies  are prepared to fund schemes that are proposed.

It is worth reading the press release in full, as it flags up are several interesting points.

December 21, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage, Finance & Investment | | Leave a comment

Thousands Pay More Tax In ‘Chaotic’ Yousaf Budget

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article in The Times.

It has this sub-heading.

Efforts to plug £1.5bn funding hole put Scotland at a disadvantage, say business leaders

I have a feeling that the rise in  income tax will have unintended consequences.

The UK’s Current Hydrogen Plans

Last week, the UK Government announced grants for eleven big hydrogen projects, around the UK, with two in Scotland. The new Scottish electrolysers will be playing a large part in decarbonising the Scotch whisky industry and HGVs.

I wrote Major Boost For Hydrogen As UK Unlocks New Investment And Jobs to describe the investments scope and benefits.

The Government estimated that these grants will create 700 jobs, across the UK.

How many quality high-paid jobs will this funding create in Scotland? As two of the eleven projects are based in Scotland, it could be around 127 quality jobs.

More UK Hydrogen Plans Are On The Way

The Government also indicated that this was only the first stage of bringing hydrogen production to the UK, so I will expect more high-paid quality jobs will be created.

Projected UK Offshore Wind Power

This Wikipedia entry is a list of all installed, under-construction and proposed offshore wind farms in the UK.

Aggregating the new unbuilt wind farms says the following capacity will very likely be installed in the UK in the next few years.

  • Scotland – 32, 750 MW.
  • England – 25,558 MW
  • Wales – 700 MW

As more proposals have been called for, particularly in the Celtic Sea, I don’t think it would be unreasonable to add perhaps another 10,000 MW.

Wind farms are also proposed for around the island of Ireland and in the waters of the Channel Islands.

Upgrading Of The National Grid

These three posts could well be forerunners of other posts, I will write in the next few months.

National Grid is increasing its capacity at a fast pace and will need a large number of quality engineers.

Crossrail And Electrical Engineers/Electricians

I suspect we’ll find, that when a report on the late delivery of Crossrail is published, an electrician shortage will get some of the blame.

I have friends, who are electricians. Because of the shortage of trained electricians, they were offered fortunes to work on Crossrail.

Do We Have Enough Engineers?

For all the reasons I have outlined, our path to net-zero will need a lot of trained electrical engineers and electricians and just as Crossrail showed, when there is a shortage of labour in a particular area, remuneration rises.

Electrical engineers and electricians in the British Isles will be able to pick and choose the jobs they take, just as they did with Crossrail and the other major projects being built at the same time.

Effects On Scotland

If you were an engineer, who had skills and could work on these projects, would you prefer to work on a project, where the tax rate was lower?

Scotland’s tax rise will harm their decarbonisation ambitions.

Surely, the Greens should have vetoed a tax increase, which will inevitably slow their progress to net-zero?

Or are Greens a tad short of the grey matter?

Conclusion

I believe the Scottish government has shot itself in the foot.

 

December 20, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance & Investment, Hydrogen | , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Major Boost For Hydrogen As UK Unlocks New Investment And Jobs

The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from the Government.

These three bullet points, act as sub-headings.

  • Eleven new production projects will invest around £400 million up front over the next 3 years, growing the UK’s green economy

  • More than 700 jobs to be created, representing the largest number of commercial scale green hydrogen production projects announced at once anywhere in Europe

  • New certainty for industry as government sets out hydrogen ambitions, including future production, transport and storage rounds

These two paragraphs outline the investment.

Over 700 jobs will be created across the UK in a world-leading hydrogen industry from the South West of England to the Highlands of Scotland, backed by £2 billion in government funding over the next 15 years.

Energy Security Secretary Claire Coutinho today (Thursday 14 December) announced backing for 11 major projects to produce green hydrogen – through a process known as electrolysis – and confirmed suppliers will receive a guaranteed price from the government for the clean energy they supply.

Note.

  1. This represents the largest number of commercial scale green hydrogen production projects announced at once anywhere in Europe.
  2. It is green hydrogen produced by electrolysis.
  3. The projects appear to be distributed around the UK.
  4. 125 MW of new hydrogen for businesses will be delivered.

I detailed the shortlist in Hydrogen Business Model / Net Zero Hydrogen Fund: Shortlisted Projects Allocation Round 2022, which used this press release from the Government as source.

Projects And Topics

This notice from the Government lists the eleven successful projects.

Projects and topics mentioned in the notice include.

Bradford Low Carbon Hydrogen

I was very impressed, when I went to see the public exhibition of this project.

  • One of the reasons for building the electrolyser, is that Bradford has too many steep hills for electric buses, so will have to use more powerful hydrogen buses.
  • I also got talking to a Bradford councillor, who said that they were going to use hydrogen to attract businesses to the city.
  • It’s also rather large with a capacity of 24.5 MW.

The press release also gives this comment from Gareth Mills, Managing Director at N-Gen who said.

This is an important and exciting project, not just for Bradford, but also for the wider area and the community that lives here, so we are delighted to now have financial backing from government to allow us to start work on the site.

Bradford Council declared a climate emergency in 2019 and we believe this facility will play an important role in helping the area deliver on its climate change ambitions.

We know hydrogen can support decarbonising all energy types including transport, and producing green hydrogen is central to this, so we’re really excited to work with Hygen to deliver this development.

I very much feel that other large towns and cities will follow Bradford’s example.

Carlton Power

Carlton Power is a developer, who have been successful with bids for three hydrogen production projects.

The links go to the respective web sites.

The press release also gives this comment from Eric Adams, Carlton Power’s Hydrogen Projects Director who said.

We are delighted with today’s announcement from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ).  Securing contracts for each project – totalling 55MW of capacity and an investment of c£100 million, and each with planning consent – is a major achievement and places Carlton Power among the leading British companies that are helping to build the hydrogen economy in the UK.

The press release also gives this comment from Keith Clarke, Founder and Chief Executive of Carlton Power who said.

We are supporting UK industry to decarbonise their operations, supporting the UK’s efforts to reach net zero and we are a catalyst for green investment and jobs into the UK regions.  Working with our financial partners, Schroders Greencoat, we can now work towards Final Investment Decisions for each scheme in the early part of next year and thereafter work to have the 3 enter commercial operation within 2 years.

Carlton Power seem pleased, they got all the projects, they wanted.

Cromarty Hydrogen Project

The Cromarty Hydrogen Project has a web site, where this is said about the background of the project.

This Proposed Development would form part of the North of Scotland Hydrogen Programme recognised in the Scottish Government’s Hydrogen Action Plan1 The North of Scotland Hydrogen Programme is a strategic programme in line with the Scottish Government’s resolve to achieve Net Zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2045 and the UK Government’s ambition by 2050. The programme is aimed at developing hydrogen production hubs across the North of Scotland to supply hydrogen, initially to meet industrial and heavy goods vehicle (HGV) transport demand in the near term and then expand to cater to additional hydrogen demands in the future.

The Cromarty Hydrogen Project is the first project in the Scotland Hydrogen Programme. It originated from a collaboration between the Port of Cromarty Firth, ScottishPower, Glenmorangie, Whyte & Mackay and Diageo and the project originator, Storegga during the feasibility stage. This project is looking to develop a green hydrogen production hub in the Cromarty Firth region and revolves around the local distilleries forming the baseload demand for early phases of the project, which would enable them to decarbonise in line with their own ambitions and sector targets.

Note.

  1. In Cromarty Firth And Forth To Host First Green Freeports, I talk about how Cromarty Firth is going to be a green freeport.
  2. The electrolyser is a medium-sized one at 10.6 MW.
  3. Initially HGVs will take a large part of the output.

The distillers seem to be playing a large part. I assume it it’s because distilling needs a lot of heat to boil off all the water from a spirit.

The press release also gives this comment from Sarah Potts, Storegga’s Hydrogen Managing Director, who said.

After a lot of hard work by the integrated Storegga and ScottishPower project team, particularly over the past 18 months since the UK government launch of HAR1, I’m delighted that Cromarty has been selected by the UK government Department of Energy Security and Net Zero as one of 11 projects to be awarded a funding support contract. As an SME originating from North East Scotland, I believe Storegga is able to bring a unique perspective and ambition to deliver decarbonisation solutions for Scottish industry. We look forward to now being able to take the project forward to a final investment decision in 2024, with first production in 2026 and continuing to grow our hydrogen investments in the region.

The Cromarty Hydrogen Project appears to be a local project developed to satisfy a local need, but within Government policy.

Green Hydrogen 3

I wrote about this project in Government Hydrogen Boost To Help Power Kimberly-Clark Towards 100% Green Energy Target.

It is being developed by HYRO at Northfleet for Kimberly-Clark.

The press release also gives this comment from Alex Brierley, co-head of Octopus Energy Generation’s fund management team, who said.

This is a major milestone as this funding will enable HYRO to roll out green hydrogen projects at scale in hard-to-electrify industrial processes. Our first project will be working with Kimberly-Clark to flush away fossil fuels when manufacturing Andrex and Kleenex. We’ve got a big pipeline of projects to help even more industrial businesses decarbonise – and we’re on track to invest billions in this sector.

Note.

  1. Will Andrex become the bog-roll of choice for the supporters of Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil?
  2. Octopus Energy seem to be getting their fingers into lots of projects.
  3. I suspect that Octopus Energy will need billions.

I very much like the way that Kimberly-Clark are going and it will be interesting, if they bring out a sales philosophy based on low-carbon manufacture.

Hydrogen Blending

The press release talks of hydrogen blending.

Ministers have also announced their decision to support hydrogen blending in certain scenarios – subject to an assessment of safety evidence and final agreement.

Currently, less than 1% of the gas in distribution networks is hydrogen. Under proposals, hydrogen could be blended with other gases in the network as an offtaker of last resort, working to reduce costs in the hydrogen sector by helping producers, and to support the wider energy system.

Hydrogen blending may help achieve the UK’s net zero ambitions, but would have a limited and temporary role as the UK moves away from the use of natural gas.

When I was a wet-behind-the-ears young engineer working on ICI’s hydrogen plant at Runcorn in the 1960s, one of the topics over coffee was how can ICI find more markets for the hydrogen they produce. I suspect a lot of the excess hydrogen went to raise steam in ICI’s power station. That wasn’t very efficient or profitable.

But suppose it is deemed safe to have up to 5 % of hydrogen in the natural gas supply. Then an electrolyser operator, would know they have an offtaker of last resort, which would in effect set a minimum price for the hydrogen.

  • I believe this could help their sales of hydrogen to heavy gas users, within easy reach by pipeline or truck of the electrolyser.
  • It might also attract businesses with a heavy energy usage or large carbon emissions to relocate close to an electrolyser.

Allowing hydrogen blending will also mean that no expensive hydrogen is wasted.

The government’s proposal on hydrogen blending is very sensible.

Hydrogen In Home Heating

The press release says this about using hydrogen for home heating.

Ministers have decided not to proceed with a hydrogen trial in Redcar, as the main source of hydrogen will not be available. The government recognises the potential role of hydrogen in home heating and will assess evidence from the neighbourhood trial in Fife, as well as similar schemes across Europe, to decide in 2026 whether and how hydrogen could help households in the journey to net zero.

I believe the ideal way to heat homes and other buildings depends on what is available at the building’s location.

Promising ideas are coming through, but I haven’t seen one that will suit my circumstances.

But something will come through and my engineering instinct says it will be powered by natural gas and the carbon will be captured. The system would probably work on a district-wide basis.

HyMarnham

HyMarnham is probably the most unusual of the projects.

It is a collaboration between J G Pears and GeoPura.

J G Pears describe themselves like this on their web site.

JG Pears is one of the UK’s leading processors of animal by-products and food waste. Pioneering environmentally-aware practices since we started out in 1972, we play a vital role in the agricultural and food industries.

GeoPura has this mission statement on their web site.

GeoPura has a totally zero-emissions answer to how we’re going to generate, store and distribute the vast amount of energy required to decarbonise our global economies. Clean fuels. Green fuels. We believe that renewable energy is the future.

It appears that a 9.3 MW electrolyser will be built on the site of the demolished High Marnham coal-fired power station, which is shown on this Google Map.

Note.

  1. The River Trent runs North-South across the map.
  2. There are two villages of High and Low Marnham in the middle of the map.
  3. The circles at the top of the map indicate the cooling towers of the demolished High Marnham power station.
  4. The High Marnham power station site is now owned by J G Pears.
  5. J G Pears Newark site is to the West of Low Marnham village.
  6. In the North-East corner of the map is the Fledborough viaduct, which crosses the River Trent.
  7. Network Rail’s High Marnham Test Track runs East-West across the map and uses the Fledborough viaduct to cross the Trent.

This second Google Map shows a close up of the former power station site.

Note.

  1. Network Rail’s High Marnham Test Track runs East-West across the map at the top.
  2. The remains of High Marnham power station can be clearly seen.
  3. The sub-stations that connected the power station to the grid are still in place.

This article on Energy-Pedia is entitled UK: HyMarnham Power’s Green Hydrogen Project Shortlisted for UK’s Net Zero Hydrogen Fund and contains this paragraph.

Harnessing the expertise of GeoPura and JG Pears, the site will be powered by 43 MW of new solar energy and utilises 8MW of electrolysers; establishing a long-term supply of low carbon hydrogen in the region.

Note that the electrolysers are now sized at 9.3 MW.

It looks to me like one or both companies wanted an electrolyser and J G Pears had the site, so engineers and executives of the two companies got together in a decent real ale pub, started thinking and the result is HyMarnham.

  • Electricity can come from the solar panels or the National Grid.
  • Excess solar electricity can be exported through the National Grid.
  • There is plenty of space on the site for a hydrogen filling station for vehicles.
  • There could even be a filling point for refueling hydrogen-powered trains on the High Marnham Test Track.

The Energy-Pedia article indicates that GeoPura and JG Pears would like to get started this year.

Could the partners install a small electrolyser linked to the National Grid, initially, so that Network Rail has the ability to test hydrogen trains?

InchDairnie Distillery In Scotland

I have just looked at the InchDairnie Distillery web site.

  • It looks a high class product.
  • The company is best described as Scotch Whisky Reimagined.
  • The company is based in Fife near Glenrothes.
  • They appear to have just launched a rye whisky, which they are aiming to export to Canada, Japan and Taiwan.

The press release says this about InchDairnie.

InchDairnie Distillery in Scotland, who plan to run a boiler on 100% hydrogen for use in their distilling process.

That would fit nicely with the image of the distillery.

I suspect the hydrogen will be brought in by truck.

But would a zero-carbon whisky be a hit at Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil parties?

PD Ports In Teesside

The press release says this about PD Ports.

PD Ports in Teesside, who will use hydrogen to replace diesel in their vehicle fleet, decarbonising port operations from 2026

I’ve felt for some time, that ports and freight interchanges, where you have lots of cranes, trucks and other diesel-powered equipment running hither and thither, is a good application for hydrogen, as not only does it cut carbon-emissions, but it also provides cleaner air for the workforce.

PD Ports have a Wikipedia entry, where this is said about their operations.

As of 2013 PD Ports owns and operates the Ports of Tees and Hartlepool under the name Teesport. The company also operates the Hull Container Terminal at the Port of Hull, and provides stevedoring and warehousing services at the Port of Immingham; logistics and warehousing at the Port of Felixstowe, Scunthorpe, and Billingham; and operates a wharf on the Isle of Wight. The company also owns the short sea ports in Scunthorpe (Groveport), Howden (Howdendyke, River Ouse, Yorkshire), and Keadby (River Trent).

The company appears to be bigger, than just Teesport and this project could grow.

The hydrogen for this project in Teesport appears to come from Tees Green Hydrogen, which will be a 5.2 MW facility developed by EDF Renewables Hydrogen.

The press release also gives this comment from Sopna Sury, Chief Operating Officer Hydrogen RWE Generation, who said.

Today’s announcements on the first 2 hydrogen allocation rounds mark a significant milestone in the development of the UK hydrogen economy. They represent a shift from policy development to project delivery, giving industry more clarity on the route to final investment decisions. Alongside the wider policy publications, this demonstrates that the UK wants to be a leader in delivering the clean energy transition.

These early projects are vital not only in driving the production of electrolytic hydrogen but also in signalling the need to build-out the T&S infrastructure for its wider distribution.

As a company with ambitions to develop approximately 2 gigawatts of green hydrogen projects across all our markets, and to invest around 8 billion euros net in green technologies in the UK between 2024-2030, RWE looks forward to being part of building a thriving hydrogen ecosystem in the UK.

These are positive words from the German energy company; RWE.

Sofidel In South Wales

The press release says this about Sofidel.

Sofidel in South Wales, who will replace 50% of their current gas boiler consumption with hydrogen at their Port Talbot paper mill.

The Wikipedia entry for the Sofidel Group has this first paragraph.

Sofidel is an Italian multinational producer of tissue paper for sanitary and domestic use. The Sofidel Group was founded in 1966. It is one of the world leaders in the tissue paper market and the second largest producer in Europe behind Essity. The privately held company is owned by the Stefani and Lazzareschi families, has subsidiaries in 13 countries and more than 6,600 employees.

Note.

  1. From the Wikipedia entry, it looks like the company has a good record on sustainability and has set itself good objectives.
  2. Sofidel are nor far from Tata Steel, who could be another large hydrogen user.
  3. Port Talbot will be a support port for the wind farms in the Celtic Sea.
  4. This is a typical hydrogen application, which reduces emission of carbon dioxide.
  5. But like me, have the Italian owners of the company been impressed with some of the Italian food, I’ve eaten in South Wales?
  6. Are British sweeteners better than Italian ones?
  7. The hydrogen for this project appears to come from HyBont Bridgend, which will be a 5.2 MW facility developed by Marubeni Europower.

The press release also gives this comment from Mr Tomoki Nishino, President and CEO of Marubeni Europower Ltd, who said.

Marubeni team is very honoured to be selected as a recipient of Hydrogen Allocation Round 1. Recently in October 2023, Marubeni signed an MoU with the UK government whereby we have shown our plan to invest £10 billion (along with our partners) into UK green business. We truly hope that a combination of HAR1 funding and Marubeni’s investment help decarbonize UK through HyBont, especially in the South Wales region.

It all seems to be happening in Port Talbot.

Tees Green Hydrogen

Tees Green Hydrogen is a 5.2 MW project being developed by EDF Renewables on Teesside.

The project has a web site, which has this project description on the home page.

Tees Green Hydrogen, will be a pioneering project, using the green electricity from nearby Teesside Offshore Wind Farm along with a new solar farm, which EDF Renewables UK intends to construct near Redcar, to power its hydrogen electrolyser.

The press release also gives this comment from Tristan Zipfel, Director of Strategy and Analysis at EDF Renewables UK, who said.

Today’s announcement is a huge leap forward for green hydrogen innovation which has the capacity to guarantee the long-term sustainability of industry in the North East. We are delighted that the government has given this vote of confidence in both EDF Renewables UK, Hynamics and the capacity of the region to be a world-leader in green technology and innovation.

The press release also gives this comment from Pierre de Raphelis-Soissan, CEO at Hynamics UK, who said.

This is a very important step towards realising the potential of Tees Green Hydrogen and making a ground breaking contribution to decarbonisation in the Tees Valley. The project is uniquely placed to be scalable in order that future demand can be met as hydrogen-based technology becomes the industrial norm.

Note.

  1. The project will be powered by both wind and solar.
  2. Hynamics is a subsidiary of EDF.
  3. I suspect that this project will supply PD Ports with hydrogen.

This project looks like it could be just a starter for 5.2 MW.

West Wales Hydrogen

West Wales Hydrogen is a 14.2 MW project being developed by H2 Energy and Trafigura in West Wales.

The best source of information is this must-watch Youtube video.

  • The company appears to be able to lease you a hydrogen truck on a pay per mile basis, at the same price as a diesel truck.
  • Get the finance right for your customers and yourself and everybody will be happy.

I know it will work, as I used to own half a company that leased a lot of trucks in Ipswich.

  • My experience, also says the model would work with taxis, Transit-sized vans, company cars and vehicles like Defenders.
  • It would also work very well around Ipswich, like my company did.

The press release also gives this comment from Julien Rolland, CEO of H2 Energy Europe, who said.

We are very grateful for the support that the UK government has announced for our 20MW electrolytic hydrogen production facility, marking a significant milestone in our journey to develop South Wales’s first large-scale green hydrogen production plant. The facility will enable industry in South Wales to transition to using green hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources.

The green hydrogen produced at Milford Haven will be used to displace natural gas and other fossil fuels in industrial and chemical processes and contribute to the decarbonisation of the local industry. The interest that we’ve already received from local industry means we are already reviewing the opportunity to scale up the facility.

I can see this model being applied all over the UK.

Whitelee Green Hydrogen

Whitelee Green Hydrogen is a 7.1 MW project being developed by Scottish Power close to the Whitelee Wind Farm.

The Whitelee Wind Farm has a comprehensive Wikipedia entry, where this is said about the future of the wind farm.

In May 2009, the Scottish Government granted permission for an extension to the wind farm to produce up to a further 130 megawatts of power, which would increase the total generating capacity of Whitelee to 452 MW.

In 2010 a 75 turbine extension commenced, adding an additional 217 MW of capacity, enough to power the equivalent of over 124,000 homes. This brought the total generating capacity of the wind farm up to 539 MW. Additionally, the extension added a further 44 km of trails to the site. John Sisk and Son Limited and Roadbridge were jointly appointed as Principal Contractors for the site during construction with Alstom Limited erecting and commissioning the wind turbines. 

In August 2012 Scottish Power announced that it was applying for a further small extension of five turbines on the west of the existing site, adding 12 MW of capacity. This was refused by the DPEA on 19 Oct 2016.

A £21 million (US$29.35 million) 50MW/50MWh grid battery is being added to improve resource utilization, with plans for a 40 MW solar farm and a 20 MW hydrogen electrolyzer.

The press release also gives this comment from Peter Jones, Director of ScottishPower Green Hydrogen Business, who said.

The first wave of production facilities like Whitelee and Cromarty will demonstrate that zero-emission hydrogen can be delivered at commercial scale and drive the development of a viable market for the green fuel. 

It will also create highly skilled green jobs across the UK and quickly support a world leading supply chain.

It’s early days for this burgeoning market and government support is to be welcomed to help deliver a future green hydrogen economy.

With 539 MW of wind, 40 MW of solar and a 50MW/50MWh grid battery to drive a 7.1 MW electrolyser, this should prove to be a reliable source of green hydrogen.

My Thoughts

I have a few extra thoughts.

Coverage Is Rather Patchy

Some areas of the UK don’t seem to be well-served with green hydrogen from this funding.

  • East Suffolk with all those trucks going to and from the Port of Felixstowe. There’s certainly no lack of renewable energy.
  • Humberside with all its energy-hungry industries. There’s certainly no lack of renewable energy.
  • Hampshire with all those trucks going to and from the ports of Portsmouth and Southampton. But there is a lack of renewable energy.
  • Lincolnshire with all those trucks going to and from Immingham. There’s certainly no lack of renewable energy.
  • London with all those local trucks delivering building materials to sites all over the capital. But then the current Mayor doesn’t have a hydrogen policy.

I would assume, that some of these areas will be funded for hydrogen in the second round.

 

December 20, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance & Investment, Hydrogen, Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

SSE Thermal Acquires 50% Stake In H2NorthEast Hydrogen Project

The title of this post is the same as that of this press release from SSE Thermal.

These are the first three introductory paragraphs.

SSE Thermal has become joint owner of a blue hydrogen project in Teesside which is set to play a major role in supporting a reliable decarbonised power system by 2035 and accelerating industrial decarbonisation.

The partnership with Kellas Midstream will see the companies jointly develop H2NorthEast, a hydrogen production facility with carbon capture and storage that could help to kickstart a hydrogen economy in the Tees Valley. The agreement is for an initial consideration of <£10m to Kellas Midstream with further contingent consideration due should the project reach a financial investment decision.

In its first phase, H2NorthEast could deliver up to 355MW of blue hydrogen production capacity from 2028 with plans to scale up to more than 1GW. Offtakers would include heavy industry and power generation, either through blending into existing assets or in new hydrogen-fired plants.

Note.

  1. Production of 355 MW of hydrogen could start in 2028.
  2. Several existing processes have been converted from gas-firing to hydrogen-firing or a blend of natural gas and hydrogen firing. See Lime Kiln Fuelled By Hydrogen Shown To Be Viable.
  3. Teesside has quite a few industries, like steel and chemicals that theoretically could be  converted to hydrogen or a hydrogen blend.

I have some thoughts.

Carbon Capture And Storage

This paragraph in the press release talks about the carbon capture and storage.

With an anticipated minimum carbon capture rate of 97%, H2NorthEast meets both UK and EU low-carbon standards. Specifically, the hydrogen produced via H2NorthEast would be fully compliant with both the UK’s Low Carbon Hydrogen Standard and is expected to be aligned with the EU Taxonomy for sustainable activities.

If the plant can achieve a carbon capture rate of 97 %, that is very good and it appears to meet the required standards.

  • I also feel, that if it is of a high purity, then that could be a bonus, as it could be used in food manufacturing and other processes, where high purity is needed.
  • I feel SSE should endeavour to use as much of the carbon dioxide, as it can to produce valuable by-products, which could include cement substitutes, building blocks, plasterboard and animal feed.
  • Carbon dioxide can also be fed to soft fruit, salad vegetables, tomatoes, flowers and other plants in giant greenhouses or vertical farms.
  • Polyester yarn can also be made from carbon dioxide.

It is my belief that this list of products will grow in the next ten years and carbon dioxide of a high purity will become an important chemical feedstock.

Replacement of Blue Hydrogen With Green

If SSE Renewables were to build an electrolyser  near to H2NorthEast, they could use that to replace the blue hydrogen.

  • From an offtaker’s point of view green and blue hydrogen would be identical.
  • It’s just that the green hydrogen doesn’t produce any carbon dioxide.
  • I can see the complex being run to produce enough carbon dioxide to supply the users that need it and producing blue and/or green hydrogen accordingly.

Hopefully, the more uses that can be found for the carbon dioxide, the less of it will need to use long-term storage.

Expanding The Plant

As blue and green hydrogen plants create an identical product, the decision of whether to add an extra blue hydrogen or green hydrogen plant can be taken solely on financial grounds.

Conclusion

This looks like it could be a very sensible decision by SSE.

 

 

December 13, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance & Investment, Hydrogen | , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

First German Zero-Subsidy Offshore Wind Farm Starts Taking Shape

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.

This is the sub-heading.

Offshore installation work has started at the 913 MW Borkum Riffgrund 3, the first subsidy-free offshore wind farm in Germany to reach this development phase, Ørsted, the developer of the project, said.

These two paragraphs introduce the project.

The first of the 83 monopile foundations have now been installed at the site some 53 kilometres off the island of Borkum in the German North Sea by Jan De Nul’s Lez Alizés.

The installation directly follows the foundation work in the adjacent 253 MW Gode Wind 3 project, which is being built in parallel by Ørsted in the North Sea.

Ørsted’s web site gives this history of Borkum Riffgrund 3.

Borkum Riffgrund 3 is expected to be fully commissioned in 2025. It comprises three offshore wind projects which were originally awarded to Ørsted in auctions in 2017 and 2018 under the names of Borkum Riffgrund West 1, Borkum Riffgrund West 2 and OWP West. The three projects were renamed in September 2019 and will be built as one joint project under the name of Borkum Riffgrund 3.

Borkum Riffgrund 3 was awarded without subsidies to Ørsted. A number of companies across IT, retail and the chemicals industry have signed corporate power purchase agreements for Borkum Riffgrund 3.

If Ørsted is doing this in Germany, how come, we are not seeing more subsidy-free wind farms in Europe?

These two paragraphs from the article give a partial explanation.

After commissioning in 2025, a large part of the electricity generated by the wind farm will be used for the decarbonization of the industry – through the so-called Corporate Power Purchase Agreements (CPPAs). For the project, long-term power purchase agreements were concluded with the companies Covestro, Amazon, the Energie-Handels-Gesellschaft/REWE Group, as well as BASF and Google.

Shares for Borkum Riffgrund 3 were also sold to an institutional investor well before construction. In October 2021, Nuveen signed an agreement with Glennmont Partners to sell 50 percent of the shares in Borkum Riffgrund 3.

The article also states that Borkum Riffgrund 3 will be the largest offshore wind farm in Germany to date.

This Google Map shows the location of the German Borkum island to the North of the Dutch city of Groningen.

Note.

  1. Groningen is the city in the South-West corner of the map.
  2. Borkum is the horseshoe-shaped island at the top of the map.

There are a cluster of wind farms to the North of Borkum, which includes Borkum Riffgrund 1, 2 and 3.

 

December 13, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance & Investment | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

BW Ideol, ABP To Explore Serial Production Of Floating Wind Foundations At Port Talbot

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.

This is the sub-heading.

BW Ideol and Associated British Ports (ABP) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will see the manufacturer of concrete floating wind foundations and ABP investigating the feasibility of serial production at Port Talbot. The MOU has been signed in preparation for the Celtic Sea leasing round, BW Ideol said on Monday (11 December).

These two paragraphs outline the plans of BW Ideol and ABP have for Port Talbot.

According to the company, Port Talbot is the only Celtic Sea port with the scale and technical capabilities to fully maximise the Celtic Sea supply chain opportunity and is ideally located as a manufacturing base since it lies 120-140 kilometres from the floating offshore wind areas outlined by The Crown Estate for the upcoming leasing round.

The news on the MOU between ABP and BW Ideol comes shortly after ABP announced plans to invest around GBP 500 million (approximately EUR 573 million) to upgrade a site in Port Talbot and turn it into a major floating offshore wind hub.

This Google Map shows Port Talbot Port.

Note.

  1. It also looks like there is a Heidelberg Cement facility at the South side of the port.
  2. Port Talbot also has a Tata steelworks.
  3. The railway and the M4 Motorway are nearby.
  4. There’s certainly a lot of water.

The port appears well-placed for raw materials and there is quite a bit of free space to build and launch the concrete floaters.

This page on the BW  Ideol web site describes their Floatgen demonstrator.

The first section is headed by BW Ideol’s First Floater In Operation, where this is said.

Built around a European consortium of 7 partners, Floatgen is a 2MW floating wind turbine demonstrator installed off the coast of Le Croisic on the offshore experimentation site of the Ecole Centrale de Nantes (SEM-REV). This project is being supported by the European Union as part of the FP7 programme. Floatgen is France’s first offshore wind turbine. 5 000 inhabitants are supplied with its electricity.

It looks like it is or almost is a proven system.

The page talks of two large benefits.

  • Innovation at all levels.
  • The highest local content of any floating wind turbine.

For the second, the following is said

In comparison to other steel floating foundations, which are imported from abroad, the use of concrete for BW Ideol’s floating foundation allows the construction to be located as close as possible to the deployment site. Construction at the Saint-Nazaire port was therefore a natural and optimal solution and has created a lot of local content. Additionally, the mooring system was manufactured by LeBéon Manufacturing in Brittany. For the majority of all other components or logistical activities, the Floatgen partners have also opted for suppliers within the Saint-Nazaire region.

Note.

  1. Will ABP and BW Ideol use a similar philosophy at Port Talbot?
  2. Will low-carbon concrete be used to construct the floaters?

I can certainly see the logic of BW Ideol and ABP getting together at Port Talbot.

 

 

December 12, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance & Investment | , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Energy Storage Outranks Solar In Company Investment Plans

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Reuters.

These two paragraphs outline the findings of a survey.

Rising renewable energy capacity and the deployment of electric vehicles will make energy storage the priority technology for energy transition investments in the coming years, according to the 2023 Reuters Events Energy Transition Insights report.

Batteries are spearheading growth in energy storage but a wider range of technology types will be deployed commercially in the coming years.

580 energy professionals were surveyed in Q1 2023.

I am not surprised at these findings, as storing surplus renewable energy must be beneficial.

December 12, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Energy Storage, Finance & Investment | , | Leave a comment

Masdar To Invest In Iberdrola’s 1.4 GW East Anglia Offshore Wind Project

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.

This is the sub-heading.

Iberdrola and Masdar have signed a strategic partnership agreement to evaluate the joint development of offshore wind and green hydrogen projects in Germany, the UK, and the US, which also includes an investment in Iberdrola’s 1.4 GW East Anglia 3 offshore wind project in the UK.

These first two paragraphs outline the del.

After the parties’ successful co-investment in the Baltic Eagle offshore wind farm in Germany, the new milestone of this alliance will be to achieve a further co-investment concerning the 1.4 GW East Anglia 3 offshore wind project in the UK, said the companies.

According to the partners, the deal has been under negotiation for the last few months and could be signed by the end of the first quarter of 2024. Masdar’s stake in the wind farm could be 49 per cent.

This deal appears to be very similar to Masdar’s deal with RWE, that I wrote about in RWE Partners With Masdar For 3 GW Dogger Bank South Offshore Wind Projects.

  • The Iberdrola deal involves the 1.4 GW East Anglia 3 wind farm, which has a Contract for Difference at £37.35 £/MWh and is scheduled to be completed by 2026.
  • The RWE deal involves the 3 GW Dogger Bank South wind farm, which doesn’t have a Contract for Difference and is scheduled to be completed by 2031.
  • Both deals are done with wind farm developers, who have a long track record.
  • Both wind farms are the latest to be built in mature clusters of wind farms, so there is a lot of production and maintenance data available.

I suspect, that many capable engineers and accountants can give an accurate prediction of the cash flow from these wind farms.

I will expect that we’ll see more deals like this, where high quality wind farms are sold to foreign energy companies with lots of money.

Just over five years ago, I wrote World’s Largest Wind Farm Attracts Huge Backing From Insurance Giant, which described how and why Aviva were investing in the Hornsea 1 wind farm.

Conclusion

It appears that Masdar are doing the same as Aviva and usind wind farms as a safe investment for lots of money.

December 5, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance & Investment, Hydrogen | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

RWE Partners With Masdar For 3 GW Dogger Bank South Offshore Wind Projects

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.

This is the sub-heading.

RWE has signed an agreement with UAE’s Masdar as a partner for its 3 GW Dogger Bank South (DBS) offshore wind projects in the UK.

These three paragraphs outline the deal.

The partners acknowledged the signing of the new partnership during a ceremony at COP28 in Dubai.

Masdar will acquire a 49 per cent stake in the landmark renewables projects while RWE, with a 51 per cent share, will remain in charge of development, construction, and operation throughout the life cycle of the projects.

RWE’s proposed DBS offshore wind project is made up of two offshore wind farms, Dogger Bank South East and Dogger Bank South West (DBS East and DBS West), each 1.5 GW, which are located over 100 kilometres offshore in the shallow area of the North Sea known as Dogger Bank.

Note.

  1. Masdar is an energy company headquartered in Abu Dubai.
  2. The Chairman of Masdar is President of COP28.

Does this deal indicate that wind farms are good investments for those individuals, companies and organisations with money?

December 4, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance & Investment | , , , , , , | 3 Comments

UK And South Korea Help Secure Millions For World’s Largest Monopile Factory

The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.

This is the sub-heading.

UK Export Finance (UKEF) and South Korea’s export credit agency Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-Sure) have helped SeAH Wind to secure GBP 367 million in Standard Chartered Bank and HSBC UK financing to build the world’s largest wind monopile manufacturing facility.

These three paragraphs outline the story.

UKEF and K-Sure have secured support worth GBP 367 million for South Korean manufacturer SeAH Steel Holding’s construction of a wind tech factory near Redcar, in the Tees Valley.

Issuing its first-ever “Invest-to-Export” loan guarantee to secure overseas investment in British industry, UKEF together with K-Sure has ensured that SeAH Wind UK can fund the construction project – worth almost GBP 500 million – with GBP 367 million in financing from Standard Chartered Bank and HSBC UK.

SeAH Wind UK, a subsidiary of South Korean steel company SeAH Steel Holding, announced its decision to invest and broke ground at Teesworks Freeport last summer.

The article also says.

  • This is SeAH Wind’s first such investment outside Korea.
  • The factory will make between 100 and 150 monopiles a year.
  • The factory will create 750 jobs when it opens in 2026.
  • The factory is conveniently placed for transport to the North Sea.

Everybody seemed to have worked hard during the state visit of the Korean President and his wife.

November 27, 2023 Posted by | Energy, Finance & Investment | , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

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