Set Back As Badgers Undermine 11 km Of Railway
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette International.
These four paragraphs outline the problems.
Deutsche Bahn reports that burrowing badgers have undermined about 11 km of embankment on the Fröndenberg – Unna railway, and repairs are likely to be very expensive and take a long time as the damage is more extensive than expected.
In some places the repairs will be equivalent to new construction, and DB says the planning and approval phase alone could take several years as the route passes through protected environments. Local media reports that the financial viability of reopening is being questioned.
DB first discovered the damage in 2022, and initiated repairs using a concrete spraying process. It also began to examine the rest of the route and 140 sett entrances have now been discovered, leading to an extensive tunnel system which is believed to have a total length of around 1 500 m spread over the entire length of the embankment.
The line runs through a nature reserve, so investigations had to be suspended over the summer until a special permit was obtained. Trees and bushes also needed to be cut back. Regional train service RB54 remains suspended between Unna and Fröndenberg and replaced by buses, extending journey times by 7 min.
Note.
- The railway appears to be only single-track from Google Maps.
- Unna station is the Easternmost station of the Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn.
- The RB 54 – Hönnetal-Bahn runs between Fröndenberg and Unna.
I wouldn’t be surprised that this serious problem will be resolved by either closing the railway permanently or by using an expensive rebuild.
How Network Rail Deal With Badgers
I did find this document on the Network Rail web site, which appears to be part of a Safety Course.
There is this page on the Network Rail web site, which is entitled Badgers Sett To Keep Their Homes As Railway Works Around.
Unfortunately for the Germans, they seem to have whole armies of badgers, whereas we seem to have just a couple of families in the second document.
It does look like in the video in the second example, that a certain amopunt of psychology is used to persuade the badgers to do, what Network Rail wants them to do.
Sheep And The M62
When I was at Liverpool University in the 1960s, the Veterinary Department had a contract to design fencing to keep the hardy Pennine sheep off the motorway.
They found that the sheep had little difficulty climbing over a six foot high wire mesh fence.
Perhaps DB should ask Liverpool, if they have any tips!
UK And Germany Boost Offshore Renewables Ties
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
A new partnership between the UK and German governments has been agreed on 3 November to help secure safe, affordable, and clean energy for consumers in both nations for the long-term and bolster energy security. Both countries commit to strengthening cooperation in renewables, notably offshore wind and electricity interconnection.
These two paragraphs introduce the deal.
Under the new partnership signed in London by Energy Security Secretary Claire Coutinho and Germany’s Vice Chancellor, Robert Habeck, the UK and Germany have reaffirmed their shared ambition and commitment to net zero and progressing the energy transition.
Europe’s two largest economies have also doubled down on commitments made under the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees.
i think this could be a worthwhile follow-up to the relationship, that Boris Johnson and Olaf Scholz seemed to encourage after their high profile meeting in April 2022.
This press release from Downing Street is entitled PM meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz: 8 April 2022 and this is the first two paragraphs.
The Prime Minister welcomed German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Downing Street this afternoon to discuss the West’s response to Putin’s barbaric invasion of Ukraine.
The two leaders shared their disgust at the Russian regime’s onslaught and condemned Putin’s recent attacks.
I wrote Armoured Vehicles For Ukraine based on some of the things said in the press conference after what seemed to be a very wide discussion.
But it was these paragraphs in the press release that caught my eye.
They also agreed on the need to maximise the potential of renewable energy in the North Sea and collaborate on climate ambitions and green energy.
The Prime Minister said he wanted to further deepen the UK’s relationship with Germany, and intensify its cooperation across defence and security, innovation and science.
After Boris and Olaf’s meeting at Downing Street, I have been able to write these posts about the Anglo-German energy relationship and also make some other observations.
- Mona, Morgan And Morven
- UK-German Energy Link Reaches Financial Close
- RWE, Siemens and other German companies seem to be building a strong presence in the UK.
- Rolls-Royce are doing the same in Germany.
Claire Coutinho and Robert Habeck seem to be wanting to continue the co-operation, judging by this paragraph from the article on offshoreWIND,biz.
The energy and climate partnership sees both countries commit to enhancing cooperation in renewables, particularly in offshore wind and electricity interconnection, including offshore hybrid interconnection.
The most significant part of this paragraph is the mention of offshore hybrid interconnection.
If you want more details on their meeting, this document is the official UK Government declaration.
I have my thoughts.
What Is Meant By Offshore Hybrid Interconnection?
Type “Offshore Hybrid Interconnection” into Google and the first page is this page from National Grid, that is entitled Offshore Hybrid Assets, that has this sub-heading.
How the North Sea has the potential to become Europe’s green energy ‘powerhouse’
This is the introductory paragraph.
Now more than ever we need more renewable energy to make energy cleaner, more affordable, and more secure. The North Sea offers an incredible opportunity for the UK and our European neighbours to deliver huge increases in offshore wind. But delivering new offshore wind will require more infrastructure, which will have an impact on communities.
Hybrid is all-purpose comfort word like cashmere, platinum or puppies.
The page on the National Grid web site describes The Next Generation Interconnector with these paragraphs.
Interconnectors already provide a way to share electricity between countries safely and reliably. But what if they could do much more than that? What if interconnectors could become an offshore connection hub for green energy?
Instead of individual wind farms connecting one by one to the shore, offshore hybrid assets (OHAs) will allow clusters of offshore wind farms to connect all in one go, plugging into the energy systems of neighbouring countries.
And then there is this section entitled Tomorrow’s Solution: Offshore Wind And Interconnectors In Harmony, where this is said.
Today, offshore wind and interconnectors operate alongside each other, connecting to the shore individually. In the future, offshore hybrid assets could enable offshore wind and interconnection to work together as a combined asset.
We now call this type of infrastructure an offshore hybrid asset (OHA), but we used to refer to it as a multi-purpose interconnector (MPI). We changed it because we work so closely together with Europe, it made sense to use the same terminology.
The page on the National Grid web site also has an interactive graphic, which shows the benefit of the approach.
LionLink
National Grid are already developing LionLink, with Dutch grid operator; TenneT, which will be a multi-purpose interconnector linking the UK and the Netherlands.
LionLink is described on this page from National Grid, where this is the sub-heading.
We’re developing a first-of-its-kind electricity link to connect offshore wind between the UK and the Netherlands.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Designed together with our Dutch partners TenneT, LionLink (formerly known as EuroLink) is an electricity link that can supply around 1.8 gigawatts of clean electricity, enough to power approximately 1.8 million British homes. By connecting Dutch offshore wind to Dutch and British markets via subsea electricity cables called interconnectors, LionLink will strengthen our national energy security and support the UK’s climate and energy goals.
Will we be planning a similar electric handshake with the Germans?
How Much Offshore Wind Power Are We Talking About?
This is answered by the last two paragraphs of the article on offshoreWIND.biz.
Around 75 per cent of installed offshore wind capacity in the North Sea is in German and British waters. This is helping to drive the UK’s ambition for up to 50 GW of offshore wind, including up to 5 GW of floating wind, by 2030, the governments said.
Germany is aiming at installing 30 GW by 2030.
That is an Anglo-German starter for eighty GW.
Electrolysers In The Middle If The North Sea
Why Not?
This is a clip from National Grid’s graphic on the page that introduces Offshore Hybrid Assets,
It shows an offshore hydrogen electrolyser.
- You could have an offshore hybrid asset that went between say Bacton in Norfolk and Hamburg via these assets.
- One or more wind farms in UK territorial waters.
- A mammoth offshore electrolyser, with hydrogen storage, possibly in a depleted gas field.
- One or more wind farms in German territorial waters.
Electricity will be able to go three ways; to the UK, to Germany or to the electrolyser.
The Involvement Of German Energy Companies In UK Territorial Waters
Wikipedia lists offshore fifteen wind farms, that have German owners in UK territorial waters, that total 12,960 MW.
This compares with.
- Equinor – 6 wind farms totalling 6466 MW.
- Ørsted – 15 wind farms totalling 9683 MW.
- Scottish Power – 2 wind farms totalling 5,000 MW.
- SSE Renewables – 15 wind farms totalling 15,591 MW.
- Vattenfall – 6 wind farms totalling 4384 MW.
As there is a number of partnerships, these figures only show the relative sizes of the investment by individual companies.
But at nearly 13 GW, the amount of total German investment in UK territorial waters is substantial.
Is This Solely An Anglo-German Club Or Can Others Join?
Consider.
- It seems to me, that because of the LionLink, the Dutch are already involved.
- TenneT is also a large electricity distributor in Germany.
- Countries with substantial shares of the water and winds of the North Sea in addition to Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, include Belgium, Denmark and Norway.
- The UK has interconnectors with Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Norway and the Netherlands.
It appears that the world’s largest multi-national power generator is evolving by stealth.
North Sea Wind Power Hub
This concept seems to have developed around 2017, by Danish, Dutch and German interests.
The Wikipedia entry introduces it like this.
North Sea Wind Power Hub is a proposed energy island complex to be built in the middle of the North Sea as part of a European system for sustainable electricity. One or more “Power Link” artificial islands will be created at the northeast end of the Dogger Bank, a relatively shallow area in the North Sea, just outside the continental shelf of the United Kingdom and near the point where the borders between the territorial waters of Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark come together. Dutch, German, and Danish electrical grid operators are cooperating in this project to help develop a cluster of offshore wind parks with a capacity of several gigawatts, with interconnections to the North Sea countries. Undersea cables will make international trade in electricity possible.
Currently, the UK is developing these wind farms on their portion of the Dogger Bank.
- Doggerbank A – 1235 MW – Started producing electricity in 2023.
- Doggerbank B – 1235 MW – Planned commissioning in 2024.
- Doggerbank C – 1218 MW – Planned commissioning in 2025.
- Doggerbank D – 1320 MW – Being planned.
- Doggerbank South – 3000 MW – Being planned.
Note.
- That’s a total of 8 GW.
- A, B, C and D are being developed by a consortium of SSE Renewables and Equinor.
- South is being developed by RWE.
- This web site is for Dogger Bank D.
- This web site is for Dogger Bank South.
This map from the European Atlas of the Seas, shows the various exclusive economic zones (EEZ) in the North Sea.
Note.
- The pinkish zone to the East of the UK, is the UK’s EEZ.
- The light blue zone at the top is Norway’s EEZ.
- The greenish zone in the North-East corner of the map is Denmark’s EEZ.
- The light blue zone below Denmark’s EEZ is Germany’s EEZ.
- Then we have the EEZs for The Netherlands, Belgium and France.
The Dogger Bank is situated where the British, Dutch, German and Norwegian EEZs meet.
All five Dogger Bank wind farms are in British waters.
The Wikipedia entry for the Dogger Bank says this about its size.
The bank extends over about 17,600 square kilometres (6,800 sq mi), and is about 260 by 100 kilometres (160 by 60 mi) in extent. The water depth ranges from 15 to 36 metres (50 to 120 ft), about 20 metres (65 ft) shallower than the surrounding sea.
This probably makes it easy to accommodate a large fixed-foundation wind farm.
Overlaying the map in the Wikipedia entry, with the EEZ map, I’m fairly sure that the northeast end of the Dogger Bank is close to where the EEZs meet.
Progress On The North Sea Wind Power Hub
The North Sea Wind Power Hub has a web site, but it seems to be more about thinking than doing.
It seems to have been hijacked by that august body; The Institute of Meetings Engineers.
This page on the web site, which is entitled Explore The Future Energy Highways, has a simple interactive map.
This shows its vision for 2030.
Note.
- Yellow is electricity links to be built before 2030.
- Blue is hydrogen links to be built before 2030.
- Feint lines indicate the EEZ boundaries.
There are two problems with this layout.
- It doesn’t connect to the Dogger Bank area, where the original plan as detailed in Wikipedia talked about “Power Link” artificial islands.
- No hydrogen is delivered direct to Germany.
This shows its vision for 2050.
Note.
- Yellow, blue and feint lines are as before.
- White is electricity links to be built before 2050.
- There appears to be a node on the Dogger Bank in the German EEZ. This node could be connected to the “Power Link” artificial islands.
- The Southernmost connection to East Anglia could be Bacton.
- The other Norfolk connection could be where wind farms are already connected.
- The Northern connection could be Teesside, where some of the Dogger Bank wind farms connect.
- If the Northern connection to England is Teesside, then first node, which is in the British EEZ, could be one of the offshore sub-stations in the Dogger Bank wind farm complex.
This all seems a lot more feasible.
A New Offshore Hybrid Asset Between Teesside And Germany
Consider.
- A new offshore sub-station will be needed in the German EEZ to connect the “Power Link” artificial islands to the power network.
- The new offshore sub-station will eventually have three interconnectors to the German coast.
- Only the 1218 MW Dogger Bank C wind farm will be connected to the Teesside onshore substation.
- Germany has a power supply problem, after shutting down nuclear power stations and building more coal-fired power stations.
A new Offshore Hybrid Asset between Teesside and Germany could be created by building the following.
- A the new offshore sub-station in the German EEZ to connect the “Power Link” artificial islands to the power network.
- An interconnector between a sub-station of the Dogger Bank wind farm complex and the new sub-station
- A second interconnector to connect the new sub-station for the “Power Link” artificial islands to the German electricity grid.
All of the work would be done mainly in the German EEZ, with a small amount in the British EEZ.
Where Does Dogger Bank South Fit In?
Consider.
- Dogger Bank South is planned to be a 3 GW wind farm.
- It will need a 3 GW connection to the onshore electricity grid.
- Creyke Beck substation is the proposed location for the onshore connection.
- It is owned by German electricity company; RWE.
Could it be that some of the electricity produced by Dogger Bank South is going to be sent to Germany or to another node to produce hydrogen?
It certainly illustrates the value of an Offshore Hybrid Asset.
German Police Probe ‘Political Motive’ In Railway Fires
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on DW.com.
This is the sub-heading.
A series of fires hit rail infrastructure on the main line between Hamburg and Berlin overnight, leading to widespread train disruptions. Police say they suspect a politically motivated act of sabotage.
This is the first two paragraphs.
German police are investigating a suspected political motive behind an alleged act of sabotage targeting a major train route connecting the port city of Hamburg to the capital, Berlin.
Fire broke out overnight at three locations in the northern Hamburg region, affecting shafts holding railway cables.
This paragraph describes a claim for responsibility.
An anonymous letter published on the far-left website Indymedia claimed responsibility for the incident, describing it as an act of “sabotage.” The letter said it was a protest against “neo-colonial exploitation and earth destroying extraction of raw materials.”
I don’t think we want anything like this in the UK.
On Track For A Low Carbon Energy Future – Centrica Signs Corporate Power Deal With Deutsche Bahn
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Centrica.
These two paragraphs outline the deal.
Centrica Energy Trading has signed a two-year corporate power purchase agreement (PPA) with Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s national railway company.
Starting January 2024, Centrica will offtake power from three onshore wind farms with an installed capacity of 60.7 MW. The sites, developed by Prokon AG in Germany, have a total of 45 turbines and will provide approximately 70GWh of renewable electricity annually to Deutsche Bahn.
Sounds like good business to me! You buy electricity from three German onshore wind farms and flog it to a large German company and probably get an appropriate commission in Euros.
Amprion Reveals Energy Corridor Project To Bring 8 GW of Offshore Wind To North Rhine-Westphalia
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Amprion Offshore has started working on an energy corridor project that would bring electricity produced by up to 8 GW of offshore wind farms in the North Sea directly to the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
This is the first paragraph.
Named Windader West, the energy corridor involves building four offshore grid connection systems that would use the new-generation 2 GW offshore grid technology. Each of the four connections (NOR-15-1, NOR-17-1, NOR-19-1 and NOR-21-1) would have a transmission capacity of 2 GW and, together, the grid connections would transmit enough electricity to cover the energy needs of eight million households in North Rhine-Westphalia.
The linked article has an excellent large scale map.
What Are The UK Doing?
There is a Wikipedia entry for Eastern HVDC, where these are the opening paragraphs.
Eastern HVDC and Eastern HVDC projects are the names used by Ofgem for two planned HVDC submarine power cables from the East coast of Scotland to Northeast England to strengthen the National Grid. The two links combined will deliver 4 GW of renewable energy from Scottish wind farms to England.
Ofgem state that “At an estimated cost of £3.4 billion for the two links, the Eastern HVDC projects would be the largest electricity transmission investment project in the recent history of Great Britain.”
The two links are called.
Note.
- SEGL1 will run from Torness in Southeast Scotland to Hawthorn Pit substation in Northeast England.
- EGL2 will run from Sandford Bay, at Peterhead in Scotland, to the Drax Power Station in Yorkshire, England.
- Both links have a capacity of 2 MW and the DC voltage will be +/-525 kV.
National Grid are also developing Eastern Green Links 3 and 4 and this is the web site.
These paragraphs describe EGL3 and EGL4.
The EGL 3 project will be a new offshore High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) electrical link from Peterhead to the south Lincolnshire area.
EGL4 will be a new offshore HVDC electrical link from east Scotland, also to the south Lincolnshire area.
Where offshore projects such as these connect with the land, we also have to build onshore infrastructure to enable the clean energy to be transported, to homes and businesses. The onshore infrastructure required for each of these projects will include new converter stations and substations (in both Scotland and England), as well as underground cables to connect everything together.
Together, these projects will transfer 4GW of electricity between Scotland and England. This means that once operational, these projects will provide enough energy to power around 3 million homes.
Note.
- As with the German cables, each carries 2 MW.
- Consultation for EGL3 and EGL4 starts in early 2024.
- Both cables terminate in South Lincolnshire.
In The Lincolnshire Wind Powerhouse, I publish this map of the wind farms in the South of Lincolnshire.
Note.
- The completed Hornsea wind farm will be over 6 MW.
- The future of Norfolk Vanguard is uncertain.
- These wind farms total up to 13524 MW, but without Norfolk Vanguard the total is 11724 MW.
- According to Wikipedia, the Viking Link to Denmark will open on the 1st of January 2024.
I wrote about the Viking Link in Work Begins On New Substation For World’s Longest Electricity Cable Between Denmark and Lincolnshire.
The German And UK Cables Compared
Consider.
- Both have 4 x 2 MW capacity.
- SEGL1 and EGL2 have a cost of £3.4 billion.
- The four German cables are quoted at a total of €16-18 billion here.
- The first two UK cables have planned completion dates of 2027 and 2029.
- German completion dates are given as 2032-2036.
This leads me to this conclusion.
Building interconnectors in the sea is quicker and more affordable than building them on land.
Alstom And VMS Present New Battery-Powered Train
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Rail Technology Magazine.
This is the sub-heading.
Alstom and the Central Saxony transport authority, Verkehrsverbund Mittelsachsen (VMS) in Germany have unveiled a new battery-powered train developed by Alstom.
These first four paragraphs are very information rich.
A total of eleven Coradia Continental battery-electric trains have been ordered by VMS. These trains will enter service in 2024 on the Chemnitz-Leipzig line.
The Coradia Continental battery-electric train has a range of up to 120 kilometres and can be operated under catenary as well as on non-electrified sections of line. The three-car trains are 56 metres long and can seat up to 150.
The new train can also reach maximum speeds of 160 km/h in battery mode. The capacity of the high-performance lithium-ion batteries is calculated to guarantee catenary-free operation on the Chemnitz-Leipzig line without sacrificing performance.
Müslüm Yakisan, president of Alstom Region DACH, said: “Alstom’s ambition is to be the global leader in sustainable mobility, reducing emissions and pollution in catenary-free operation. The presentation of the first battery-powered train developed by Alstom is an important step in this direction.
These seem to be a very useful battery-electric train.
- Battery or catenary operation
- Three-cars of 19 metres
- Fifty seats per car
- 100 miles per hour
A three-car Class 730 train has the following characteristics.
- three cars of 20 metres
- 199 seats.
- 90 miles per hour
Can we have a battery version soon? Please!
Germany Rakes In EUR 12.6 Billion Through ‘Dynamic Bidding’ Offshore Wind Auction
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Germany’s first dynamic bidding process, covering four offshore wind zones with a combined capacity of 7 GW, has generated EUR 12.6 billion in proceeds, according to the Federal Network Agency.
This dynamic bidding process seems to have brought in the euros.
I hope the Crown Estate is going to look at this bidding, to see if it would be good for the UK.
Hydrogen Trains Are To Roll Between Stade And Bremervörde
The title of this post is the same as part of the title of this article on Hydrogen Central.
The original title mentions Switzerland, but Bremervörde is in Germany to the North-West of Hamburg.
This map from OpenRailwayMap shows the route.
Note.
- Stade is in the North-East corner of the map and marked with a blue arrow.
- Stade station is on the Hamburg S-Bahn and has an hourly fast train between Hamburg and Cuxhaven.
- Bremervörde is in the South-West corner of the map, where the various routes converge.
- Bremervörde station is on the Buxtehude-Cuxhaven Line which is run by the hydrogen-powered Alstom Coradia iLint trains.
- Bremervörde appears to be, where the hydrogen-powered trains are serviced and refuelled.
- Currently, there are no passenger trains between Stade and Bremervörde, except at the weekends, when a heritage service called the Moor Express runs between Bremen Hauptbahnhof and Stade via Bremervörde.
- Freight trains also operate between Stade and Bremervörde.
At first sight it looks like the Stade and Bremervörde route, could be an ideal one to run with hydrogen-powered iLint trains.
- Servicing and refuelling of the trains could be shared with the existing Buxtehude-Cuxhaven service.
- The new service would probably need a few extra identical trains.
- The track is already in use, so probably wouldn’t need too much work.
- As some of the stations are in use by the Moor Express, there may not need to be too much work to bring them up to the required standard.
This re-opening, illustrates the advantage of having a fully-certified, independently-powered train, that can be deployed on non-electrified lines.
Denmark And Germany Sign Bornholm Energy Island Agreement, First Legally Binding Cooperation On Joint Offshore Renewable Energy Project In EU
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, Robert Habeck, and Danish Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities, Lars Aagaard, have signed an agreement for the Bornholm Energy Island in the Baltic Sea. This is the first legally binding cooperation agreement in Europe on a joint offshore energy project under the EU Renewable Energy Directive.
Bornholm is a Danish island between Denmark, Germany and Sweden, as this map shows.
Note.
- Malmo is in Sweden.
- Copenhagen is in Denmark.
- Germany is in the South-West corner of the map.
Bornholm is the island in the North-East corner of the map.
This paragraph gives the bare details of the generation and transmission capacities.
Bornholm Energy Island, located in the Danish sector of the Baltic Sea, will facilitate connecting at least 3 GW of offshore wind generation capacity to the grid by the early 2030s. The electricity will then be transported via new grid connections to Germany (2 GW ) and to the Danish mainland (1.2 GW).
The great advantage of an energy island, is that the electricity can be sent both ways according to where it is needed.
Some of the energy islands that have been proposed also include energy storage and/or hydrogen production.
This web site gives more details of the Bornholm Energy Island.
Under a heading of Why Build Energy Islands?, these reasons are given.
- Environment and climate
- Energy security in Europe
- Inspiration for the world
Under a heading of What is an Energy Island?, this is said.
An energy island makes it possible to establish large wind farms at sea far from the coast. The energy produced by the wind turbines is sent via cables to the energy island, from where it is sent out to consumers. On Bornholm, a high-voltage facility must therefore be established on the island which can receive and distribute the electricity. After that, green power can be sent from Bornholm to millions of consumers in Denmark and Germany. Bornholm’s Regional Municipality is working hard to seize the energy island’s potential for job creation and local business growth, and in turning Bornholm into the green business beacon and transport hub for green fuels in the Baltic Sea.
I suppose it could be argued that in the UK, Orkney and Shetland are already energy islands and will become more so in years to come.
Energy islands, whether real or man paid certainly seems to be a concept that is growing in populatity, with several being developed.
Industry Calls For 10 GW Of Offshore Hydrogen In German National H2 Strategy
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Offshore wind and hydrogen developers and organisations in Germany have called on the federal government to set clear targets for offshore hydrogen in the update of the country’s National Hydrogen Strategy, with an additional 10 GW of offshore electrolysis capacity to be added by 2035.
These two paragraphs add detail the story and name those who are behind it.
On 26 May, several companies and industry organisations signed an appeal sent to the German Federal Government that highlights offshore hydrogen’s advantage of adding large-scale capacities and asks that a target of an additional 10 GW of offshore hydrogen by 2035 be added to both the country’s hydrogen strategy and the area development plan.
The parties that signed the appeal include the German offshore wind-to-hydrogen initiative AquaVentus, offshore wind and hydrogen players BP, Siemens Gamesa, Gasunie, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), EnBW, Equinor, and Lhyfe, as well as industry organisations WAB and the Federal Association of Offshore Wind Farm Operators (BWO), among others.
These two paragraphs describe an area to be developed for the first offshore hydrogen production.
As reported in January, in the country’s new area development plan for offshore wind, Germany’s Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) also outlined the first offshore hydrogen area in the North Sea.
The area, SEN-1, spans over 100 square kilometres in the North Sea and will allow for an electrolysis capacity of up to 1 GW to be tested and connected with a hydrogen pipeline.
Note.
- 1 GW if electricity should create about 435 tonnes of hydrogen per day.
- That amount of hydrogen could be stored as liquid in a sphere with a radius of 11.35 metres.
The Anonymous Widower 