Energetica India Magazine - September 2022

Green ammonia is going to be the fossil-free “crude” of the hydrogen fuel economy 66 energetica INDIA- September_2022 Hydrogen has the potential to decar- bonize a wide range of heavy industries including energy, chemicals, steel and cement, which means demand is going to be huge. In its Net-Zero Emissions scenario the IEA expects demand to increase fivefold from 2020 to 2050. However, there are a few important limitations to overcome for hydrogen to become competitive. The first chal - lenge is to produce sufficient supply of renewable “green” hydrogen; the next is to be able to store it in large quanti- ties; and then to establish the required infrastructure to trade and transport hydrogen. This is where ammonia comes into play. Consisting of one nitrogen and three hydrogen atoms, the ammo- nia molecule (NH3) has the potential to support the hydrogen fuel economy in all three domains. Making hydrogen competitive Today, most hydrogen is produced from fossil fuels through steam methane re- forming, generating 830 Mt of annual CO2 emissions. Carbon-free “green” hydrogen is produced using electrolyz- ers to split water molecules to separate the hydrogen from the oxygen. It is an expensive and energy intensive process, but when the energy used is from renew- able sources, hydro, wind or solar, then it provides a versatile, fossil-free energy carrier. How can hydrogen be made more com- petitive? Firstly, by using renewable energy rich sources such as solar PV in Chile, Saudi Arabia, and Australia, where it will be extremely competitive to produce. And secondly, by ramping up renewable energy production and de- ploying electrolyzers to produce hydro- gen with “excess” or “curtailed” renew- able energy. In other words, it will allow for a higher percentage of renewable energy to enter the market by reducing renewable curtailment. Reducing renewable energy curtailment The intermittence of renewable energy means that there are periods of very high energy production which do not match demand. The supply from re- newables, particularly solar, becomes so high that the amount of electricity generated threatens to overwhelm the grid capacity. Although battery energy storage systems are being developed, they are not yet capable of capturing and storing this amount excess energy. The result is curtailment. This is where grid operators shut down access to the grid or adopt pricing mechanisms to generate negative pricing to reduce pro- duction. Some estimates put renewable energy curtailment as high as 20% of capacity. Rather than curtailing excess renewable energy, the solution would be to use this excess to produce green hydrogen. By installing electrolyzers at major substa- tions that are connected to renewable plants, green hydrogen production can act as a load balance. It would be cost competitive, because the renewable en- ergy would otherwise be wasted, and it allows renewable operators to be paid for every megawatt hour they produce. No energy is lost. In this way, green hydrogen production would incentivize further growth in re- How can hydrogen be made more competitive? Firstly, by using renewable energy rich sources such as solar PV in Chile, Saudi Arabia, and Australia, where it will be extremely competitive to produce. And secondly, by ramping up renewable energy pro- duction and deploying electrolyzers to produce hydrogen with “excess” or “curtailed” renewable energy. In other words, it will allow for a higher percentage of renewable energy to enter the market by reducing renewable curtailment. Collin Hamilton Chief Operating Officer & Head of Engineering, Verano Energy HYDROGEN