As of April 29, Gasunie will become a partner in the offshore hydrogen pilot PosHYdon. Recently, NOGAT BV and Noordgastransport BV, both owners of large gas transport pipelines in the North Sea, also joined the consortium.
These partners provide the ultimate connection of the infrastructure on land and at sea. This contributes to a seamless transition from natural gas and green gas to a sustainable energy mix of gases with an important role for hydrogen. The pilot is an initiative of Nexstep, the national platform for reuse and dismantling, and TNO in close collaboration with industry.
PosHYdon integrates three energy systems in the North Sea: offshore wind, offshore gas and offshore hydrogen and will take place on the Q13a platform of Neptune Energy. This producing production platform is the first fully electrified platform in the Dutch North Sea and is located approximately 13 kilometers off the coast of Scheveningen.
Seawater on the platform will be converted into demineralized water to produce green hydrogen. This water is then converted into hydrogen by electrolysis. Wind energy is used to produce this green hydrogen. The aim of the pilot is to gain experience with the integration of working energy systems at sea and the production of hydrogen in an offshore environment to see what the influence of offshore conditions, including salt, will have on the electrolyser.
Connecting two worlds
Converting wind energy in the North Sea into hydrogen
“The pipelines and infrastructure at sea of NOGAT and Noordgastransport are already suitable for hydrogen.” And that is good news, according to De Groot. “The Netherlands does not stop at the dunes. The North Sea is the place to generate a large part of Dutch energy production. As the Netherlands, we are in a special position that in addition to an extensive infrastructure for gas, we can also harvest large amounts of wind energy in the North Sea; quantities that are also important internationally. You can convert that wind energy into hydrogen in the North Sea and then land it along with the natural gas via the large pipelines of NOGAT and Noordgastransport for customers in industry, the mobility sector and the built environment. PosHYdon is therefore the key to this possible acceleration. ”
The Netherlands can be leading in the transition to a hydrogen economy
Han Fennema, CEO of NV Nederlandse Gasunie, adds: “The Netherlands has a top position to lead the transition to a hydrogen economy. We have the North Sea for the production of wind and gas, the ports as logistics hubs, the industrial clusters that want to make the switch to green molecules and an excellent infrastructure for transport and storage. This comes together nicely in the Netherlands. If we want to achieve our climate ambitions, we must have a large-scale hydrogen infrastructure available in good time. This pilot project can be an important step in the right direction. ”
Partners in the Q13a-A platform are: EBN BV (40%) and TAQA Offshore BV (10%).
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