E.ON Power-to-Gas facility begins commercial operations; wind-to-H2
29 August 2013
E.ON has inaugurated commercial operations at its Power-to-Gas (P2G) facility in Falkenhagen, Germany. (Earlier post.) The plant uses wind power and Hydrogenics’ electrolysis equipment to transform water into hydrogen, which is then injected into the existing regional natural gas transmission system.
The hydrogen, as part of the natural gas mix, can be used in a variety of applications including space heating, industrial processes, mobility, and power generation. The facility, which has a capacity of two megawatts, produces 360 cubic meters of hydrogen per hour.
This project makes E.ON one of the first companies to demonstrate that surplus energy can be stored in the gas pipeline system in order to help balance supply against demand. This method of energy storage is considered a key technology for the transformation of Germany’s energy system. It will reduce the need to take wind turbines offline when the local grid is congested and will therefore enable us to harness more wind power.
—Dr. Ingo Luge, CEO of E.ON Deutschland
Swissgas, which represents more than 100 local natural gas utilities, is a partner in the project with a 20% capital stake and an agreement to purchase a portion of the gas produced.
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| Falkenhagen P2G system. Click to enlarge. |
For Hydrogenics Corporation, this has been a turnkey Power-to-Gas project which included supply, installation, connection and commissioning of the hydrogen production facility including gas compression, master controls, as well as a 5-year service and maintenance agreement.
"The facility, which has a capacity of two megawatts, produces 360 cubic meters of hydrogen per hour." - significant.
It is in "commercial operations; wind-to-H2". This is the point - money is coming in.
To paraphrase, an industry of a billion profits begins with a single sale.
Maybe the economics won't initially pan out - though, using once wasted electricity is a BIG positive.
But, like EVs, sales must start somewhere - even if initially modest. The key 'kinks' must be worked out and commercial scale developed during early sales years.
No public sales is why fuel cell vehicles, corrupt fools with "Hydrogen Initiatives", and decades of "next year" promises fail.
Posted by: kelly | 29 August 2013 at 11:04 AM
@Kelly:
Congratulations!
You sounded like someone making a rational and balanced comment, right up to the last paragraph.
Progress indeed.
Posted by: Davemart | 29 August 2013 at 11:49 AM
@Dave, the last paragraph is history, at least for fuel cell vehicle taxpayer R&D grants since the 1960s http://www.hydrogencarsnow.com/gm-electrovan.htm
Posted by: kelly | 29 August 2013 at 12:55 PM
Kit may not like it but it seems that Germans are smart enough to come out with the smart solutions required for sustainable clean energy production?
Will we and others follow?
Posted by: HarveyD | 29 August 2013 at 03:06 PM
Note that the article does not have any figures for cost of hydrogen energy delivered. (That would allow comparison with the cost of Russian gas... a comparison it would certainly lose.)
Note also that the article does not state any plans for e.g. removing H2 from pipeline gas before distribution for FCVs or sale as a chemical feedstock.
If it does nothing you can't do another way, and you can't afford it anyway, it's only a publicity stunt.
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 29 August 2013 at 03:20 PM
"surplus energy can be stored in the gas pipeline system in order to help balance supply against demand. . . will reduce the need to take wind turbines offline when the local grid is congested and will therefore enable us to harness more wind power."
They've found a way to use energy that would have otherwise gone to waste.
Posted by: ai_vin | 29 August 2013 at 08:36 PM
Also, for those of us who are concerned with global warming, finding new ways to use renewable energy instead of fossil fuels is worth some extra cost - if any.
And of course the Germans have another reason to be wary of depending on Russian gas supplies; http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1106382/Europe-plunged-energy-crisis-Russia-cuts-gas-supply-Ukraine.html
Posted by: ai_vin | 29 August 2013 at 09:10 PM
They've found a way to use energy that would have otherwise gone to waste.
If it costs more than getting that energy some other way, it's a waste of money.
It's also a waste of resources, because that's what money is a proxy for. If those resources could have produced more energy some other way than "using energy that would have gone to waste", then that energy SHOULD be wasted.
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 30 August 2013 at 07:49 AM
Capitalism as a final arbiter of what is worth while, you have a bright future (sarc)
Posted by: SJC | 31 August 2013 at 06:08 PM
If an animal uses more energy searching for food than the food supplies, it starves to death; it needs to get more energy than the searching requires in order to live and grow. You'd call that "capitalism".
What you call it and how you feel about it doesn't matter. What matters is that if you don't pay proper attention to it, you will fail.
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 01 September 2013 at 08:04 AM
E-P, as someone who is well invested in the stockmarket I am aware of the concept of "opportunity cost" as are people in Germany who have chosen to invest in E.ON; http://www.eon.com/en/about-us/profile.html
SJC is right, this is capitalism at work and it is a very stupid investor who bets more than he can afford to lose. Nobody's going to starve here if they fail.
Posted by: ai_vin | 01 September 2013 at 10:54 AM
I'd bet that E.ON is getting paid for this project through some sort of government grant for RE demonstrations. That's a zero-risk proposition... for E.ON.
The risk goes to the citizens of Germany. And yes, money matters. Money is a proxy for materials and effort. If Germany runs out before it can build out the energy system it needs, or has to sacrifice too many other things, people suffer.
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 02 September 2013 at 07:12 AM