HYDROGEN
H2opZee aims at 300-500MW offshore electrolyser capacity Neptune Energy and RWE recently announced the signing of a Joint Development Agreement to develop the offshore green hydrogen project H2opZee ahead of 2030.
ALL IMAGES COURTESY OF NEPTUNE ENERGY.
energy transition can be faster, cheaper, and cleaner if we integrate existing gas infrastructure into new systems. This infrastructure is technically suitable, no new pipeline at sea is needed and no new landfall is required through the coastal area. With the PosHYdon pilot we are one of the leaders in this field of offshore energy system integration and
“Hydrogen is a gamechanger in the decarbonisation of energy-intensive sectors and H2opZee is a world first of this kind and scale.”
H
2opZee (‘H2atSea’) is a demonstration project which aims to build 300-500MW electrolyser capacity in the North Sea to produce green hydrogen using offshore wind. The hydrogen will then be transported to land through an existing pipeline.
Two phases The pipeline has a capacity of 10-12GW, so it is already suitable for the further roll-out of green hydrogen production to gigawatt scale in the North Sea. The intention is to begin the feasibility study in the second quarter of 2022. The project is initiated by TKI Wind op Zee, an initiative supported by the Dutch government bringing people, knowledge,
2 2 | O S I 2 0 2 2 | Volum e 15 | Issue 1
Neptune Energy.indd 22
and financing together to support the offshore energy transition. H2opZee consists of two phases. In the first phase, a feasibility study will be carried out and an accessible knowledge platform will be set up. The objective is to start the rollout of hydrogen at sea in the Netherlands. In the second phase, the project will be implemented. For this phase, a tender methodology has yet to be defined.
World leader Neptune Energy’s Managing Director in the Netherlands, Lex de Groot, says, “We see an important role for green hydrogen in future energy supply, and it can be produced here in the North Sea. The
reuse. The lessons learned from this project apply to H2opZee. The faster we can scale up green hydrogen at sea, the faster industries such as chemicals and steel production can become more sustainable. With H2opZee, the Netherlands is becoming a world leader in this area. That is why we, together with RWE, are enthusiastic about H2opZee and what it has to offer the Netherlands.”
PosHYdon PosHYdon concerns a green hydrogenproducing plant to be installed on Neptune Energy’s Q13a-A platform. The plant will convert seawater into demineralised water, then into green hydrogen via electrolysis, which will be blended with natural gas and transported to shore via an existing pipeline. The Q13a-A platform was the first fully electrified platform in the Dutch North Sea and is located approximately 13km off the coast of Scheveningen (The
o ffs h o re -i n d u s tr y. e u
21-02-2022 16:00
