2023-05-05 19:10:34
While projects around green hydrogen, derived from renewable energies, are multiplying in Europe, manufacturers are organizing themselves upstream. The French Technip Energies and the Belgian John Cockerill thus announced, on Thursday May 4, the creation of a joint venture, Rely, which aims to become a “single supplier” solutions “integrated and competitive” on this sector.
Turnkey equipment to convert electricity into hydrogen
It will notably specialize in the conversion of intermittent renewable electricity into another storable energy vector, such as hydrogen or ammonia, or another sustainable fuel. These technologies, called Power-to-X, are obviously central. But the market is still “nascent” and, so that he “takes off”, “we must break down technological and cost barriers”, explains Arnaud Pieton, Managing Director of Technip Energies, which will own 60% of the new entity.
The two groups will therefore combine their know-how to offer “turnkey”. John Cockerill manufactures equipment such as electrolyzers (a plant is also planned in Alsace), and Technip Energies has experience in setting up complex sites, in chemicals, gas or oil.
Decarbonize industry
“We can debate the speed of development of hydrogen, but we cannot really debate the need for hydrogen, to eventually allow the decarbonization of many industries”, believes the boss of Technip Energies. It is already widely used in chemicals and in the manufacture of fertilizers.
The objective is to replace the current hydrogen, obtained from natural gas, with green hydrogen, obtained from electricity drawn from renewable energies, or low carbon, obtained from electricity of nuclear origin. For heavy mobility, such as rail, road transport, and even air transport later, it could also replace fossil fuels.
But the renewable energy capacities in Europe, even revised upwards, will not be enough. Germany, which has great ambitions in terms of hydrogen to reduce its dependence on gas, could import two-thirds of its needs, according to official projections. In recent months, German diplomacy has been multiplying agreements, particularly in the Persian Gulf to secure its supplies. Hydrogen will be produced from photovoltaic parks.
Build “hydrogeniers”
Still have to carry it. The obstacles are significant, since the hydrogen must be cooled to – 253 degrees to liquefy it, an operation which in itself requires a lot of energy, especially to maintain it at this temperature. In order to meet these technical challenges, the creation of a consortium to develop a “large capacity hydrogenerator” was announced on April 27. It brings together GTT, the world leader in liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage, TotalEnergies, the LMG Marin design office and the Bureau Veritas certification group.
The stakes are considerable. The consortium will work on the construction of ships capable of transporting 150,000 m3 of hydrogen (the equivalent of the LNG cargo of an LNG carrier), which will require the development “disruptive technology”, believes Philippe Berterottière, CEO of GTT. Like what the company has already done by designing a revolutionary 1.2 millimeter stainless steel membrane directly integrated into the hull of boats.
Convert hydrogen into ammonia
Manufacturers are therefore in battle order. At the end of March, Air Liquide announced the creation, in the port of Antwerp, of an ammonia cracking unit to make hydrogen. The industrial gas specialist explains that it has developed a new technology and has received financial support from the Flemish government to build this pilot site which will be operational in 2024.
To transport hydrogen more easily over long distances, one of the ways is to transform it into ammonia, which loses its gaseous state at only -33 degrees. It’s about “an additional solution for the development of a global hydrogen market”argues Air Liquide.
The group plans to invest 8 billion euros by 2035 across the entire low-carbon hydrogen value chain. In February, it created a joint venture with TotalEnergies to build a network of around 100 hydrogen stations in France, Benelux and Germany. They are intended for heavy goods vehicles on major European roads.
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