2023-06-19 18:32:08
The announcement, in May, of the discovery by the company La Française de l’énergie «significant concentrations of natural hydrogen» in an old coal pit in Lorraine, 1,000 meters deep, could lead the general public to believe that a new source of energy, abundant and decarbonized, is under our feet. Wrong?
Not necessarily. The scientific community has long been convinced of the potential of natural hydrogen and more and more companies are interested in it, although there is currently no precise assessment of the importance of potential deposits, such as that in the Lorraine basin. Some estimate that they could supply a few percent of the world’s hydrogen consumption (approximately 90 million tonnes, produced mainly from natural gas and used above all in chemistry), others already imagine that they would cover it all…
Random discoveries
“In the current state of knowledge, we only know, and for a long time, that there are many natural hydrogen emanations, coming in particular from submarine volcanoes and areas rich in metals, with the oxidation of rocks old ones that come into contact with waterexplains Isabelle Moretti, researcher at the University of Pau and one of the world’s specialists on the subject.. Hydrogen releases have also been observed during drilling, but until now this did not interest many people. »
There would therefore be natural hydrogen, otherwise called “white” or “native”, almost everywhere in the world. “Until now, we haven’t found many of them, because we’ve never really looked for them. And the few discoveries were made by chance,” underlines Philippe Boucly, the president of France Hydrogène, representing the actors of the sector. This was the case in Mali, where a borehole to find water at a depth of a hundred meters brought up hydrogen. Since 2011, this green gas has been used to produce electricity for a small village, located about sixty kilometers from Bamako.
The Malian example should not remain isolated for long. “For the past two or three years, research into natural hydrogen has intensified, and there is no longer a congress on energy without people talking about it”, points out Isabelle Moretti.
Everything pushes to go fast. There is the rapid tightening of the regulatory framework, in order to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, but also the need to reduce the costs of green hydrogen, obtained from renewable energies. It is now between €12 and €15 per kilo, compared to €2 to €3 for gray hydrogen, coming from methane. The “white” would be much cheaper. In Mali, the kilo is sold for €0.50. In Europe, it would be around €1, according to industry projections.
A drilling already in the test phase in the United States
Start-ups, often stemming from the oil majors, embark on the adventure, following the example of what happened for gas and shale oil fifteen years ago in the United States, This is also the case for large mining companies, which need to green their production.
In southern and central Australia, five permits have already been granted and around 20 applications are being processed. In the United States, a well has already been drilled in Nebraska and is in the testing phase. Brazil and Colombia are also preparing to issue licenses. Some projects combine both hydrogen and helium extraction, two gases that are sometimes bound underground. This makes it possible to improve the profitability of the whole, helium being sold at a much higher price than hydrogen.
Closer to home, in northeastern Spain, the Helios Aragon project, near the town of Monzon, plans to operate on a former oil site, abandoned in the 1960s, 3,600 meters above sea level. depth. The start of the work was announced on June 7 and commissioning is scheduled for 2028, with an investment of 900 million euros. Its promoters speak of a production of one million tons per year, or half of Spanish consumption.
Lorraine and the Pyrenees, the first regions targeted
France is not left out, even if mining is rather frowned upon. “In 2022, we obtained an update of the mining code so that natural hydrogen can be exploited”, welcomes Isabelle Moretti. Exploration permits will therefore be able to be filed. In addition to Lorraine, the Pyrenees, the Jura, the Alps or the Cotentin would, in fact, be likely to have hydrogen, just like New Caledonia. In New Aquitaine, the region has already taken the lead by subsidizing a research program, with the help of companies and university laboratories.
The TBH2 company, created by engineers from TotalEnergies, has applied for a permit near Orthez, in Béarn, to exploit natural hydrogen and helium. With a similar economic model, 45-8 Energy has made exploration applications in the Nièvre and in the Jura.
For La Française de l’Energie, until then specialized in the exploitation of the residual gas contained in the mining basins, the exploitation of hydrogen would be a welcome diversification. “We will drill up to 3,000 meters to measure the extent of the reservoirexplains Antoine Forcinal, Managing Director. If they prove conclusive, we will apply for a permit, as demand is strong from manufacturers seeking to reduce their carbon footprint. »
Luckily, the extraction site is a few kilometers from the MosaHYc project, led by GRTgaz and its German counterpart Creos, to convert two gas pipelines to hydrogen, linking France and Germany via Luxembourg.
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Projects all over the world
In southern and central Australia, five permits have already been granted and around 20 applications are being processed. In the United States, a well has already been built in Nebraska and is in the testing phase. Brazil and Colombia are also preparing to issue licenses. Closer to home, in northeastern Spain, the Helios Aragon project could supply half of Spain’s consumption. Some projects combine both hydrogen and helium extraction, two gases that are sometimes bound underground. This makes it possible to improve the profitability of the whole, helium being sold at a much higher price than hydrogen.
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