According to a new analysis, more hydrogen storage facilities with a capacity of up to 41TWh must be constructed if Germany is to be able to store enough energy to achieve greenhouse gas neutrality.
The techno-economic assessment was carried out by the Federal Association for Natural Gas, Oil and Geoenergy eV (BVEG), the German Technical and Scientific Association for Gas and Water (DVGW), and the Energy Storage Initiative (INES).
INES claims that hydrogen provides the opportunity to store power produced by unstable renewable energies and make it accessible again when needed. Around 32TWh of hydrogen can be stored in current gas storage facilities after conversion.
The analysis concludes that new hydrogen storage facilities with a capacity of up to 41TWh must be constructed in order to store enough energy to attain greenhouse gas neutrality.
“The analysis demonstrates that in order to quickly reach greenhouse gas neutrality, an integrative change must be launched for the whole hydrogen value chain. In order to store energy in the form of hydrogen, transport it, and make it available to all sectors if necessary, gas networks and storage facilities are both necessary for the energy transition, according to Frank Gröschl, head of technology and innovation management at DVGW.
Sebastian Bleschke, managing director of INES, continued, “In order to implement the energy transition according to the long-term scenarios of the BMWK, we will also need an increase of between 15 and 41TWh in addition to the full potential of today’s gas storage facilities for the future storage of hydrogen.”
The study also discusses the costs that might develop over time as a result of converting existing gas storage facilities to hydrogen storage facilities and the construction of new hydrogen storage facilities, based on the findings of the long-term scenarios of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK).
The findings indicate that the development of the hydrogen storage systems required for the energy transition may require cumulative investments of up to €12.8 billion ($13.3 billion).
A group of consultants led by the Gas Technological Institute gGmbH produced the research, Storing Hydrogen – that’s for sure, on behalf of the INES, the BVEG, and the DVGW.
