HyPSTER is the first green hydrogen storage demonstration in a salt cavern, now under construction on the French site of Etrez (between Geneva and Lyon).
It is funded by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, which is the successor of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU). It seeks to better understand the role of storage in the hydrogen value chain and, in the long run, to help the growth of the hydrogen sector in Europe, with a total budget of 13 million euros.
The engineering studies are being finalized and validated as part of the project’s execution, which began in January 2021. These investigations will allow the construction of the surface hydrogen production platform and the conversion of the salt cavern to hydrogen storage to commence. Furthermore, contracts for the necessary equipment for the surface and subsurface operations have been negotiated with several partners, including French and foreign firms.
On the industrial side, the arrangement of the piping, instrumentation, electrical, and civil engineering facilities has been defined by the design of the new facilities to be created. At the same time, this phase provides for the follow-up of administrative requests necessary to secure the building permit.
In terms of R&D, the test protocol has been designed and will offer 100 cycles over the course of three months. The goal is to mimic hydrogen injection and withdrawal in order to control future customer demand for low-carbon hydrogen.
A 1MW PEM electrolyzer (Elogen), a compressor for the production platform and dispensing solutions (Howden), finishing components (Schlumberger), and tubes for delivering hydrogen between the surface and the salt cavern were among the partners that contributed to the project. In the context of a technological relationship, a memorandum of understanding was recently inked with TechnipFMC for the development of a Hydrogen wellhead.
A strategic relationship will also allow Schneider Electric to contribute its experience in power, instrumentation, and automation technologies for an improved asset management system.
Different manufacturers are building equipment for electrolysis units, which are used to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. The platform is expected to be built in the first part of the year, according to Storengy. The conversion of the salt cavern, which was formerly utilized for R&D projects for natural gas subterranean storage, will follow.
When the surface installations become live in March 2023, the first hydrogen bubbles will be formed, followed by an experimental period in actual settings, followed by cycle testing in the cavern a month later.
The HyPSTER project is being highlighted as an important link in the development of the green hydrogen sector. This pilot for green hydrogen underground storage lays the way for the establishment of a green hydrogen industry on a large scale, as well as its technological and economic replication in other parts of Europe. It’s a big step forward in terms of renewable and low-carbon energy supply on a huge scale. Furthermore, it is consistent with the French government’s desire to further promote the hydrogen industry, which has received an additional €1.9 billion under the France 2030 Investment Plan.
The project stakeholders and their roles
Storengy (FR): Project coordinator for all partners, manages and operates the storage site and the salt cavern used for testing
Armines-Ecole Polytechnique (FR): Different academic studies which are part of the HyPSTER project
INOVYN (UK): Definition of the ideal salt cavern utilization cycle (hydrogen input/output for consumption)
ESK (DE): Validation of engineering design and transfer of existing cycling models (from natural gas storage) for hydrogen storage
Element Energy (UK): Validation of the techno-economic approach of the demonstrator and assessment of potential for replicability to other sites/countries
Ineris (FR): Risks and environmental impacts management for the demonstrator. Analysis of the regulatory and normative framework for safe development of this sector in Europe
Axelera (FR) : Operational result monitoring and sharing with all partners and the scientific community. Communication, dissemination, strategic intelligence, and networking with stakeholders, in order to facilitate the use and replication of HyPSTER’s solutions beyond the project.
The project timeline
2020: Definition of the regulatory framework for the project. Reception of financing by the European Union (FCH-JU), the signature of the consortium agreement by all partners
2021: Start of the engineering studies
2022: Construction of the electrolysis unit for on-site green hydrogen production and equipment of the cavern well for storage
2023: Experimentation of hydrogen storage in a salt cavern and hydrogen production
