(Friedeburg-Etzel / Germany) – The last hydrogen tanker has delivered its cargo to the Friedeburg-Etzel cavern in Lower Saxony. "With the unloading of the 200th trailer, the entire quantity of hydrogen was ready," according to the consortium partners. H2Cast-Pilot projects. The storage operator Storag Etzel GmbH and the energy supplier Gasunie are involved in the project. A total of approximately 90 tons of hydrogen, equivalent to one million cubic meters, are now stored underground.
Last December, two large modules of the above-ground hydrogen purification plant were delivered and installed. © Storag Etzel GmbH / Gasunie
Particular attention is now being paid to the completion of the above-ground facilities for hydrogen purification, compression, and gas quality monitoring, which are newly constructed and scheduled to go into operation this year. The companies aim to demonstrate the feasibility of underground hydrogen storage with this project. "The findings will contribute to future underground hydrogen storage," says project manager Carsten Reekers of Storag Etzel: "Valuable experience has already been gained since the project started in early 2022." This underscores "that there is a high degree of comparability with natural gas storage facilities" and that the existing caverns are also suitable for hydrogen.
The research project will develop and test the technical implementation of hydrogen storage in salt caverns. The filling of the test cavern and the H2 procurement process illustrate "the early stage of development of the German market." In 2023, high-pressure trailers and filling stations for pressures exceeding 200 bar were "only available to a very limited extent," according to Reekers. "This, combined with the lack of local production, resulted in a high proportion of hydrogen costs." Deliveries sometimes covered distances of up to 1.000 kilometers.
Long delivery routes should be eliminated in the future.
“The market has since evolved, allowing us to secure a supply from a nearby hydrogen producer – which significantly reduced both logistics and production costs.” Once Etzel is connected to the national hydrogen core network, the site will become “a key hub for hydrogen storage in the future energy system.” One conclusion is already certain: “The handling of the new energy carrier is carried out professionally and smoothly on a daily basis.” The process steps for safe hydrogen refueling are “under control.”
Photo above
The last hydrogen trailer (for now) has delivered its cargo to Etzel. © Storag Etzel GmbH
