(Antwerp / Belgium) – The Antwerp-Bruges Port Authority continues its efforts to take a leading position in the local and international hydrogen economy. A boiler powered entirely by green hydrogen has now been installed in one of the workshops of the port's Nautical Operational Cluster (NOC).
A heating system powered entirely by green hydrogen was installed in the port's paint shop to gain experience with this technology. © Port of Antwerp-Bruges
The hall is 1.430 square meters in size and is used, among other things, for painting infrastructure objects such as parts of locks or ship technology. The project, the idea for which was born at the end of 2019, is a collaboration between the plant manufacturer Imtech, the engineering company Tractebel Engineering, the heating manufacturer Remeha, the storage system provider Solenco Power and the Port of Antwerp-Bruges. It is “the first time that such a boiler has been used in Belgium for a workshop of this size,” according to the port administration.
Hydrogen boiler in the paint shop. © Port of Antwerp-Bruges
The hydrogen is produced entirely using renewable energies: 70 percent of the electricity comes from local photovoltaic systems, the remaining 30 percent is green electricity from the grid. An electrolyzer with an output of 30 kilowatts generates the hydrogen to operate the 24 kilowatt boiler. Compressed gas bottles serve as intermediate storage. In addition, 80 percent of the waste heat from the electrolyzer would be recovered and used to heat the hall. The boiler uses ten kilograms of hydrogen on a cold winter day, the equivalent of around two fully loaded hydrogen cars. The heating output corresponds to the output required to heat two single-family homes.
Solenko Power's electrolyzer uses green electricity to produce hydrogen. © Port of Antwerp-Bruges
The Port of Antwerp-Bruges wants to become climate neutral by 2050. One goal is to reduce CO2 emissions caused by heating buildings by 2030 percent by 92. The switch to green energy for our own fleet and buildings is part of this. The hydrogen sector rests on three pillars: local production and import, infrastructure for sales and consumption, and transport to end users in the hinterland. “In addition to imports, local production plays an important role in the hydrogen economy,” says Annick De Ridder, chairwoman of the board of directors of the Port of Antwerp-Bruges. The paint shop is now used to test the use of hydrogen technology - especially where a heat pump cannot always be easily integrated. The project received an undisclosed grant from the EU research and innovation program Horizon 2020.
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The port of Antwerp-Bruges wants to reduce its CO2 emissions by 2030 percent by 92 and occupy a key position in the import of green hydrogen. © Port of Antwerp-Bruges
