(Grimsby / England) – A consortium operating under the name “Oyster” has selected Grimsby on the east coast of England as the location for the renewable hydrogen production project. The British manufacturer of electrolyzers ITM Power plc, the Danish energy company Ørsted A/S, the wind turbine manufacturer Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy and the British consultant Element Energy are involved.
The aim is to develop a system that combines electrolysis at sea with offshore wind turbines. It will also integrate desalination and water treatment processes so that seawater can be used as feedstock. The companies are also investigating the potential of using pipelines to transport hydrogen from sea to land.
Region related to renewables
The Oyster consortium reportedly chose Grimsby because the region on the River Humber, which flows into the North Sea, has a strong connection to renewable energy. This is the operational center for Ørsted's wind power activities on the UK east coast, including Hornsea One and Hornsea Two, which will become the largest offshore wind farm in the world when completed in 2022. Both offshore wind farms use turbines from Siemens Gamesa, whose rotor blades are manufactured in nearby Hull.
ITM Power is responsible for the marinization of the electrolyzer system, while Ørsted leads the analysis and feasibility study for future offshore use and supports ITM Power in design and testing. Siemens Gamesa and Element Energy provide their technical and project management know-how.
“Oyster” is funded by the European Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU) with five million euros and supported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, Hydrogen Europe and Hydrogen Europe Research.
Blueprint for the hydrogen economy
The Humber region is also home to the Gigastack project, which is developing a concept for the use of renewable hydrogen from offshore wind turbines on an industrial scale. This separate consortium consists of ITM Power, Ørsted, Element Energy and Phillips 66 Limited.
There is a high density of energy-intensive industries such as refineries, power plants, steel mills and glassworks on the banks of the river. This is the largest industrial cluster in Great Britain in terms of carbon dioxide emissions, with emissions of 12,4 million tonnes per year. According to Ørsted, its decarbonisation is “critical to the UK’s binding net zero target by 2050”.
Corporations are pooling expertise on the British east coast
The Oyster Consortium is by no means alone in operating in the Humber Delta. In July, SSE Thermal and Equinor announced plans for one of the world's largest hydrogen storage facilities in Aldbrough, East Yorkshire, on the British east coast. The facility could absorb low-carbon hydrogen as early as 2028. Equinor wants to use the project title “Hydrogen to Humber Saltend“ (H2H Saltend) Develop electrolyzers with an output of 1,8 gigawatts to produce blue hydrogen. As reported, the location is the Saltend Chemical Park near the city of Hull, just a few minutes' drive southwest of Aldbrough.
The consortia don't mention it, but with these constellations and projects, future cooperation between all companies is clearly obvious.
deep link
https://orsted.com/en/media/newsroom/news/2021/09/862313889301790
Class schedule
Grimsby becomes an “Oyster” laboratory. © Ørsted
