(Bremen) – Hydrogen transport by ship and thus seaports has a “special role”. Unlike transport using pipelines, this route is highly flexible and economical - especially for long distances of around 2.500 kilometers. This is one of the results of a study on the future role of Bremen's ports for the hydrogen economy.
The title sketch of the study shows the option of connecting the northern German ports to the “European Hydrogen Backbone”, a 40.000 kilometer hydrogen transport network to industrial sites (“Hydrogen Valleys”). © ISL
While pipelines are time-consuming and costly to construct and inflexible to operate, it says, ship transport can be adapted to changing conditions and often even use existing infrastructure to import energy sources. It can therefore be assumed that the ports of Bremen, alongside the other German seaports, play “an important role in the import of hydrogen and hydrogen-based energy sources”.
The authors of the study “Investigation into the development and establishment of a port-related hydrogen economy” highlighted two key aspects in particular: on the one hand, the positioning of the Bremen ports for the handling of hydrogen and PtX energy sources in relation to import and export, and on the other hand, location potential for the settlement of Transshipment terminals for renewable energy sources.
The project group, consisting of the Institute for Shipping Economics and Logistics (ISL), the TTZ Bremerhaven and Bremenports, warns: In general, the construction or conversion of appropriate infrastructure for the handling, storage and transport of hydrogen and hydrogen-based energy sources only makes sense if there is a prospect insist on their long-term use - for example through concrete expressions of interest from exporters and buyers. In addition, bureaucratic hurdles would have to be reduced and approval procedures shortened.
“Immediately implementable”: hydrogen by container
A concept for importing hydrogen that can be implemented almost immediately is based on special containers for the transport of compressed hydrogen. “With the container terminals and their hinterland connections, the entire infrastructure from the manufacturer to the consumer is already available.
According to the analysis, an immediate entry into hydrogen applications could begin to supply small consumers such as hydrogen filling stations, combined heat and power plants and pilot projects in research and science. Transport containers could already be handled in small quantities as dangerous goods containers.
Liquid hydrogen from Scotland
Another option is to import liquid hydrogen to Germany using medium-sized ships via the ports of Bremen. There are already contacts with the Scottish initiative “LH2 Europe”, which has announced the completion of a tanker with a storage capacity of 2027 cubic meters for 37.500.
However, new unloading infrastructure would have to be created for the import. According to the authors, suitable locations include the overseas ports in Bremerhaven, the Bremerhaven fishing port and the industrial port in Bremen. The transshipment options for liquid hydrogen would have to be available by the time the ships are available in 2027/28 in order to be able to use this option.
Means of transport for compressed hydrogen
The same applies to the import of compressed hydrogen. “Discussions are currently being held with potential partners” who plan to deliver hydrogen to Germany using compressed gas transport ships from around 2026/27.
Such ships are “currently being planned and, as they involve conventional technologies, could be available in the medium term,” according to the assessment. “Therefore, transshipment options for compressed hydrogen should also be created.”
LOHC as another option
Liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHC) could also be used as storage media and are easy to handle and transport. They absorb hydrogen through chemical reactions and later release it again.
The project group handing over the study to the Senator for Science and Ports (from left to right): Project leader Nils Meyer-Larsen (ISL), Senator Claudia Schilling, Gerhard Schories (TTZ), Mareke Stehle (Bremenports), Sara Hritz-Hagenah (TTZ) . © Senator for Science and Ports, Bremen / Fabio Guarascio
By using methylcyclohexane (C7H14), for example, hydrogen could be imported via the Bremen ports using conventional tankers with an energy content of around two terawatt hours per year. There are no special requirements for the unloading facilities; Rather, conventional discharge technology can be used for conventional fossil fuels, the paper says.
However, there are also disadvantages: high energy requirements for releasing the hydrogen from the LOHC as well as “increased requirements for the tank infrastructure, as separate tanks have to be kept for the hydrogen-rich and the hydrogen-poor variants of the LOHC”.
Caverns and pipelines essential
If liquid hydrogen cooled to minus 254 degrees Celsius is landed, long-term storage in this form does not make sense because it would require too much energy. Instead, the cryogenic hydrogen should be regasified in order to temporarily store it in the region's underground caverns. The scientists advise that the correct handling would also be the case for hydrogen supplied in compressed form or with the help of LOHC.
For transport from the ports to the caverns and further into the hinterland, a Bremen connection line in the direction of the Bremen hydrogen backbone pipeline is recommended. Bremen airport and the steelworks as well as possible hydrogen import terminals should also be connected to this network.
Excess capacity could be fed into the lines. Connecting the caverns will enable significant amounts of hydrogen to be temporarily stored, so that fluctuations in demand can be balanced out and safety reserves can be created in the event of supply bottlenecks. The onward transport of liquid hydrogen and compressed hydrogen from the Bremen ports further into the hinterland using inland waterway vessels would also be an option.
On-site production for regional security of supply
In addition to the import options mentioned, consumer-oriented production of hydrogen and PtX energy sources in the state of Bremen should also be supported. This could generate additional added value in the region and achieve “to a certain extent independence from import flows”.
The planned electrolyzers in Bremerhaven and at the steelworks for hydrogen production, green methanol as ship fuel and other e-fuels played a particular role for the ports and terminals. The connection to renewable power sources in the region is essential. Further potential should be developed via a branch of the planned power connection of the offshore wind farms in the North Sea via the Unterweser cable route to Bremerhaven.
Energy partnerships between Bremen and third countries
In order to secure imports of hydrogen-based energy sources in the long term, energy partnerships between Germany and exporting countries are absolutely necessary. The existing contacts on the Bremen side with Andalusia, Iceland, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Canada and Tasmania should be expanded and supplemented by other countries.
“The conversion of the German economy to hydrogen-based energy sources is a gigantic task that everyone involved has to tackle together,” says project manager Nils Meyer-Larsen from ISL. “The ports of Bremen, as one of the largest German port locations, can and must do their part to bring the large quantities of hydrogen and PtX fuels that Germany will have to import in addition to domestic production into the country and thus secure the energy supply in the long term. “
Photos
The ports of Bremen can be easily integrated into a transport chain for hydrogen imports, say the authors of a new study. © Bremenports / Scheer
The study “Investigation into the development and establishment of a port-related hydrogen economy” is now available to download free of charge as a PDF (197 pages).
