The energy transition is a "A big thing"! Has green hydrogen a role to play? | Energy Central

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Klaus Schollmeyer

Consultant KSC International Ltd

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Over the last eight years I have worked in more than 24 countries around the globe. During this time, I worked mainly as a service engineer/supervisor in over 20 major offshore construction...

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Nov 28, 2019 4:55 am GMT
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My key takeaways from this event:

There is a lot of innovation around the age-old principle of electrolysis, splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen with an electric current.
The cost of “green” hydrogen has to come down and will come down.
Hydrogen is currently the only viable long-term solution to facilitate a serious decarbonisation of the energy sector and energy-intense industries.

The energy transition is a "A big thing"! Has green hydrogen a role to play?

At October 9th 2019 I flew to Bangkok to attend two workshops, on electrochemistry and finance, at an event called “The Big Thing”. “The Big Thing” event was hosted by Enapter and stretched over four days. It included a “Hands-on” Seminar and a press conference at the Nongnooch Tropical Botanical Garden, a scientific research centre and attraction in the Chonburi Province, Thailand and the Electrochemistry and Finance workshops in the Pullman G Hotel in Si Lom, Bankok.

Source: medium.com

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Matt Chester on Nov 27, 2019 9:59 pm GMT

The cost of “green” hydrogen has to come down and will come down.

What's your guess for when green hydrogen might become cheaper than fossil-backed hydrogen? Is that in the cards?

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Klaus Schollmeyer on Nov 28, 2019 7:53 am GMT

It is definitely in the cards and it might happen faster then most people anticipate just yet. As someone with a little O&G background, I think it even will play a huge role in the long-term future and transformation of the O&G sector if they want to stay relevant after 2050, as the political pressure is only going to increase.

If you consider for example that the EIB is going to stop in 2021 to lend money to all fossil fuel projects including gas and that is just the beginning of financial institutions moving away from lending/investing in fossil fuels and a lot of people push for a broader carbon tax/pricing it seems almost inevitable and as seen in solar and wind a lot of people underestimate the impact of economics of scale.

In some cases green hydrogen is already cost-competitive according to the report mentioned in this article:

https://www.carboncommentary.com/blog/2019/2/26/making-hydrogen-from-renewables-is-as-cheap-as-making-from-natural-gas

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Bob Meinetz on Nov 29, 2019 4:44 am GMT

Klaus, given there are no commercial renewables-to-gas production facilities in operation, though the technology has been long available, your claims that R2G "is in the cards" and its "cost will come down" have no basis - nor does the fantasy "hydrogen is currently the only viable long-term solution to facilitate a serious decarbonisation of the energy sector."

All can safely be dismissed as more hoaxes in the endless supply those "with a little background in O&G" have been promoting for decades, with the only goal of ensuring reliance on O&G continues unabated.

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Klaus Schollmeyer on Dec 2, 2019 3:11 am GMT

Hello Bob,

thanks for your reply. Seems you disagree with my opinion, that's okay and I really appreciate the little side note about me working on large scale infrastructure projects of the oil and gas industry.

What is your phantasy about the long term future of a low carbon economy?

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Bob Meinetz on Dec 2, 2019 7:54 am GMT

Klaus, there are many who believe in hydrogen, who believe in solar and wind, without any understanding of how pitifully diffuse and irregular energy from the sun is in comparison to that provided by oil or coal mined from the ground; of how the process of converting solar/wind energy to hydrogen, then pressurizing/liquifying it, requires nearly as much energy as that contained within the fuel itself.

Currently, 95% of industrial hydrogen is produced by steam-reforming methane ("natural gas"). There is a reason for that: it's far more efficient and profitable than electrolyzing it from water. Oil companies love to sell more polluting methane, so they promise one day hydrogen will be made from renewables. They're lying - like when they say "green hydrogen is already economical." It doesn't make sense now and never will, but once they've created a hydrogen economy from methane, like the solar economy built on selling solar panels, too many people will be getting rich on the scam for it to end.

I don't disagree that misleading people at the expense of the environment can be profitable, though I think most would consider it unethical.

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Klaus Schollmeyer on Dec 3, 2019 2:04 am GMT

Bob,

what do you believe in? What is your solution?

Trying to patronize and belittle everyone who is not a believer in "nuclear"?

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Bob Meinetz on Dec 8, 2019 5:44 pm GMT

Klaus, I believe in nuclear energy because it works, and it works very, very well. It has decarbonized nearly all of the electricity in France, Sweden, Finland, and Switzerland.

No other source of electricity has that track record - renewables don't even come close - and we're running out of time. We have to go with what works.

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Matt Chester on Nov 29, 2019 1:41 pm GMT

Thanks for the info, Klaus!

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Rami Reshef on Dec 5, 2019 12:55 pm GMT

Hello Klaus,
Thanks for sharing your optimism regarding the important contribution electrolysis and green hydrogen are making to the decarbonized energy market of the future. Carrying out large-scale electrolysis by leveraging surplus energy from wind and solar in midday to produce green hydrogen that can be stored for energy generation during peak consumption times when the supply of solar and wind may not be sufficient will make decarbonized energy systems more economical.

Reduced incentives for fossil fuels alongside plummeting prices for renewables is creating increasing opportunities for these systems to build out at a wider scale. Deployments of electrolyzers and fuel cells that complement intermittent renewable energy sources and ensure a constant flow of clean and economical energy at all times of day will play a crucial role in the growing hydrogen economy.

Best Regards,
Rami

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