EU spends billions on hydrogen, but where is the hydrogen? –MishTalk

I’m all for hydrogen power plants to produce electricity, if only we had cheap hydrogen. But we don’t and probably won’t.

A bad bet on the hydrogen hype

Bloomberg warns of billions in European spending on green hydrogen. It’s a risky bet

Today, the bright yellow power plant tucked behind a graffiti-covered fence burns planet-warming gas to produce electricity. But if all goes as planned, it will one day switch to zero-emission hydrogen. It’s the first, tiny part of a dream energy system sketched out by policymakers across Europe, who are banking on green fuel to achieve some of the world’s most aggressive climate goals. That dream relies on converting newly built polluting infrastructure to burn hydrogen, a fuel that will be many times more expensive than natural gas and that no one has yet figured out how to transport in bulk safely and affordably..

Governments and companies striving to meet net-zero emissions deadlines but worried about energy security can still build billions of dollars worth of gas infrastructure, provided they are “ready for hydrogen. Nine of the world’s ten largest carbon polluters have released hydrogen strategies and incentives to increase the use of the fuel, which already exceed $360 billion globally, according to BloombergNEF.

Gas-dependent economies, including Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom, are among Europe’s biggest supporters of the use of hydrogen and some are considering it. use to produce electricity. But there is no official definition of what makes a factory hydrogen-ready, which opens the door to greenwashing. For power plants, hydrogen combustion has not even been tested on a large scale.

“There has not yet been measurable progress in building gas and hydrogen power plants,” said Eric Heymann, an economist at Deutsche Bank Research.

Then there is the problem of displacing hydrogen. The Leipzig plant is not connected to the grid (and has not yet installed its own electrolysers), which means that the highly combustible fuel will have to be transported by truck until the second part of the big plan of the government comes to fruition. It is building a billion-euro liquefied natural gas terminal in Brunsbuettel, a town on the North Sea, which will initially import LNG but will also be designed to handle futuristic clean fuels.

Hydrogen can only be liquefied at -253°C (-423°F), far beyond the capabilities of today’s LNG ships. Germany is therefore considering importing hydrogen in the form of liquid ammonia, a combination of hydrogen and nitrogen that can more easily be transformed into a liquid. But ammonia is toxic and handling it requires better ventilation systems. Many terminal components, including control valves and fire and gas sensors as well as in-line devices – most of which have not been tested with ammonia – will also require upgrades, according to Fraunhofer ISI, an energy think tank.

Not viable but at full speed

Germany does not have a network of ammonia pipelines and its transportation by truck on an industrial scale is limited, as it is dangerous. This means that ammonia will need to be converted back to hydrogen, but there is currently no economically viable technology to do this. The terminal operator said it would discuss alternative strategies if none emerge by next year.

Wind and solar power produce clean electricity – something the world is already using. Green hydrogen, on the other hand, will require the construction of more solar and wind farms when, in many cases, it would be simpler to use this clean energy directly. By the time the hydrogen is produced, stored and burned to produce electricity again, there is almost 70% less energy than initially – and the cost has tripled.

Plans only exist on paper

For the most part, plans only exist on paper. This is because they only work on paper.

A trial in the UK was canceled when people caused an outcry after learning they would have to replace their furnaces and cookers with new hydrogen appliances.

This does not apply to the situation mentioned above which proposes to burn hydrogen to produce electricity. However, there is a 70 percent energy loss when converting hydrogen to ammonia and then returning it to hydrogen for combustion.

This doesn’t make sense anywhere. Nonetheless, Germany is spending $20 billion to make power plants “hydrogen ready.”

Wasting $20 billion is a monthly phenomenon in the Biden administration, but that’s a lot of money for Germany, which, unlike the United States, has fiscal rules.

Chinese shock

Germany is feeling the effects of the Chinese shock. But the United States is also on deck. A global trade war is looming.

To discuss this, please see The second China shock is approaching, the EU will be hit hard, then the United States

Germany has too many concerns to waste money on absurd projects.

Also see Is China Dumping Its US Treasuries and Buying Gold? Bloomberg says yes, Pettis uncertain