Offshore Solar to Hydrogen System, Located North of Crete, Greece

Abstract

The energy transition, is one of the most important topics nowadays. Renewable energy sources contribution in the energy mix is growing rapidly. However, due to their intermittent power output, they cannot ensure system security and stability, and therefore, energy storage technologies are needed. In this direction, hydrogen is an energy carrier with great potential. When produced from water electrolysis based on electricity from renewable energy sources (green hydrogen), it represents a sustainable fuel. Due to that, industry’s interest is turn on green hydrogen production, with several large scale projects announced on a daily basis. In many countries, especially in Europe, there is not enough empty land for large scale renewable energy projects, turning the interest to offshore areas. This research aims to design and analyse the economic feasibility of an offshore hydrogen production system, intending for 2030, based on offshore solar energy,
located in Greece, for the production of a million tons of hydrogen per year. The
produced hydrogen will be injected into the European hydrogen network. Considering the main components of an offshore solar to hydrogen system, four possible system configurations are proposed based on two parameters for comparison. The first parameter for examination is the electrolyzer type, which can be either alkaline or PEM. The second parameter is the involvement of batteries into the system. The sizing and cost details about the different systems were selected and all the configurations were modelled using Matlab and Simulink software. From the model results, the levelized cost of hydrogen
for all the systems was calculated to evaluate the project. The most cost-effective
configuration was the one based on alkaline electrolyzer and without the involvement of batteries. The levelized cost of hydrogen for the selected
onfiguration was calculated to be 1.5 €/kg of hydrogen, making it comparable with blue hydrogen costs and with green hydrogen costs of relevant announced projects. A sensitivity analysis showed that the most influencing factor in the cost calculation is the capital expenditure of the floating photovoltaic system. More specifically, by decreasing the floating photovoltaic costs by 30%, the levelized cost of hydrogen can be reduced by 19%. Finally, in an optimistic scenario,
where all influencing factors are improved by 20%, hydrogen can be produced at
a cost slightly higher than 1 €/kg. Overall, it is concluded that an offshore hydrogen production system based on offshore floating solar energy, located in Greece, northern to Crete, can produce hydrogen at a competitive cost.