Renewables supply power to the whole process.
Through electroysis, the oxygen and the hydrogen that make up water are separated.
O
H O
Green H
CO from the Petronor re nery is captured.
Water
H O
CO
Using only the hydrogen and the captured CO , synthetic fuels are produced.
Fuel plant
Carbon-neutral synthetic fuels are obtained that can be used in existing engines of cars, trucks and airplanes.
Synthetic fuels
Zero net emissions
Figure 2 Spanish oil major Repsol plans to build one of the largest synthetic fuel production plants in the world, based on green hydrogen. 18 Source :Repsol unveils green hydrogen project,2020
Strengthening climate regulations The Paris Climate Agreement and the commitment to net zero in 65 nations (United Nations 2019) are a testimony to the transformation in public attitudes on climate change. Growing concern to stay within the IPCC’s 1.5°C scenario and avoid exceeding 2°C has encouraged policy makers and companies to find energy solutions that can decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors and to invest resources to deploy them. Technically viable decarbonisation solutions based on green hydrogen are perhaps the best match today to deal with the above sectors including those depending on fossil fuels. Big European push Europe, with its economy saddled with high energy prices and heavily dependent on Russian natural gas, is embracing green hydrogen by providing funding for construction of electrolysis plants and other hydrogen infrastructure. Germany has allocated the largest share of its clean energy stimulus funds to green hydrogen. 22 The European Commission’s 2030 Hydrogen Strategy explains in detail the central role that hydrogen will play in its economy. The strategy underpins the birth of green hydrogen- based industry growing the installed base of
A schematic plan of the world’s largest net- zero emissions synthetic fuel production plant based on green hydrogen being built by Spanish oil major Repsol is shown in Figure 2 . 18 This electrolysis base facility, to be operational in the next four years, will use cutting-edge technology to combine green hydrogen with CO 2 captured in the nearby Petronor refinery, as the raw materials will position Repsol on the leading edge of the development of net-zero emissions fuels. A second green hydrogen project has been announced by Siemens 19 in 2021: It is building one of Germany’s largest hydrogen generation plants in Wunsiedel. This RES-based facility with a capacity of 8.75 MW will produce up to 1350 tons of hydrogen a year, and will go into operation in the summer of 2022. Using the generated hydrogen in transportation and industry allows for CO 2 savings of up to 13,500 MT annually. Green hydrogen: boosters Green hydrogen exceeded expectations in 2020 with a spate of huge projects totalling more than $150 billion in investment. 8.20 However, the rapid growth in interest and investments in green hydrogen have been met with some skepticism (World Bank 21 ). The major boosters of green hydrogen are:
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