Siemens Energy and partners inaugurate solar-driven green hydrogen facility in Dubai

The plant was inaugurated by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy, and Chairman of the Expo 2020 Dubai Higher Committee. His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, Chairman of His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan Humanitarian and Scientific Foundation; Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Co-operation and Director General, Expo 2020 Dubai; His Excellency Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA); Dr. Christian Bruch, President and Chief Executive Officer of Siemens Energy, and officials from the public and private sectors were present.

The integrated facility was developed with electrolysis, storage, and re-electrification capabilities, to maximise the benefits of the pilot project. Daylight solar power from the solar park will enable the pilot project to produce around 20.5 kg/hr of hydrogen at 1.25 MWe of peak power. Operational data from the green hydrogen electrolysis will be displayed at Expo 2020, one of the most sustainable World Expos in history and the largest event ever held in the Arab world.

Utilising this pilot project, DEWA aims to demonstrate the production of green hydrogen from solar power, as well as the storage, and re-electrification of hydrogen. This is a system that allows for buffering renewable energy production, both for fast response applications, as well as for long-term storage. The plant has been built to accommodate future applications and test platforms for the different uses of hydrogen, including potential mobility and industrial uses.

Power for the Green Hydrogen Project will be provided by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, which will generate 5000 MW of clean energy by 2030 as one of the largest single-site solar parks in the world.

Hydrogen can be used for re-electrification through gas motors, gas turbines and fuel cells. It can also be used as a feedstock for the chemical industry (e.g. ammonia, syn-fuels, green-chemicals, etc.), as fuel for transportation, a reducing agent for the steel industry, as heat for industrial processes, gas for residential heating and cooking purposes, or energy for export.

Hydrogen technologies will accelerate renewable energy integration and deployment in the region and pave the way for the transition to a sustainable and green economy in the UAE. It is a highly efficient energy carrier. Upon combustion, the only by-product of this zero-emissions fuel is water, making it an ideal medium for electrification and the substitution of fossil fuels in industrial processes and other applications by way of sector coupling. It can be transported using existing pipeline infrastructure and/or via trailers and tankers, either as hydrogen or derivatives such as ammonia, methanol, etc.

Moreover, hydrogen is very suitable for large-scale, as well as long-term, and high-capacity storage and can provide fast and sustained energy levels, suitable to offset intermittent output from some renewable energy sources. It can be used to fuel gas turbines, which offer the flexibility and fast ramp-up needed to balance volatile power generation from some renewable sources.

The operational experience gained from the Green Hydrogen Project will be invaluable in developing sustainable and carbon-free solutions for numerous industries, which will drive green economic growth for the benefit of future generations.

Against the background of low costs of electricity for solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind power in the region, hydrogen has the potential to be a key fuel in the energy mix of the future and could open up energy export opportunities for those areas with access to abundant renewable energies.

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