Gen2 Energy participates in world’s first project combining hydrogen production and floating offshore wind energy, applying for grants from The Green Platform Initiative.
Recently, a consortium led by Unitech Offshore AS and consisting of 12 corporations, a Norwegian Catapult Centre, two research institutes and one university, applied for a grant from Grønn Plattform. The MNOK 200 Zefyros H2 project aims to research, develop and build the world’s first floating hybrid energy hub, combining offshore wind energy production with hydrogen production and storage.
“The consortium covers the entire value chain needed, from FOW energy production and converting the energy to hydrogen, storage, transportation and use of hydrogen as an energy carrier,” says Svein-Erik Figved, director of Public Affairs at Gen2 Energy. “We will lead the development of a solution for transferring hydrogen to container ships for transporting to end users, in accordance with our overall design concept for an integrated system for delivering hydrogen-as-a-service.”
So far, Gen2 Energy has been focused on utilizing surplus energy from land-based hydroelectric power plants. Zefyr H2 represents a widening of scope to include offshore wind power to produce H2 on site. The hydrogen is then to be stored in subsea tanks for subsequent transfer to container ships.
There is an urgent need for emission-free power production if the goal of a zero-emission society by 2050 is to be within reach. Floating offshore wind is a more stable energy source than land-based wind since wind conditions are more favorable offshore than on land. However, since energy output will vary according to weather conditions, there is a need for storage capacity and dedicated infrastructure for distribution of energy.
There is an increase in the production of hydrogen world-wide. Only a small percentage of this hydrogen is produced without greenhouse gas emissions. With the offshore energy hub that we are investigating, the output will be one hundred percent emission free.
“The Zefyros H2 project represents an exciting opportunity in Gen2 Energy’s development, and we really hope the application will result in grants for this broad collaboration, both for Gen2 Energy and the partners,” says Figved.
The Zefyros H2 consortium:
- Unitech Offshore AS
- Gen2 Energy AS
- Source Energie AS
- Sustainable Energy AS
- Vetco Gray Scandinavia AS / Baker Hughes
- Origo Solutions AS
- Marin Energi Testsenter AS
- Havind AS
- Karsten Moholt AS
- Havfram AS
- Aker Offshore Wind AS
- Norsk Olje og Gass AS
Research partners
- SINTEF AS
- University of Oslo
The Green Platform Initiative
The Green Platform Initiative provides funding for enterprises and research institutes engaged in green growth and restructuring driven by research and innovation.
The Norwegian Government wishes to use the Green Platform Initiative to stimulate bigger and more rapid investments from companies in green sustainable solutions and products. That will strengthen Norwegian exports and value creation and enable us to implement the green transition and create green growth. It will also make Norwegian companies and research institutions better equipped to exploit the opportunities provided by the EU’s Green Deal initiative, which is part of the research and innovation programme Horizon Europe.
The objective is to trigger opportunities for green value creation through major projects. They should comprise the whole value chain from research and knowledge production to testing, commercialisation and industrialisation of sustainable, green products and services.
About Gen2 Energy | www.gen2energy.com
Gen2 Energy is a Norwegian company dedicated to develop, build, own and operate an integrated value chain for green hydrogen. The company target to have several large-scale production facilities for green hydrogen located in Norway and Northern-Europe as well as a distribution network ensuring customers safe and reliable delivery. We also aim to use low/zero emission fuel in our distribution system, taking a holistic view on the environmental footprint of the hydrogen value chain.
