Green hydrogen, an up-and-coming energy source, is getting a boost from the province of Groningen: Groningen Seaports will install a pipeline to transport the gas in Eemshaven and Delfzijl.
Groningen Seaports and Pipelife, a company which manufactures plastic tube systems, have signed an agreement to create the necessary infrastructure in the harbour in Delfzijl and the Eemshaven.
Four kilometres of piping should be installed within a year. The to-be-built infrastructure will transport hydrogen created from wind and solar power – green hydrogen – to companies in the chemical and industrial companies operating in the region. Using plastic pipes is a cheaper option for transporting the gas.
Pipelife will provide the pipes and Groningen Seaports will oversee their installation. Hydrogen has the potential to be a more stable green energy source with fewer fluctuations which characterise other green sources. Energy generated by wind turbines can be converted into molecules and stored as hydrogen. The hydrogen can in turn be used as a feedstock or fuel for any number of industrial and chemical processes.
Groningen Seaports
According to Cas König, the director of Groningen Seaports, green hydrogen infrastructure is good for the environment and for the provincial economy. “Green hydrogen offers a great opportunity to make the Groningen economy greener and future-proof. Groningen Seaports wants to help lead the way in the energy transition, and this initiative improves the business climate of the region for established companies and newcomers alike.”
Pipelife
Mark van Loon, the director of Pipelife, says, “SoluForce has a proven track record with this technology and we are eager to apply it to transporting green hydrogen. Green hydrogen has so much potential, but it remains costly, but relying on flexible composite pipe to transport it makes the business case for using green hydrogen much stronger.”
