The Dutch government, through Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN), is stepping in as an active partner in PosHYdon. This pilot will also produce green hydrogen on an operational gas platform. This will be the first time that three offshore energy systems will be integrated. The pilot is essential for the development of large-scale production of green hydrogen at sea and thus for the energy transition in the Netherlands and Northwest Europe.
To safeguard this public interest, EBN will actively participate in the consortium. EBN is already a 40% partner in the Q13a-A platform, where the pilot will take place. PosHYdon is now moving towards the final phase: the setup will be tested on land at InVesta in May 2024 and the first production of hydrogen on the platform operated by Neptune Energy is planned for the second half of 2024.
Michel Heijdra, Director General of Climate & Energy at the Ministry of Economic Affairs & Climate: "We are on the eve of the large-scale development of the North Sea as an engine for energy transition. In this, offshore electrolysis will play an important role. In PosHYdon, the first steps are being taken to realize this. This is why the Ministry of Economic Affairs sees this as an essential project. EBN's participation in the consortium guarantees a sufficiently large scale of the project and ensures that lessons learned will be taken into account in the future."
Key role
Jan Willem van Hoogstraten, CEO of Energie Beheer Nederland: "PosHYdon plays a key role in the realization of the green hydrogen economy. An ambitious, but also challenging project with an undeniable public interest. EBN feels a great responsibility to help ensure PosHYdon's success. For the energy transition in the Netherlands and in Northwest Europe."
Rollout
In the PosHYdon project, about 80% of all lessons are learned around the offshore production of green hydrogen. This makes the project essential for a smooth rollout toward large-scale production, as envisioned with the Esbjerg ambitions for 2050.
PosHYdon integrates three energy systems in the North Sea: offshore wind, offshore gas and offshore hydrogen and will take place on Neptune Energy's Q13a-A platform. This generating platform is the first fully green electrified platform in the Dutch North Sea and is located approximately 13 kilometers off the coast of Scheveningen.
The green hydrogen will be blended with the gas and transported to the coast via the existing gas pipeline. To this end, the Ministry of Economic Affairs & Climate has increased the blending specifications from 0.02% to 0.5% hydrogen. The 1 MW electrolyser will follow the wind profile of wind farm Luchterduinen.
