Jacobs will report the results in March of a four-month feasibility study into producing and using green hydrogen at RWE’s Pembroke power station in South Wales. The study will consider installation of a 100MW electrolyser, initially using power from local and grid connected renewable energy and will also look at how green hydrogen could be used for transport and decarbonization activities in South Wales. It will be the precursor to a funding application under the UK Government’s Net Zero Hydrogen Fund. The feasibility study has been partly funded by South Wales Industrial Cluster, a consortium of Wales’ major industry, energy, infrastructure, law, academic and engineering organisations of which RWE is a member.
The feasibility study is the first announcement following RWE’s launch of plans in 2021 to create a Net Zero Centre at Pembroke and is likely to set the direction in which the new centre develops.
As well as green hydrogen production, the Net Zero Centre would also be involved in development of floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea and decarbonisation of the Pembroke power station itself, including studies for carbon capture and the feasibility of hydrogen as a fuel. The location is close to potential industrial off-takers for green hydrogen in the South Wales Industrial Cluster. Jacobs said the green hydrogen project could grow to several gigawatts and be linked to floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea.
Richard Little, Pembroke power station manager said: “We’re excited to see the outputs of Jacobs’ feasibility study over coming weeks, the first step towards the potential construction of large-scale hydrogen infrastructure at Pembroke. Hydrogen will be a game changer in the decarbonisation of heavy industry in South Wales and RWE will be a key partner in helping achieve that.”
Launching the Net Zero Centre last year RWE said it will work with RWE experts across the Welsh, UK and international businesses in generation, renewables and trading, looking at deploying technologies to help decarbonise the region and support Wales’ Roadmap to Net Zero’ by 2050.