Orkney will become home to another innovative energy solution with a newly launched project set to deliver an onshore energy management system that will support the production of hydrogen using an electrolyser powered by a tidal energy converter.
The project, called Integrating Tidal Energy into the European Grid (ITEG) and supported with €11 million through the Interreg North-West Europe (NWE) programme, will set up an onshore energy management system at the European Marine Energy Centre’s Fall of Warness tidal test site to enable the production of hydrogen by an AREVA H2Gen electrolyser , the first to be deployed in the UK, which will be powered by Scotrenewables’ next-generation 2MW floating tidal energy converter , the SR2-2000.
The aim of the ITEG project is to develop an all-in-one solution for the generation of clean predictable energy, grid management, and production of hydrogen from excess capacity , and thus address energy-related carbon emissions in North-West Europe and tackle grid export limitations faced in remote areas such as Orkney.
The project consortium includes the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), Scotrenewables Tidal Power, AREVA H2Gen, the Energy Systems Catapult, Energy Valley/New Energy Coalition, University of Caen Normandy, University of Le Havre Normandy, Ghent University and the Normandy Development Agency.
“With ever-large amounts of variable renewable energy generation being added to the European grid, issues around energy system management are requiring an even more integrated approach,” EMEC’s Commercial Director, Oliver Wragg , said. “By combining world-leading technology developed in North West Europe with EMEC’s leading research infrastructure, we will demonstrate how predictable renewable tidal energy combined with hydrogen, can enable decarbonisation across the electricity, heat and transport sectors.”