The German energy company
EnBW and
Siemens Energy are ‘jointly driving the trend’ of using ‘green hydrogen’ as a climate-friendly fuel in future power plants; and while an important pilot project is the EnBW district heating power plant in Stuttgart-Münster, Germany, where natural gas is expected to initially replace coal in about three years, all systems are being constructed from the outset so that natural gas can be replaced with hydrogen as quickly and completely as possible. Two SGT-800 gas turbines from Siemens Energy are at the heart of the installation.
Georg Stamatelopoulos, an EnBW managing board member, said: “The fuel switch from coal to gas in Münster is an important building-block that will allow us to continue to have sufficient power-generating capacity in the coming years. It is the only way we can support the expansion of renewable energy, as over the medium term we will be replacing gas as a fossil fuel with hydrogen. We are already laying the groundwork by contributing to our first goal of significantly reducing our company’s CO
2 emissions and then becoming climate-neutral by 2035.”
Tim Holt, Siemens Energy’s managing board member, said: “Hydrogen-fired gas power plants have an important role to play in the future energy mix. Hydrogen makes it possible to store energy generated by wind and solar farms, to transport this energy, to convert it back into electricity, and to use it where it is needed. Our H
2-capable turbines give our customers the greatest possible flexibility when it comes to choosing their fuel while also protecting their investment.”
The two new turbines, which are replacing the three coal-fired systems, each have an electrical output of 62MW and a downstream waste-heat recovery system. The project teams at both companies are also planning for hydrogen’s future beyond the gas turbines.
Diana van den Bergh, an EnBW engineer, said: “Pipelines, control systems, and boiler technology also have to be converted as quickly and easily as possible when green hydrogen is available. For this we are looking at a timeframe of around 10 to 12 years. In the agreements, Siemens Energy confirms that the new turbines will be able to process up to a 75% hydrogen admixture from the time they are shipped in 2024, with the overall package prepared to handle 100% hydrogen.”
The plans for the overall project in Münster are currently on schedule, and progress is already being made on building a new workshop facility that will provide space for the actual construction site. Once all the approvals have been obtained, the work on the new systems could begin in the first quarter of 2023.