The Port of Amsterdam is the latest harbour in northwest Europe to launch a study into the import and storage of green hydrogen with plans to handle 1mn t/ yr by the end of the decade.

This follows announcements from neighbouring ports in Rotterdam, Antwerp and Zeebrugge, which are all making plans to attract hydrogen imports into the region, where hydrogen demand is expected to exceed local supply as users turn to more sustainable feedstocks.

“The cake will be big enough in the future, and we definitely recognise that setting up a hydrogen supply chain requires partnerships,” says Ramon Ernst, sustainability lead at commodity storage company Evos, which is partnering with the Port of Amsterdam in the six-month feasibility study.

1mn t/yr – Target hydrogen throughput of Port of Amsterdam storage facility

Importing hydrogen means finding a suitable technology to transport and store it safely. Evos and the Port of Amsterdam have picked three partners—Electriq Global, Hydrogenious and Hysilabs—which each specialise in a different type of hydrogen carrier: a salt-based carrier (Electriq Fuel), a liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC) and a liquid carrier (HydroSil) respectively.

“What we found out so far is each of those carriers has its own merits. We combine them in one consortium to learn from each other but also to see which technology is the best fit for what application in the market,” Ernst tells Hydrogen Economist.

The Amsterdam hydrogen import project, named H2Gate, is assessing the potential for importing green hydrogen from areas in northern Africa, the Middle East and Australia. “This is the first phase of the project and it will be expanded more upstream and downstream, no doubt about that,” Ernst says, adding that this will include bringing more partners on board over time.

Although northwest Europe is expected to be short on hydrogen, Ernst sees potential for the re-export of green hydrogen. “Where there are international flows of hydrogen emerging there will also be trade and re-exports in addition to break-bulk. ARA already serves as an energy hub where you see those kinds of flows,” says Ernst.

The project partners are now stress-testing the plans of accommodating 1mn t/yr of hydrogen. This includes checking what adjustments are needed to infrastructure or which parts can be repurposed and what permitting or special technologies are required. “We hope that we will see the first vessels carrying hydrogen entering the port towards the end of this decade,” Ernst says.

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Author: Karolin Schaps