Horizon Power unveils solar-hydrogen microgrid in Western Australia – pv magazine International

July 9, 2024 David Carroll

From pv magazine Australia

The Western Australian Government has released a report outlining the lessons learned from the commissioning and operation of a first-of-its-kind solar and green hydrogen microgrid, which is currently operating in the coastal town of Denham, about 800 kilometres north of Perth.

The plant is the first renewable hydrogen microgrid in Western Australia and includes a dedicated 704kW solar farm, two 174kW electrolysers with associated compression and storage facilities and a 100kW fuel cell that can be used to provide electricity when needed.

It is linked to Denham’s existing independent power system, which includes a separate 640kW photovoltaic farm, a 1.5MW/1.7MWh battery storage system, a wind turbine and a 2.6MW diesel generator.

The solar and renewable hydrogen system is expected to generate 526 MWh of renewable energy per year, of which at least 220 MWh will be supplied by renewable hydrogen. The plant is expected to produce around 13,000 kg of green hydrogen per year, which will serve as a dispatchable power source. It is believed that hydrogen could reduce the city’s diesel consumption by 140,000 litres per year.

The Public Knowledge Sharing Report, prepared by Horizon Power, a regional and remote electricity supplier in Western Australia, highlights the challenges faced by engineering, procurement and construction contractors, including having to “develop much of the design from scratch” due to the unique nature of the project.

The study also found that developing a high-maturity control program capable of managing the operation of the electrolysers and reducing the amount of energy consumed from other sources was a key achievement for the successful launch.

Horizon said lessons learned from the Denham microgrid project will expand the knowledge and technical capabilities of hydrogen systems and test how to integrate and deploy the technology across power systems in Western Australia and across the country.

The state-owned utility said the aim of the system is not to produce as much renewable hydrogen as possible or to optimise for minimum cost – instead, it aims to prove that hydrogen storage systems can be used as a viable way to store excess renewable energy and return it to the power grid, thereby “time-shifting” renewable energy.

“Using hydrogen to capture and store excess renewable energy, then returning that energy to the electricity system, provides a viable alternative to continued diesel use,” Horizon said. “(It) also provides an energy storage mechanism that can compete favorably with batteries.”

Western Australia’s Acting Energy Minister Dr Tony Buti said the Denham project represented a breakthrough in the use of hydrogen as a fuel that could provide a source of renewable energy when the wind is not blowing or the sun is not shining.

“This report confirms the significant opportunity for hydrogen to play a role in our state’s energy transition,” he said. “As we retire the state’s coal-fired power plants and embrace renewable energy, hydrogen can play a critical role in powering our state while creating jobs and business opportunities through new export markets. By replacing diesel with hydrogen in Denham, our government has also demonstrated how this technology can deliver tangible benefits to regional communities connected to the microgrid.”

Horizon said it will continue to monitor the performance of the Denham plant and its operational and maintenance requirements with a view to making improvements over the next 12 months, and will share any learnings with the industry.