+ 500 MW of electrolyser capacity needed to replace an oil refinery

BP and Ørsted have partnered to develop zero-carbon ‘green hydrogen’ at BP’s Lingen Refinery in north-‎west Germany, BP's first full-scale project in a sector that is expected to grow rapidly. The Lingen Refinery processes about five million tonnes of crude oil a year (about 100,000 barrels ‎a day), producing fuels, heating oil and chemical feedstocks. The project aims to develop a 50 MW electrolyser, but BP states that the project could be expanded to up to 500 MW at a later stage to replace all of Lingen’s fossil fuel-based hydrogen.

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+ Battery electric vs hydrogen (heavy-duty vehicle)

According to Scania, a heavy-duty vehicle manufacturer who has invested in hydrogen technologies and is currently the only heavy-duty vehicle manufacturer with vehicles in operations with customers, the use of hydrogen for heavy-duty vehicle applications will be limited. This is because there is three times as much renewable electricity needed to power a hydrogen truck compared to a battery electric truck. A great deal of energy is lost in the production, distribution, and conversion back to electricity.

Repair and maintenance also need to be considered. The cost for a hydrogen vehicle will be higher than for a battery electric vehicle as its systems are more complex, such as an extensive air- and cooling system. Furthermore, hydrogen is a volatile gas which requires more maintenance to ensure safety.

However, hydrogen is a promising energy carrier; good way of storing energy over long cycles, and will play an important role in decarbonisation if produced in an environmentally friendly way. Scania looks forward to sourcing fossil free steel for its trucks as hydrogen will play a greater role in several industries.

Scania