Offshore wind power is the key to unlocking the potential of the US green hydrogen market, according to Ross Gould, vice president for supply chain development at US membership organisation Business Network for Offshore Wind (BNOW).

“For hydrogen to reach its potential, it must connect to offshore wind,” says Gould, also staff lead for BNOW’s green hydrogen working group.

US demand for hydrogen could reach 41mn t/yr by 2050, almost four times current demand, according to the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

Interest in pairing offshore wind with electrolysers to produce green hydrogen in the US is increasing fast. BNOW’s working group, launched in August, has eight members. Its inaugural meeting was attended by about 50 participants, says Gould.

“For hydrogen to reach its potential, it must connect to offshore wind” Gould, BNOW

Offshore-wind-to-hydrogen is promising in the US because of land constraints for onshore wind and solar, says Gould. It could be especially cost-effective in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and in California, he adds.

Electricity is already cheap in the GOM, so offshore wind could be most efficiently paired with hydrogen used for transport, heavy industry and the fossil fuel sector. In the last of these, the hydrogen could power exploration and drilling, reducing greenhouse gas emissions. California, with its rigorous climate goals, also has potential. 

But in the near-term, most offshore wind development in the US is expected to take place off the East Coast. The northeast—a region that stretches from Maine to Virginia— is often called the “Saudi Arabia of offshore wind”, says Gould.

Developers are starting to come forward with offshore-wind-to-hydrogen projects in the US. An early-mover is a 10MW green hydrogen pilot with utility South Jersey Industries planned for the proposed Atlantic Shores offshore wind project off New Jersey. The 1.51GW wind project, a 50/50 partnership between Shell New Energies and France’s EDF Renewables, is to start construction in 2024.

Separately, Avangrid, part of Spanish utility Iberdrola, has unveiled proposals for green hydrogen projects in Connecticut, New York, Maine, Oregon and the Gulf Coast. Avangrid is a partner in several offshore wind projects off the US northeast. The firm says the proposal for a 20MW electrolyser and hydrogen storage for its Connecticut gas and electric utilities could be “potentially powered by renewable energy from offshore wind and supplemented by additional solar or grid-based renewable electricity.” It is estimated the project could produce roughly 2.9mn kg/yr of hydrogen, yielding an annual emissions reduction of approximately 25,000t of CO₂_.

Offshore momentum

The US is several years behind Europe in developing offshore wind, but the market is expected to grow fast from the 42MW currently installed. The Biden administration has given the expansion of offshore wind high priority.

35.3GW – US offshore wind capacity in development

The US offshore wind project pipeline grew by 24pc in 2020 compared with the previous year, with more than 35.3GW  in various stages of development, according to NREL. By 2030, the US could be the third-largest global region for installed offshore wind after China and the UK, says research firm BloombergNEF.

Projects coupling green hydrogen and offshore wind are gaining traction in Europe, with developers including Denmark’s Orsted, Norway’s Equinor and Germany’s RWE involved.

H2 Energy Europe of Switzerland is planning a 1GW green hydrogen production site near Esbjerg in Denmark to be operational in 2024. The electricity would come from one or more offshore wind farms located nearby in the North Sea.

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Author: Ros Davidson