Western Australian gas company ATCO Australia has achieved a network distribution blend of up to 10% renewable hydrogen, produced by a solar-powered electrolyzer, for 3,000 homes.
Western Australian gas company ATCO Australia has delivered a test network distribution blend of up to 10% renewable hydrogen, produced by a solar-powered electrolyzer, to 3,000 homes as part of the Hydrogen Community Blending Project (HCBP).
The Hydrogen Community Blending Project (HCBP) is a AUD 2.6 million ($1.7 million) initiative, building on successful blending tests from the Clean Energy Innovation Hub (CEIH) at ATCO’s Jandakot operations center. The company uses solar energy, batteries and renewable hydrogen through electrolysis.
Launched in 2019, CEIH’s Hydrogen Microgrid was partly funded by a AUD 1.79 million grant from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA). It features 1,003 solar panels, with excess renewable energy from a 300 kW rooftop solar system that produces hydrogen via a 260 kW proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer.
Unused energy is stored in a 478 kWh battery energy storage system (BESS), while pure green hydrogen is stored in a 30 bar high-pressure vessel for use as a blended fuel, as direct fuel for testing equipment, or as backup power for a show house.
ATCO Australia Executive General Manager Gas Operations Russell Godsall said the 10% blending into the gas network was a notable milestone.
“Since initiating this project, our team has worked closely with regulators in this new and evolving area for the gas industry, and the project really demonstrates the potential for other gases to play a critical role in Australia’s energy transition,” Godsall said. “From a customer perspective, the use of gas in their homes has remained unchanged, with the hydrogen mixture having no impact on modern household appliances.”
Godsall said the company has 100% hydrogen appliances at the ATCO demonstration hybrid home in Jandakot, where they are demonstrating the role of renewable hydrogen in the country’s energy transition.
ATCO Australia Chief Executive Officer John Ivulich said the implementation of changes to the National Gas Law and Rules in Western Australia would greatly help the adoption of emerging clean fuels into the energy mix.
“Australian Energy Ministers have previously agreed to changes to the National Gas Act and Regulations to bring hydrogen, biomethane and other renewable gases into the National Gas Regulatory Framework, which is indicative of the confidence our leaders have in these fuels to to be part of the energy transition,” Ivulich said.
Ivulich claimed that a renewable gas target that includes hydrogen, biomethane and renewable synthetic methane could support emissions reductions from the use of methane gas.
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