Summary
Operation of strategic importance (OSI) or above EUR 5 million
Project name (EN): North Sea Hydrogen Valley Ports [FA]
Project acronym:
NS H2V Ports
Project ID:
V1wZlPKNn
Project start date: 2024-01-01
Project end date: 2026-12-31
Project status:
ongoing
Relevant mentions and prizes:
Total budget/expenditure:
EUR 1 598 171.00
Total EU funding (amount):
EUR 958 903.00
Total EU funding (co-financing rate):
60.00%
Co-financing sources:
- ERDF: Amount, EUR 958 903.00. Co-financing rate, 60.00%.
Investments, deliverables, policy contributions
(bullets are inserted automatically and may be incorrectly placed)
Deliverables:
- Identification of Governance Issues Affecting Hydrogen Production, Storage and Transport / Examine the effects in port regions on the changes at EU level that form a regulatory system for H2 production and start a H2 European Market. It will address barriers that include: Lack of legal frameworks and guidelines pertaining to port focusing on development and operation of energy activities. Regulatory complexity of developing offshore windfarms and the supply of large quantities of electricity for electrolysers. identify land and infrastructure needs for electrolyser installations
- Port Hydrogen Valley Master Plans: Opportunities and Barriers / There are a growing number of H2 Valleys developing across the EU and across the World and progress reports/evaluations made on them. This initial report will look at their progress together with opportunities and barriers so that H2 Valley Ports with their unique maritime dimension can create a successful framework in which to develop successfully. This Report will be a key strategic document in the WP and is included in the outputs.
- Analysis of Hydrogen Port and Short Sea Shipping Vessels In Operation / A desk study into the port and short sea vessels that are operating in inland waterways. the NSR and other sea areas New build and retrofit vessels will be examined. A number of INTERREG projects at the end of the last programme period. Many of these vessels were retrofit vessels and we will look at the lessons learned for harsher conditions in the North Sea. We will also examine types of vessels and propulsion concepts
- Removal of Policy Barriers to Bunkering / Project partners will look at solutions to remove the following policy barriers: Lack of co-ordinated and sufficient investment in bunkering infrastructure Lack of demand certainty for ports investing in bunkering infrastructure What type of hydrogen should be bunkered. Chicken and egg problem' most severe in maritime sector Type of bunkering to be used - ship to ship; ship to shore- and lack of dialogue with regulatory authorities.
- Initial Hydrogen Valley Ports Conference / This Conference will set out the project and its Work Packages. It will set out the activities in the WPs and invite external speakers from the Clean Hydrogen JU, Directorates General of the European Commission, Member States and other Hydrogen Valleys being developed. The target audience is a wide one and will include local partnerships, ports, and the hydrogen value chain. The Conference will also issue brochures and leaflets about the project.
- Map Potential H2 Production Sites and Infrastructure in the Four Hydrogen Valley Ports / Work in all four ports to identify potential sites and energy sources for electrolysers; amount of green H2 and its derivatives to be produced in each port; assess the broad demand for H2 in port regions; barriers to H2 production including a focus on the infrastructure requirements within and to each port to support import and export of hydrogen production
- Formation of Port Partnerships / Four events will launch the individual port partnerships to develop the Master Plans. This will be a broad partnership including port authorities and tenants, local and regional authorities, hydrogen producers, potential end-users etc that are essential in the creation of a sustainable H2 value chain. The events will be open to a wide range of stakeholders and will agree the core group that will develop the individual Port Hydrogen Valley Master Plan.
- Initial workshop to discuss bunkering procedures for hydrogen vessels and its derivatives / A major problem is the lack of bunkering facilities due to the uncertainty over the fuel to bunker. Different ports and shipping groups have expressed intentions to develop different fuels so that container ships could favour methanol. If it was only cost then ammonia would have a lead but many variables such as port traffic and layout of harbours etc. Co-operation across the NSR is needed to develop standardized and harmonized bunkering solutions, guidelines, and practices for hydrogen.
- Formation of a North Sea Hydrogen Valley Ports Interest Group / The project partners will form a wider group of stakeholders that includes organisations outside the project partnership and includes the European Commission, the Clean hydrogen JU, Directorates-General of the the European Commission, ESPO, Green Corridor projects etc. The event will include speakers from the project and policy makers at EU and national government level and will agree a timetable of meetings for the Network.
- Policy Barriers to Vessel Design and Policy Changes Needed to Stimulate Greater Activity / Introducing alternative fuels like hydrogen and its derivatives can he hampered by problems with cost, availability of the fuel and regulatory framework. It often leads to a major re-configuration of the vessel and this is the case for the great variety of vessels that operate. The IMO is gradually introducing new rules governing the use of new fuels. The focus of this activity is to study the current and future expected legal restrictions in vessel design and think of ways how to manage these.
- Development of Methodology for Master Plans / WP2 partners will develop a methodology which will be followed by each partner port to develop the Master Plan. The methodology will assess demand from end users etc within each port regions. The methodology will define the structure of each Hydrogen Master Plan and the components of the Master Plan.
- Bunkering Plans for Hydrogen Valley Partner Ports / The local partnerships formed in WP1 will also develop Bunkering Plans for each Hydrogen Valley and this will develop bunkering plans taking into account activities 1-3 in this WP and the information gathered in WP3. Key players to be consulted in this part of the work are port authorities, hydrogen vessel operators, bunker companies and hydrogen producers.
- Agree Methoodology for Individual Port Hydrogen Production, Storage and Infrastructure Plans including Modelling Approach / Develop a methodology and model that can used in each Hydrogen Valley Port. The methodology and model should be wide-ranging to cover all aspects in hydrogen production and supply. This will include the development of storage and infrastructure together with the import/export requirements in each Hydrogen Valley Port for H2 and its derivatives.
- Formation of Vessel Design Group / For new technologies like hydrogen-fuelled ships, there are no prescriptive rules or regulations in place. Approval is based on a risk-based approval process where an equivalent level of safety compared to a conventional oil fuelled ship needs to be demonstrated. This risk-based approval process is designated by the IMO and referred to as the Alternative Design Approach. Project partners will develop a stakeholder group with vessel designing parties to discuss the results from Activities 1-2 and discuss the options for case studies using this format, or other relevant strategic approaches .
- Regular Meetings of the Network / The Network will meet once every six months in Brussels with the second meeting being in a partner port. This will allow showcasing of the ports' activities and integrating the developments from the Clean Hydrogen JU, European Commission and Member States into the work of the individual port partnerships.
- North Sea Port Bunkering Networks / There will be an external event that looks at policy recommendations drawn from previous activities in this Work Package. It will provide a road map of the steps that need to be taken to create a Bunkering Port Network in the proposed major Import Corridor designated as part of the TEN-E Network.
- Data Collection For Hydrogen Valley Master Plans / Identify the demand from end users etc within each port regions alongside the end-user individual needs within each port region (import, export, within port use and/or support wider decarbonisation strategy. Use of questionnaire to define organisations wishing to switch to hydrogen or its derivatives.
- Development of Promotional Activities Concerning the Safe Use of Hydrogen / The project partners will develop a series of educational activities to promote the safe use of hydrogen in each port region. These activities will include a broad range of the public from adults and college leavers interested in a career involving hydrogen to information for schools and colleges and for adults interested in the role of hydrogen in energy transition. These activities will include social media, brochures, leaflets, displays and educational materials.
- Strategic approaches in Vessel Design / This activity will look at the current barriers to vessel design, the policy developments likely to happen during the coursee of the project and sugget policy changes to accelerate vesssel design for short sea and port shipping. This will be based on current state of art and the project pipeline in the ports consulted. Different strategic approaches will be looked at for accelerating vessel design, including the alternative design approach.
- Identification of Future Funding Opportunities and Policy Initiatives / One of the major objectives of this project and to progress to other project funding opportunities and policy initiatives. The Network gives us an excellent platform to influence future policy and funding activities under the Clean Hydrogen JU, Horizon Europe and the Innovation Fund
- Project Pipeline for H2 Valley Master Plans / It is important that each Port Master Plan will identify a series of projects that will underpin the Plan and ensure that H2 production and use is in balance. Each project will develop the use of H2 for a group of end-users. Examples; development of shore power; projects to increase the number of hydrogen buses and/or hydrogen heavy duty trucks in the port region; H2 trains project etc. Many of these projects will feature in each Hydrogen Valley and will then be developed transnationally.
- Convene Individual Hydrogen Valley Port Partnerships / Each Hydrogen Valley Port will convene its own local partnership to develop the individual Hydrogen Production, Storage and Infrastructure Plans and oversee other activities such as promotional work that will be key parts of the strategies
- Analysis of Bunkering Networks and Procedures Across NSR / This activity will be based on small and medium sized ports that want to build up bunkering networks offering a range of hydrogen fuels and identified in the Network meetings in WP5. It will use the information gathered in WP3 about port traffic, type of vessels, and sea routes etc and work with ports to develop networks with standard equipment to form compatible networks for each network port.
- Diffusion of results with interest group and supervisory board (SB) / A strong Advisory Board has been formed to steer the project and provide expert guidance. additionally interest groups are formed. This activity envelops all communicative efforts regarding the diffusion of the results in terms of standardized action plans. We will design e.g. brochures, banners, and vlogs to disseminate and engage external networks in a call for NSR standardization and promotion of cooperation. This includes organization of SB meetings and production of promotional material
- Consultations on draft Individual Hydrogen Valley Port Master Plans / The partners will develop a series of activities to promote public acceptance and the safe use of hydrogen in each port region. The activities described earlier in this WP will provide the building blocks to complete the Master Plans. There will be a number of drafts produced for each Plan so that a wide consultation can be carried out and comments sought. The implementation of Plans will lead to a large financial commitment outside the scope of this project but scan be planned
- Launch events on H2 Valley Port Hydrogen Production, Storage and Infrastructure Strategies / The local partnership will communicate individual H2 production, storage and infrastructure strategies in line with the agreed methodology and be responsible for launch events and regional publicity.
- Conferences To Launch H2 Valley Master Plans / Conferences will be held in each Hydrogen Valley Port to launch the each Master Plan with speakers from within the Hydrogen Valley; from project partners and external speakers from the European Commission and Member States. The Conferences will all have Business to Business (B2B) so that value chain connections can be made within the port partnership and the broader project partnership. Webinars will also beheld to promote the formation of value chains ans will have a B2B element.
- Hydrogen Import and Export Activities in the North Sea region / The North Sea will be a major Hydrogen Import Corridor in the TEN-E Network which will entail many import and hydrogen production, storage and infrastructure projects in North Sea. This activity will create a database of planned projects and also monitor their progress in terms of development (feasibility to Final Investment Decision etc.)
- NSR collaboration to overcome barriers and foster innovation / WP2 will examine the four Master Plans, examine the methodology and look at any changes that need to be made. The Report will look at the common features in each Master Plan and make recommendations about the development of transnational projects from the Plans; ways in which the Valleys can work together to remove governance barriers and ways in which a wider North Sea H2 Valleys network can be created.
- Development of alternative use cases of H2 / Grid congestion is a frequent problem in NS ports, limiting decarbonization efforts, as these heavily rely on electrification. This activity will develop fuel cell (non-implemented) use cases for applications that will require a lot of energy resulting from the transition as a part of the masterplans, to plan potentialm future implementation after the project. Examples: Shorepower, gridbalancing, electricfication of port operation and charging infrastructure of landbased E-mobility systems.
- Publication of Academic Article / The journal article will be submitted to a high-impact journal during the project period, aiming to be published and disseminated during the planned events (depending on the journal review process). The journal article will take a rigorous academic approach to the activities and results mainly from this WP but also overall project. It will provide input to the development of the four master plans and written reports.
Contribution to wider strategies and policies:
- Carbon emitted by the maritime sector have to reduce by 50% in 2050 compared to 2008. By executing this project we contribute to this by planning future infrastructure needed for procuring H2 (derivatives) in port ecosystems Enabling H2 based shore power in Den Helder and other partner ports Removing governance barriers in development of maritime H2 Valleys by providing transnational roadmaps that allow other ports to decarbonize as well
- By taking a transnational approach in identifying governance barriers and providing policy recommendation, form wider interest groups, and lobby for better legislation, we factually call for a more integrated maritime policy across the NSR region.
- The FuelEU Maritime Initiative is part of the Fitfor55 Package. Its main objective is to increase the demand and consistent use for renewable and low-carbon fuels and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from the maritime sector, while ensuring the smooth operation of maritime traffic and avoiding distortions in the internal market. The Council and Parliament have reached a provisional agreement on the Initiative and the work of H2 Valleys project will remove barriers and increase hydrogen use.
- The EU adopted its hydrogen strategy in July 2020 (COM 2020/301) and emphasised the importance of Hydrogen Valleys to increase local production and link to end-users. It also stressed its importance in the maritime sector. The Strategy also agreed ambitious targets for the increase of hydrogen production and the need to import hydrogen in large quantities.
- In May 2022, REPower EU was the EU's response to the European energy crisis and increased its H2 targets. It set a target of 10 million tonnes of domestic renewable hydrogen production and 10 million tonnes of imports by 2030, to replace natural gas, coal and oil in hard-to-decarbonise industries and transport sectors. The maritime sector is one of these hard-to-abate sectors.
- This Strategy will increase incentives to promote the deployment of renewable and low-carbon fuels and in maritime vessels. It recognises the fact that waterborne transport has great decarbonisation challenges and that the sector needs investment in refuelling and infrastructure. but it has set the target that zero emission vessels will be ready for market by 2030.
Programme Common Output Indicator:
-
RCO 083 - Strategies and action plans jointly developed, Measurement unit:
Delivered output indicator(s):
- (RCO83) Strategies and action plans jointly developed: 256
Programme Common Result Indicator:
-
RCR 079 - Joint strategies and action plans taken up by organisations, Measurement unit:
Delivered result indicator(s):
- (RCR79) Joint strategies and action plans taken up by organisations: 16
