Change search
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf
Future hydrogen supply in Stenungsund : Pre-study of a SOEC pilot plant and analysis of large-scale integration of SOEC and ammonia cracking plants
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Built Environment, System Transition and Service Innovation.ORCID iD: 0009-0005-1073-5419
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Safety and Transport, Measurement Technology.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-8600-3725
Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden.
Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden.
Show others and affiliations
2024 (English)Report (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

To enable the chemical industries in Stenungsund achieve climate neutrality, large amounts of fossil-free hydrogen will be required. Producing all hydrogen through electrolysis will demand large amounts of electric power, but the current grid capacity in Stenungsund is limited, making less electricity-intensive hydrogen production solutions essential. This study investigates the technical and commercial prerequisites for a Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cell (SOEC) pilot plant in Stenungsund. It also analyzes various scenarios to understand how SOEC and ammonia cracking can complement each other from a techno-economic perspective and enhance security of supply. The interviews that were conducted to gather insights from relevant stakeholders showed that they anticipate a significant increase in future hydrogen demand, highlighting the need for scalable and cost-effective production methods. There is strong interest within the industry cluster to learn more about SOEC technology and gain practical experience through the establishment of a pilot plant. A concept for a SOEC pilot plant has been outlined in the current study including a description of the possible integration with existing infrastructure in Stenungsund. The intention with such a pilot plant is to test and gain experience from commercially available equipment of a size that is relevant for large scale hydrogen production projects. Two different plant sizes were considered, corresponding to approximately 5 MW (case 1) and 10 MW (case 2) electric power demand. There is a clear scale benefit for the larger plant which makes it the preferred choice, but the investigation showed that the CAPEX for the SOEC pilot plant is higher than initially expected. To proceed with a project, a viable business case needs to be presented. This study also examines the technical and economic synergies between SOEC and ammonia cracking, focusing on cost optimization and operational flexibility to meet the hydrogen demand of existing Borealis steam cracker plant at the site. The analysis points to that the integration of both technologies enhances security of supply and reduces costs assuming favorable long-term low-carbon ammonia supply contracts and favourable Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). Comparing the levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH), the study finds that SOEC offers a lower LCOH than ammonia cracking under the assumed input costs (400 €/tNH3), provided competitive PPAs are secured (45 €/MWh). The integrated system’s LCOH ranges from 3.7 to 6.5 €/kg, depending on ammonia and electricity prices, with flexible operation potentially reducing costs to 3.7–4.5 €/kg by leveraging spot market prices. Current EU regulations mandate temporal and geographical correlation for PPAs used in renewable fuel production, which complicates flexible operation aligned with the electricity market. Full-load, year-round operation achieves the lowest LCOH, though it limits peak demand response. The sensitivity analysis suggests that exporting excess hydrogen to the industrial cluster could offset costs in low full-load scenarios. In the near term, ammonia cracking can mitigate grid constraints, while future expansion of SOEC capacity, as grid capacity grows, promises further cost reductions and enhanced operational flexibility.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2024. , p. 67
Series
RISE Rapport ; 2024:78
Keywords [en]
large-scale hydrogen supply, SOEC, ammonia cracking, integrated SOECammonia cracker system, chemical cluster
National Category
Environmental Engineering
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:ri:diva-76205ISBN: 978-91-89971-39-4 (electronic)OAI: oai:DiVA.org:ri-76205DiVA, id: diva2:1915159
Note

The project was financed by Vinnväxtinitativet Klimatledande Processindustri that is financed by Vinnova, Västra Götalandsregionen and members in Västsvenska Kemi- och Materialklustret.

Available from: 2024-11-21 Created: 2024-11-21 Last updated: 2025-09-23Bibliographically approved

Open Access in DiVA

fulltext(6736 kB)207 downloads
File information
File name FULLTEXT01.pdfFile size 6736 kBChecksum SHA-512
e59c54b9aa83e49c6b52ddc2f2dc63158d6e09d3ebea93ce938342b8e31b2fe43ae7bfafe7aa81a88b4862e6b3d291b6f39f4f107db71c6e345dc5e6e8af87dd
Type fulltextMimetype application/pdf

Authority records

Axelsson, LovisaEdvall, MariaJannasch, Anna-Karin

Search in DiVA

By author/editor
Axelsson, LovisaEdvall, MariaJannasch, Anna-Karin
By organisation
System Transition and Service InnovationMeasurement Technology
Environmental Engineering

Search outside of DiVA

GoogleGoogle Scholar
Total: 209 downloads
The number of downloads is the sum of all downloads of full texts. It may include eg previous versions that are now no longer available

isbn
urn-nbn

Altmetric score

isbn
urn-nbn
Total: 759 hits
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf