H2 Hollandia hydrogen project – Nieuw-Buinen

Novar is currently developing a hydrogen system at the Vloeivelden Hollandia solar farm in Nieuw-Buinen. This project is expected to be completed in Q2 of 2024.

How does the hydrogen system work?

We use part of the solar energy generated by the neighbouring Vloeivelden Hollandia solar farm to produce 100% green hydrogen. Hydrogen contains a huge amount of potential energy: three times more per kilo than diesel.
The direct connection to the solar farm avoids overloading the electrical grid. The hydrogen system also prevents energy losses. If the solar farm generates too much energy on sunny days, the energy that cannot be supplied to the grid can be used to produce hydrogen.

Hydrogen is not an energy source, but an energy carrier. Energy sources produce energy. Energy carriers store the energy from an energy source in a different form, so it can be used somewhere else later. This is how we use hydrogen gas. The hydrogen can subsequently be used for many other purposes, including as fuel for cars.

Hydrogen can be produced in three different ways. Each method produces either grey, blue or green hydrogen.
Steam Methane Reforming (SMR), the most common process, produces grey hydrogen. Methane from natural gas is split into hydrogen and CO2.
The blue hydrogen production process is the same as for grey hydrogen, except that the CO2 is captured and stored so it does not enter the atmosphere.
Green hydrogen is produced without CO2 emissions. Using a process known as ‘electrolysis’, water molecules are split into hydrogen and oxygen.

H2 Hollandia produces green hydrogen, which is stored in cylinders. The hydrogen can subsequently be delivered to various consumers, including operators of heavy goods vehicles. As well as hydrogen, this process also produces pure oxygen, which can be used to supply water treatment facilities.

About this project

Permit procedure The permit for the realisation of the hydrogen system has been issued. The expensive technology and current high electricity prices make it difficult to realise this project without subsidy. The financial viability of H2 Hollandia is thus dependent on subsidy. Two subsidies have been awarded so far. The Province of Drenthe has awarded a development subsidy for the project, which will cover some of the costs of the development phase. The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland, RVO) has also awarded an investment subsidy for the project, namely the Demonstration Energy and Climate Initiative (Demonstratie Energie- en Klimaatinnovatie, DEI+) subsidy, which focuses on innovations related to hydrogen and green chemistry.

We are currently in the contractual phase. We are in contact with various potential users to discuss the sale of the green hydrogen and interested parties can respond to a tender for the construction of the system.

This can begin once the contracts have been signed. While this is not a time-intensive project, we are dependent on the lead times for the components of the project. These can be very long.

How will this project contribute to the energy transition?

By installing the 5 MW electrolyser next to the 115 MWp Vloeivelden solar farm, we can produce around 300,000 kg of hydrogen annually. This will allow us to half the curtailment (power that can’t be supplied to the grid and is thus lost) of the solar farm. At present, four percent of the total global energy consumption is made up of grey hydrogen. This means there is already a market for hydrogen, but this demand is currently met with grey hydrogen. As explained above, CO2 is released when grey hydrogen is produced, which contributes to the climate crisis. By producing green hydrogen in partnership with H2 Hollandia, we can reduce CO2 emissions and contribute to solving the climate crisis.