Shipping green hydrogen from Iceland to Rotterdam feasible by 2030

 A project to produce green hydrogen from renewables in Iceland and export it to the Port of Rotterdam could be technically feasible by 2030, a new study finds.

Iceland energy company Landsvirkjun and one of Europe’s largest ports, the Port of Rotterdam, have finalized a pre-feasibility study on exporting green hydrogen from Iceland to Rotterdam.

As disclosed, the two parties have worked together to map the key components of the value chain from renewable power generation and hydrogen production.

Furthermore, a comparison was made of possible hydrogen carriers taking into account energy density, costs, demand and other attributes.

The study has shown that a hypothetical project of this kind could be realized in the second half of this decade and be between 2 and 4 TWh (some 200 to 500 MW).

Moreover, the project could give a significant contribution to the fight against climate change by reducing CO2 emissions up to one million tons and in the longer term it could reduce millions of tons, Landsvirkjun and the Rotterdam port said.

The parties also noted that hydrogen could be produced through electrolysis and the energy needed would be a combination of renewable generation including hydro, geothermal and wind.

The resulting green hydrogen would be liquefied or converted into a carrier for transport to Rotterdam where it would be recovered for use at the port or in the hinterland.

“We at Landsvirkjun are determined to continue leading the way in renewable energy. It is the way to a better future for all,”Hordur Arnarson, CEO of Landsvirkjun, commented.

Allard Castelein, CEO Port of Rotterdam Authority added: “This new green energy for Europe, distributed via Rotterdam’s terminals and hydrogen backbone, could further help decarbonize our industrial complex.”

The companies concluded that they intend to continue working together to explore the hydrogen opportunity and expect to elaborate on these plans in the second half of 2022.

The project is part of the Port of Rotterdam’s effort to become a hydrogen hub in the future.

In March 2021, the port announced it is working on the development of a new hydrogen pipeline together with Gasunie, a Dutch natural gas infrastructure and transportation company operating in the Netherlands and Germany.

With this new project, named HyTransPort RTM, it will be possible to transport hydrogen to other destinations in the country, according to the port authority.