Provaris Energy Ltd (ASX: PV1, Provaris) has launched of compressed hydrogen floating storage solution which has applications across many hydrogen industries seeking cost-effective storage solutions at scale.
Provaris’ Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Martin Carolan commented: “Provaris sees the development of a floating storage solution as a natural extension of its compressed hydrogen IP, providing an alternative to current high-cost bulk-scale storage solutions and improving the economics of its existing projects. We believe a floating storage solution will complement our pipeline of hydrogen production and transport projects and decrease timelines to first revenues and IP commercialisation.”
With an increasing demand for clean renewable energy, the ability to store compressed hydrogen is an integral part of the hydrogen supply chain. Over the last 18 months Provaris has been studying ways of leveraging its shipping IP, engineering and Class approvals obtained to date on cargo containment and ship designs, to develop a solution for the industry that is in need of hydrogen storage at scale.
Provaris’ Chief Technical Officer, Per Roed added: “The H2Leo is a flexible hydrogen floating storage unit that can be optimized in size, capacity, and operations for different applications. Its SIMOPs capability allows for continuous operations, and it has a large working deck and hull for installing auxiliary systems such as compression and H2 bunkering. Provaris is developing production capacity for cargo tanks that can be operational for floating storage by 2025 which will cater to short term demand for storage and allow Provaris to gain operational experience and de-risk the continued development of the H2Neo carrier.”
‘Approval in Principle’ milestone for the H2Leo leverages the completion of extensive FEED, critical safety studies and ‘Design Approval’ for the H2Neo carrier.
Leveraging the FEED-level engineering, safety studies, and Design Approval for the H2Neo carrier received in December 2022, the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has provided ‘Approval In Principal’ (AIP) for a compressed hydrogen floating storage solution (the H2Leo class), the first of its kind to receive this level of approval.
The AIP allows for a flexible solution for specific industry applications with a design capacity range of 300 to 600 tonnes of hydrogen. The future development and approvals include expanding the storage capacity from 100 to 2,000 tonnes of hydrogen storage.
The H2Leo floating storage unit will have two cargo tanks with independent isolation, safety valves, and manifolds for compressed hydrogen transfer. The SIMOPS capability allows for continuous production and discharge. ABS has carried out risk and safety workshops to assess and mitigate hydrogen handling risks. Provaris will work with ABS for Design Approval, cargo tank testing, and construction. The H2Leo class will have a fixed beam and depth of 31.00 m and 17.00 m, respectively, with length and draft varying according to the specified cargo capacity.
H2Leo provides an alternative to bulk storage at a material discount to market alternatives
Provaris, together with industry consultation, has studied the market alternatives for storing compressed hydrogen and found two key solutions - containerized tube matrices for smaller scale storage and static hydrogen storage vessels for large scale storage.
The cost of large-scale static storage is currently estimated by external studies to be in the range of USD 1-2 million per tonne of storage installed, while Provaris estimates that the cost of hydrogen storage using a floating storage solution such as the H2Leo will target a capital cost of USD 0.2-0.3 million / tonne (USD 200-300/kg H2).
This cost difference could make onshore static storage cost-prohibitive for large-scale hydrogen derivative projects, such as ammonia, creating an opportunity for Provaris to establish market share and achieve attractive returns on investment.