Study reveals low cost of nuclear Hydrogen.
ULC-Energy has announced the results of a study – supported by 12 external organisations – which assessed the cost of hydrogen produced by a Rolls-Royce Small Modular Reactor (SMR) combined with Topsoe’s high temperature Solid Oxide Electrolyser Cell (SOEC) technology.
The study involved SOEC electrolyser manufacturer, Topsoe, nuclear technology provider, Rolls-Royce SMR and Dutch energy market consultancy, KYOS.
The study revealed significant advantages of the SMR-SOEC combination:
· A Rolls-Royce SMR power plant can operate 24/7, with 95% availability
· ’SOEC electrolysis can produce more hydrogen per total power input when compared to conventional electrolyser technologies
· Steam can be supplied directly from the nuclear power plant heat exchangers
· H2 production can take place ‘off-grid’
The results revealed that hydrogen can be produced by the SMR – SOEC combination for less than €3.50/kg (2024€), significantly better than alternatives that lack the continuity and flexibility of nuclear energy. This cost can be driven down to less than €2.00/kg (2024€) by 2050 by taking into account the value of the flexibility to curtail hydrogen production and deliver electricity to an increasingly intermittent grid.
The study also demonstrated that the SMR – SOEC combination produces the highest annual quantity of H2 as a result of higher process efficiency and a high availability.
Dirk Rabelink from ULC-Energy, said:
The large-scale production of clean hydrogen is an extremely important driver of decarbonisation.
“At ULC-Energy we believe strongly that nuclear can and will play a major role to produce clean hydrogen and derivative clean fuels. ULC-Energy has been working closely with Rolls-Royce SMR in the Netherlands since 2022 when it selected Rolls-Royce SMR as its preferred SMR technology for deployment in the Netherlands. The study that is now completed clearly demonstrates the capability of nuclear to deliver low cost, clean hydrogen at an industrial scale. Importantly it also shows the additional value associated with the flexibility to switch between energy markets such as electricity, heat and, in this case, hydrogen. Topsoe SOEC and Rolls-Royce SMR are both highly modularised solutions that are factory manufactured can be scaled rapidly.”
Sundus Cordelia Ramli, CCO Power to X, Topsoe added:
Topsoe’s state of the art SOEC technology has been under development for over 15 years.
“Last year, ground was broken at the 500 MW SOEC manufacturing facility and SOEC will be commercially deployed as production is ramped up. The high capacity factor of nuclear power plant, together with a direct source of heat, makes combinations using nuclear power plants and SOEC extremely interesting and we look forward to continuing our work with ULC-Energy and Rolls-Royce SMR.”
Alan Woods, Rolls-Royce SMR’s Director of Strategy and Business Development, said:
Rolls-Royce SMR believes one of its powerful advantages is that it can produce clean energy cheaply and extremely reliably, but can also direct its output to meet demand.
“This operational flexibility will be increasingly valuable as intermittent energy sources, such as wind and solar, expand. We are excited by the results of ULC-Energy’s study and look forward to taking next steps.”
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Study reveals low cost of nuclear Hydrogen. source