SGN own a number of sites across Scotland and the South of England, many of which sit largely underutilised but have significant potential for development as part of the end-to-end net zero gas network system of the future. This project will undertake pre-concept work on the Glenmavis and Dunfermline sites to assess the use of integrated infrastructure in order to support wider SGN decarbonisation objectives. This project proposes to assess the potential for blue and/or renewable energy/green hydrogen production at the Glenmavis site and the potential for renewable energy generation/green hydrogen production at the Dunfermline site.
The major focus of this project is Glenmavis, which has significant potential to act as a key energy hub in SGN’s vision for a net zero network in Scotland.
Benefits
Along with the wider gas industry and whole energy system, SGN has committed to delivering a strategy and pathway to unlock and enable the decarbonisation of the energy delivered through its networks to inform heat policy decisions, expected around 2026. This pathway is highly likely to include a conversion to 100% low carbon hydrogen from natural gas.
In parallel to critical R&D workstreams to prove and demonstrate the safe transportation of hydrogen through the gas networks, SGN are carrying work to determine the optimal end-to-end system linking proposed hydrogen production to future hydrogen demands to allow the timely rollout of hydrogen networks should heat policy permit.
This project will assess the potential to utilise existing land at Dunfermline and Glenmavis, owned by SGN, in the design of this end-to-end system.
The main tangible benefits of this project include:
- The quantification of the potential for blue and/or green hydrogen/renewable electricity production at the Glenmavis site for consideration of its further development as part of Scotland's end to end net zero system.
- The quantification of the potential for green hydrogen/renewable electricity generation at the Dunfermline site for consideration in Fife's whole energy system and hydrogen economy, catalysed by H100 Fife.
- The requirements for the possible range of options, including electricity, water, CO2 capture and natural gas requirements.
- Possible challenges in the development of Glenmavis and recommended next steps.
This project is critical in the development of distributed options for hydrogen production across Scotland, key in delivering an end-to-end system capable of ensuring security of supply to customers.
Learnings
Outcomes
This project has produced the following outcomes and conclusions:
- The optioneering assessment of the Dunfermline site concluded 1.48 MW of solar generation could be installed on the site. This capacity has the potential to support the development of the hydrogen economy in Fife.
- The optioneering assessment of the Glenmavis site concluded that depending on the configuration, between 351 MW and 1,054 MW of blue hydrogen production could be installed in the area once occupied by gas holders. The study also concluded that up to 4.5 MW of solar generation could be installed in the northern portion of the site, to partially supply the blue hydrogen production.
- Wind generation was ruled out at the Glenmavis site due to the close proximity of local dwellings and due to the presence of an existing microwave link passing through the site.
- Green hydrogen production was ruled out at the Glenmavis site due to projected cooling water requirements and the likely volumes of rejected water requiring on site treatment.
- Electricity and water requirements for each configuration were identified and quantified – all estimates were practical and achievable
- The estimated hydrogen production from each configuration matched or exceeded historical throughput into the 19 Bar and 39 Bar systems supplying Glasgow and the West of Scotland, with the upper estimate of 1,054 MW nearly double winter throughputs from early 2020.
- CO2 excavation options were explored for, with a pipeline to Grangemouth and to connect into a repurposed NTS Feeder 10 examined for environmental showstoppers; it was deemed feasible to avoid significant environmental designations.
Lessons Learnt
This project ran largely to schedule and plan, similar, future, projects could adopt the approach adopted in this project, with few possible areas of improvement as followed. One area of improvement for this project would have been to more closely involve relevant operational staff (E&I personnel), to better understand operational challenges specific to the Glenmavis site.
