Orkney: how an island hydrogen project could steer the future of energy storage 

Because of its abundance of natural resources, Orkney has been incredibly successful at establishing a renewable power supply – perhaps a little too successful, it could be argued. The islands are producing more energy than they can consume, and the grids connecting them to each other and the mainland don’t have the capacity to store or transfer that power for later use.

It’s a problem that the Orkney Islands are contending with right now, thanks to their remoteness, but likely one other parts of the world will need to address in the near future.

“So the solutions that are being developed up there could, potentially, be rolled out across the UK for integrating a higher proportion of renewables onto the grid,” explains Logan Energy and H2Tec’s CEO Bill Ireland.

For the islands, sometimes the energy produced simply goes to waste, meaning the local economy is missing out on the potential to export it.

“You can either put big toasters out there (on the islands) and just project it (surplus energy) into the atmosphere,” Ireland , “or you could do something useful with it, like generate hydrogen”.

Eday, as an example, has a population of around 150, using just a few tens of kilowatts a year. Any excess energy it produces would, in the past, have been lost because of the grid limitations. Connecting cables do not have the capacity to share that electricity between them, meaning energy production was often capped through curtailment.

The Surf ‘n’ Turf project was the first step towards addressing the issue. It captures and stores energy produced by tidal turbines at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) on Orkney, or onshore wind turbines across Eday, and converts it into hydrogen for storage in a fuel cell at the EMEC in Kirkwall through a purpose-built electrolyser.

Led by Scottish energy charity Community Energy Scotland, partnered with the EMEC, Orkney Islands Council, Eday Renewable Energy, and ITM Power, the project has also received funding from the Scottish Government.

Although H2Tec was not initially involved, Ireland says it has since come on board as additional funding for further work was secured on the back of the project’s success. With the arrival of a second electrolyser getting closer, H2Tec won a contract to support its integration to the network, as well as improve systems already in place in a second project – supported by €11.7m of European funding – called Integrating Tidal Energy into the European Grid.

“We've helped them come up with a design strategy to optimise the hydrogen production and filling of trailers with hydrogen to then distribute around the Orkney Islands and to the mainland,” says Ireland.

With the support of EMEC and companies like H2Tec, authorities on the islands have set out even more ambitious goals to eliminate the use of fossil fuels, creating what the council calls a “smart island”.

Announced in 2019, a further £28.5m, three-year project will develop a “ground-breaking 'virtual energy system' in Orkney which will monitor generation, grid constraint, and energy demand and then use smart control of energy technologies to manage and improve the supply–demand balance,” according to Orkney Islands Council.

Council leader Councillor James Stockan said: “The project offers great opportunities for Orkney in terms of economic development, as well as delivering demonstration and development of a state-of-the-art energy system.”

It is hoped what is learnt from this UK Government-funded project might be rolled out across the UK and even internationally if it is successful.

Among the technologies being assessed as part of the ReFLEX Orkney (Responsive Flexibility) project are domestic batteries for homes, larger batteries for businesses and public buildings, vehicle to grid chargers, electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel cells, and smart heating systems.

The islands have never been connected to the gas network, meaning all heating has been produced via fuel oils such as red diesel. However, these projects have the potential to dramatically change the way homes, businesses, and vehicles are powered across the island communities and beyond.

Using the surplus energy produced by renewables is something that countries the world over have been contending with for some time; from Germany to Denmark – two of Europe’s largest renewable power producers – to innovative projects in South America and Africa, knowing what to do with spare power has been a challenge.

“Obviously the old adage that the wind and sun don't blow or shine when you necessarily need the electricity is true. So what do you do with it?” Ireland says. “It’s basically an issue everyone is having right now.”

Capturing and storing the power has been the subject of much debate and the focus of considerable investment in recent years. You only need look at the work – and significant budget – of Tesla.

Eradicating the use of diesel for heating and power on the islands is something that Ireland believes is increasingly possible thanks to advancing hydrogen technologies. Being able to capture renewable surplus power, store it, transport it to where it’s needed, and then either convert it back to electricity via fuels cells or use it to power vehicles is going to be a huge step for this remote corner of Scotland.

Ireland says hydrogen can be transported door-to-door, between the islands, and across to the mainland in the same way diesel has been for years. In much the same way, hydrogen has a future in providing electricity, heating for homes and businesses, and fuel for transport such as heavier goods vehicles where “batteries potentially can't do the duty that a fuel cell or a diesel can”.

Although the technology and theory behind it is relatively new – compared with the likes of solar and wind – it is receiving increased interest. In the US, French-owned industrial gas supplier Air Liquide has committed to a £150m green hydrogen plant.

Meanwhile in Australia, international big hitters such as Siemens have joined a partnership to develop a 5GW renewable hydrogen production facility which will begin construction in 2022, after securing $300m of investment.

Ireland believes hydrogen will play a big role in helping countries meet the need to decarbonise. The technology, he says, is there; now it’s a case of bringing that technology, the processes used, and thinking behind it, together in one place – something the work being undertaken by those on the Orkney Islands should provide a template for.

However, hydrogen isn’t a silver bullet, cautions Ireland: “It's not the only answer. Hydrogen is not right for every solution. You don't put a hydrogen fuel cell or hydrogen tank in your mobile phone because the battery is the ultimate solution for that… But if you're looking at industrial processes and large energy users, there's no real alternative on a renewable basis to actually deliver that much energy.”

Orkney Island residents and businesses look set to be among the first in the UK to benefit from a well-funded, well-structured hydrogen power strategy. Depending on how it goes, water power could be coming to a home, business, or even vehicle near you in the not too distant future – no matter where you are in the world.