| Work Detail |
The work investigates the costs of hydrogen production and supply in and from the country, focusing on three regions: Cartagena/Barranquilla, La Guajira and Valle del Cauca.
The German institute Fraunhofer ISE has published the study called " Power-to-X Colombia ", which analyses the costs of production and supply of hydrogen in and from the country, focusing on three regions: Cartagena/Barranquilla, La Guajira and Valle del Cauca.
The work was carried out on behalf of the Federation of German Industries (BDI) and the World Energy Council (WEC).
In addition to technological conditions, the study considers environmentally and socially relevant criteria, such as protected areas or indigenous communities.
The results are said to have shown that areas in northern Colombia, among others, stand out due to “the extremely promising potential they exhibited for renewable energy generation and hydrogen production.”
“Each of these regions offers its own advantages and requires a specific approach to setting up a local hydrogen infrastructure,” explains Dr. Christoph Hank, one of the authors of the study.
“Our techno-economic study provides a comprehensive analysis of the cost of hydrogen for the three regions identified as potential Power-to-X hubs and will make an important contribution to the future development of sustainable hydrogen projects in Colombia. In addition to purely techno-economic criteria, the study also takes into account socio-economic aspects and involves the local population in this sustainable and forward-looking value chain.”
The regions around Cartagena and Barranquilla thus show, it is claimed, "good infrastructure and offer potential synergies with existing industries, making them suitable for the production of green methanol," according to the study.
The basis for this is the availability of carbon dioxide, it is added, which can be obtained by direct air separation and by capturing carbon dioxide from, for example, an existing cement plant.
The La Guajira region, meanwhile, "has excellent potential for both wind and solar power plants, which has a direct positive effect on production costs."
The report also adds that in this case, the production routes for green ammonia and liquid hydrogen are emerging as the most favourable. However, in this partly remote region, in addition to periods of drought and delayed renewable energy projects, the necessary infrastructure is currently lacking.
The third region of the Cauca Valley, near Cali, finally, "has good photovoltaic potential and locally available sources of CO2, so the production of green methanol and other hydrocarbons such as dimethyl ether or sustainable aviation fuels would be feasible here."
However, the report argues, "advanced production concepts are required to achieve competitive production costs, such as implementing hydropower to increase plant full-load hours and harnessing the sustainable potential of biomass for synthesis gas production and, subsequently, hydrocarbon synthesis."
Overall, large Power-to-X hubs that run on 100 percent renewable electricity can be created in the medium to long term, especially if the offshore wind potential is constantly expanded. “Colombia has already presented a roadmap for hydrogen: following the path described therein, establishing the necessary framework conditions, attracting venture capital and implementing the measures in a socially responsible manner are now the key milestones for further success,” Hank sums up. |
