Hanwha Wins Contract for Hydrogen Co-Firing Gas Turbine Retrofit Project from Germany's Largest European Power Company Uniper

123MW Gas Turbine Retrofit in Rotterdam, Netherlands
Applying 30% Hydrogen Co-Firing Rate

"Expansion of Business with European Power Generation and Electricity Supply Companies"

Hanwha Impact's subsidiary, Dutch company Thomassen Energy, has secured a contract for the hydrogen co-firing gas turbine retrofit project from Uniper, Germany's largest power supplier. The project involves retrofitting a 123 MW gas turbine in Rotterdam, Netherlands, to achieve a 30% hydrogen co-firing rate. A view of Uniper's gas turbine power plant located in Rotterdam. (Photo by Hanwha Impact)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Hanwha Impact's subsidiary, Netherlands-based Tomassen Energy, announced on the 10th that it has secured a contract for the hydrogen co-firing gas turbine retrofit project from Uniper, Germany's largest power supplier in Europe. The project involves retrofitting one 123 MW-class gas turbine located in Rotterdam, Netherlands, to apply a 30% hydrogen co-firing rate.

Hydrogen co-firing power generation is a method of generating electricity by burning hydrogen and natural gas together in a gas turbine. It is considered a preliminary stage to hydrogen-only power generation, which produces zero carbon emissions. Last year, Hanwha Impact acquired 100% stakes in Netherlands-based Tomassen Energy and the US company PSM, securing core technologies related to hydrogen co-firing power generation.

This contract marks the third case of applying hydrogen co-firing to commercially operating gas turbine power plants. It follows the case of applying a 25% hydrogen co-firing rate to a 123 MW-class gas turbine in southern Netherlands, which has been in commercial operation since 2018, and the case of applying a 40% hydrogen co-firing rate to a 172 MW-class gas turbine in New Jersey, USA, in December last year. All three projects are being carried out by Tomassen Energy and PSM, both acquired by Hanwha Impact. In Korea, a demonstration project applying a 50% hydrogen co-firing rate is underway with Korea Western Power, scheduled to complete by the first half of next year. After the demonstration, the plan is to apply a 50% hydrogen co-firing rate to gas turbines in commercial operation.

In addition to hydrogen co-firing, nitrogen oxide treatment technology will also be applied in this project. Nitrogen oxides are substances that cause fine dust, smog, and acid rain. Since nitrogen oxides are generated when fuel burns inside the gas turbine, low-emission combustion technology is crucial. By equipping Hanwha's proprietary combustors, 'LEC-ⅢTM' and 'AutoTuneTM,' nitrogen oxide emissions can be reduced to below 9 ppm even with a 30% hydrogen co-firing rate. This level is well below the European air quality emission standard of 20 ppm. LEC-ⅢTM is a combustor technology that optimizes the air-fuel mixture to reduce nitrogen oxide and carbon emissions. AutoTuneTM refers to a system that controls combustion conditions to optimize low-emission combustion and performance.

Fuel diversification technology for turbines has also been applied. This allows the use of high-calorific gases in addition to the existing low-calorific gases. Uniper has been using low-calorific gas (below 10,000 kcal/N㎥) supplied from the Groningen gas field in northeastern Netherlands as fuel, but after the closure of this gas field next year, it plans to replace it with imported high-calorific gas. Hanwha plans to enable the use of various natural gas fuels, including hydrogen, in gas turbines through its fuel diversification solutions.

Furthermore, through integrated solutions including hydrogen co-firing technology, nitrogen oxide reduction technology, and fuel diversification technology, Hanwha plans to enhance the fuel flexibility of currently operating gas turbines. The business is expected to expand mainly among European power generation and supply companies seeking to reduce carbon emissions in line with the European Union's (EU) carbon neutrality goal for 2030.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.