Integration of water electrolysis facilities in power grids: A case study in northern Germany

Abstract

This work presents a study of the effects that integration of electrolysis facilities for Power-to-X processes have on the power grid. The novel simulation setup combines a high-resolution grid optimization model and a detailed scheduling model for alkaline water electrolysis. The utilization and congestion of power lines in northern Germany is investigated by setting different installed capacities and production strategies of the electrolysis facility. For electrolysis capacities up to 300 MW (∼50 ktH2/a), local impacts on the grid are observed, while higher capacities cause supra-regional impacts. Thereby, impacts are defined as deviations from the average line utilization greater than 5%. In addition, the minimum line congestion is determined to coincide with the daily-constrained production strategy of the electrolysis facility. Our result show a good compromise for the integrated grid-facility operation with minimum production cost and reduced impact on the grid.

Keywords

• Electrolysis
• Power-to-x
• Green hydrogen
• Optimization
• Energy systems
• Power grid