Green hydrogen export from Iceland to Rotterdam feasible, study finds

A project to produce green hydrogen from renewables in Iceland and transport it to the port of Rotterdam before 2030 could be technically feasible, realistic and financially attractive, a study has found.

Iceland's state-owned electricity producer Landsvirkjun and the Port of Rotterdam announced Tuesday they had finalised a pre-feasibility study into shipping the green hydrogen from the island nation to Europe's largest port, saying they compared possible hydrogen carriers taking into account energy density, costs, demand and other attributes.

A hypothetical project of this kind could be realised in the second half of the ongoing decade and be between 2 TWh and 4 TWh, or some 200 MW to 500 MW, according to a statement summarising the results of the study.

Iceland’s abundance of hydro, geothermal and wind resources to power the electrolysis process is an asset to the country and can lead to a competitive price for the locally-produced hydrogen on the European market, Landsvirkjun and the Rotterdam port said.

The resulting green hydrogen would be liquefied or converted into a carrier for transport to Rotterdam where it would be recovered for use at the port or in the hinterland.

The parties said that they intend to continue working together to explore the hydrogen opportunity and expect to elaborate on these plans in the second half of 2022.

According to the joint statement, the Dutch government asked the Port of Rotterdam Authority to identify high potential hydrogen exporting countries and companies to meet Europe’s future demand, and Iceland was found to be one of the strong contenders.

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