December 01, 2022 • Paul Rodden • Season: 2022 • Episode: 168
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Welcome to The Hydrogen Podcast!
In episode 168, Rolls Royce decides to set off with a technology revolution in hydrogen. And entergy Texas gets approved for a hydrogen enabled power plant. All this on today’s hydrogen podcast.
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Transcript:
Rolls Royce decides to set off with a technology revolution in hydrogen. And Entergy Texas gets approved for a hydrogen enabled power plant. All this on today’s hydrogen podcast.
So the big questions in the energy industry today are, how is hydrogen the primary driving force behind the evolution of energy? Where is capital being deployed for hydrogen projects globally? And where are the best investment opportunities for early adopters who recognize the importance of hydrogen? I will address the critical issues and give you the information you need to deploy capital. Those are the questions that will unlock the potential of hydrogen and this podcast will give you the answers. My name is Paul Rodden, and welcome to the hydrogen podcast.
In a press release that nearly broke the internet this week, on Monday, November 28, Rolls Royce and EasyJet set new world first, Rolls Royce and EasyJet on Monday, November 28, confirmed they have set a new aviation milestone with the world’s first run of a modern Aero engine on hydrogen. The ground test was conducted on an early concept demonstrator, using green hydrogen created by wind and tidal power. It marks a major step towards proving that hydrogen could be a zero carbon aviation fuel of the future, and is a key proof point in the decarbonisation strategies of both Rolls Royce and EasyJet, both companies have set out to prove that hydrogen can safely and efficiently deliver power for civil Aero Engines, and are already planning a second set of tests with a longer term ambition to carry out flight tests. The test took place at an outdoor test facility at a Ministry of Defense Boscombe Down, UK, using a converted Rolls-Royce AE 2100-A regional aircraft engine. Green hydrogen for the test was supplied by EMEC, or the European marine energy center generated using renewable energy at their hydrogen production and titled test facility on Eday in the Orkney Islands in the UK. Secretary of State for business energy and industrial strategy Grant Shapps said the UK is leading the global shift to guilt free flying.
And today’s test by Rolls Royce and EasyJet is an exciting demonstration of how business innovation can transform the way we live our lives. He continues by saying this is a true British success story, with the hydrogen being used to power the Jet Engine today produced using title and wind energy from the Orkney Islands of Scotland and is a prime example of how we can work together to make aviation cleaner while driving jobs across the country. Grazia Vittadini, Chief Technology Officer at Rolls Royce said, the success of this hydrogen test is an exciting milestone. We only announced our partnership with EasyJet in July, and we’re already off to an incredible start with this landmark achievement. We’re pushing the boundaries to discover the zero carbon possibilities of hydrogen, which could help reshape the future of flight, and Johan Lundgren, CEO of EasyJet said this is a real success for our partnership team. We’re committed to continuing to support this groundbreaking research. Because hydrogen offers great possibilities for a range of aircraft, including easy jet size aircraft, that will be a huge step forward in meeting the challenge of net zero by 2050.
Now, following analysis of this early concept ground test, the partnership plans a series of further rig tests leading up to a full scale ground test of a Rolls Royce pearl 15 jet engine. The partnership is inspired by the global UN backed Race to Zero campaign that both companies have signed up to committee to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Okay, so really some inspiring news coming out of Rolls Royce and the UK. Now I remember reporting the partnership between Rolls Royce and EasyJet back in July, and wondering just when we would see any kind of news coming out of that partnership. And I’m happy to report that this is it. Now, this obviously wasn’t a huge test, but it is a step in the right direction. Now there are still a load of questions that need to be answered, including efficiency of the engine and NOX burnoff. And what I’m also curious about is this, will this start a new technology revolution? We know that in February, Airbus announced it was going to team up with CFM International to build a demonstrator aircraft using one of its a 380 super jumbo airlines, and that is supposed to be fitted with a hydrogen engine of its own.
And so what I’m hoping to see here is a little bit of the car wars that we saw in the 1960s now applied between Airbus and Rolls Royce. Next in another press release on Monday the 28th Entergy, Texas receives approval to build a cleaner, more reliable power station in Southeast Texas. The Public Utility Commission of Texas recently approved Entergy Texas’s proposal to build the Orange County advanced power station, a 1215 megawatt combined cycle power facility that will be located near Bridge City. Located in one of the largest industrial regions in the nation, the plant will serve as the foundation to power and enable growth in Southeast Texas. The construction of this facility will ensure the region continues to have modern reliable infrastructure well into the future. By replacing end of life legacy gas generation with new and efficient generation capable of powering more than 230,000 homes.
The plant is expected to realize over 100 million in fuel savings the first year and provide well over a billion dollars and net benefits to customers over its life. OCAP will provide critical power to Southeast Texas with a significantly lower emissions rate than the legacy generation it replaces, and a quote from Eliecer Viamontes president and CEO of Entergy Texas, we are excited to reach the significant milestone for OCAPS. The facility will power communities for years to come and continue our mission of providing cleaner, more reliable and lower cost energy for Southeast Texas. The public utility Commission’s decision also preserves the opportunity for entergy Texas to unlock the plant’s ability to co fire hydrogen in the near future, which supports the plant’s long term viability and benefits customers. Hydrogen can be deployed alongside natural gas to produce energy reliably when needed and further reduce emissions. When utilizing less carbon intensive hydrogen. OCAPs is the latest step in energy Texas efforts to invest in the communities that they serve and to create jobs and drive sustainable economic development.
An outside analysis conducted by TXP, Inc, determined that construction of OCAPS will create nearly $1.8 billion and total economic activity in Southeast Texas. Now construction of the facility will result in more than 7000 direct jobs and approximately 27 permanent jobs. Once operational. Entergy Texas is committed to working with local vendors to maximize the economic impact to the community Construction is expected to start in 2023 with a completion date of 2026. Okay, so really big news and news that I think is going to have more impact on the hydrogen economy than it may seem at first glance. Now, it’s believed that this facility will operate at 30% Hydrogen, with the ability to run at 100% Hydrogen later on. And this also further introduces hydrogen into the mainstream. This is also one of those projects that ultimately embraces what I talked about so often as this being an energy transition. And it’s a great way of showcasing that we can start slowly introducing hydrogen into a natural gas mixture and increasing that hydrogen supply over time. Now the turbines are going to be provided by Mitsubishi power, and the units they’re supplying our two m501JAC gas turbines. Now these turbines were highlighted by Mitsubishi power at ceraweek, back in March.
And coincidentally, these are the same turbines that are going to be used at the inner Mountain Power Project in Nevada. Now, as someone who lived through winter storm URI, I’m really excited to see this coming to our area. But I also think there are going to be a lot of legacy power stations throughout the United States and the world who are going to be paying close attention to this particular station to see how successful it will actually be.
Alright, that’s it for me, everyone. If you have a second, I would really appreciate it. If you could leave a good review on whatever platform it is that you listen to Apple podcasts, Spotify, Google, YouTube, whatever it is, that would be a tremendous help to the show. And as always, if you ever have any feedback, you’re welcome to email me directly at info@thehydrogenpodcast.com. And as always, take care. Stay safe. I’ll talk to you later.
Hey, this is Paul. I hope you liked this podcast. If you did and want to hear more. I’d appreciate it if you would either subscribe to this channel on YouTube, or connect with your favorite platform through my website at www.thehydrogenpodcast.com. Thanks for listening. I very much appreciate it. Have a great day.
