When using water to produce “green” hydrogen, it is necessary to take into account not only economic, but also environmental and social aspects. This belief was expressed by the State Agency for Energy Efficiency and Energy Saving during a discussion organized by the agency in conjunction with the Energy Club.
“I want to draw attention to the fact that there are two polar views. The first of them – the state of water resources is not a critical problem for hydrogen production. The other – Ukraine is one of the poor countries. After all, it directly affects the ability and cost of hydrogen production,” said Valery Bezus, head of the State Agency for Energy Efficiency.
According to the agency, when planning the development of promising industries that rely on water resources, it is necessary to take into account not only technological and economic aspects, but also socio-political ones. It is a matter of prioritizing water for the needs of society, because in certain regions the shortage of drinking water is a reality or a short-term prospect. At the same time, hydrogen generation projects can achieve a synergistic effect in addressing water resources.
“If we are building a public-private partnership and need to solve, for example, the problem of mine water purification, it is advisable to involve businesses that plan to produce hydrogen. In this case, water purification will be necessary in terms of solving not only environmental but also technological issues. We have a synergistic effect,” Bezus explained.
For their part, Ukrhydroenergo specialists reported on an active study of the possibility of installing 1 MW of electrolytic hydrogen production at the Dnieper HPP. Specific calculations of the volume of water for the needs of hydrogen generation were given by the director of the Institute of Renewable Energy of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine Stepan Kudrya.
At the same time, the State Water Agency recommends the use of mining water, sea water and the potential of the Danube for hydrogen energy. In general, the participants agreed that the development of a new sector – the hydrogen economy – should be balanced, taking into account all aspects of water resources in the country, environmental requirements and needs of society.