Building a Refuelling Station Is Not Enough
22 ǀ POSITIV HYDROGEN
VODÍK
the only company exporting hydrogen technologies
at a significant annual volume of around EUR
10 million. We supply a wide range of solutions.
For example, we have mastered standard hydrogen
storage solutions for pressures of 100, 200, 300, 420,
555, 1,000 and 1,100 bar.
You also talk about a model that makes use not
only of the hydrogen itself, but also of the oxygen
and heat generated in the process. How exactly would
such a system work, and for what type of industrial
company could it make economic sense?
Jan Světlík: When hydrogen is produced
by electrolysis, other products are generated as well:
oxygen and a large amount of heat. At the same time,
you gain grid flexibility. If you produce several products
but sell only one of them, you are going to have
an economic problem. We need to change the way
we think and make use of all these readily marketable
commodities. Then we can supply hydrogen as well as
the other products at a very attractive price.
Production makes sense when electricity prices are
negative, when you are effectively paid to consume
electricity. Conversely, I am not going to produce
hydrogen when electricity prices are at their highest.
In your view, could a stable supply of electricity
from nuclear power or future small modular reactors
provide a more economical basis for low-emission
hydrogen production than renewables alone?
Jan Světlík: Combining a small nuclear reactor
with electrolysers creates tremendous potential
for the efficient production of electricity, hydrogen,
oxygen and heat. A nuclear reactor also provides
superheated steam, which is beneficial for certain
hydrogen technologies. Hydrogen is an excellent
way of storing electricity at times when there is no
demand. I see the future of energy in nuclear power,
with hydrogen production as an integral part of it.
Cylinders Holding offers SMART containers
and smart solutions for transporting hydrogen,
with logistics that can be managed from a central
control centre or a mobile device. What exactly
makes this solution ‘smart’, how does it differ
from a conventional transport container, and where
is it already being used in practice?
Jan Světlík: A SMART container has its own internal
control system, can be operated remotely, and has
an autonomous system and onboard computer centre.
If we send out a container carrying 5,500 m³ of gas
and the customer wants 1,000 m³, we can programme
the container remotely to release exactly 1,000 m³
and no more, without anyone having to be physically
present to take measurements.
Its use is still very limited at the moment, but I see it as
the container of the future – its time is yet to come.
Mr Světlík, you have long criticised the over-
regulation of European industry. Mr Dynda, you have
helped develop rules for hydrogen safety. Where
is the line between essential safety requirements
and regulation that only makes projects more
expensive or prevents them from going ahead?
Jan Světlík: The European Commission has killed off
hydrogen mobility with overly strict requirements.
For example, by requiring green hydrogen from sources
that have not even been built yet, it has discouraged
more than 90% of investors. First, we need to get
hydrogen technologies up and running, and only then
can we discuss what degree of ‘greenness’ we should
use to assess them.
I often compare European Commission regulation
to regulating an unborn child and dictating which
primary and secondary school they must attend.
During the initial stage of deployment, there is no need
to insist strictly on green hydrogen.
Vladimír Dynda: I am not entirely sure that I see
a particular line that would produce the effect
you are asking about. It is positive that we work
with harmonised technical standards and legislation.
Some of these are also shared with the United States.
What I mean is that a huge number of professionals
work according to these rules, and if there were any
negative administrative effects within them, someone
would certainly raise the issue. That applies to safety.
The situation is different when it comes to regulating
production and consumption, where ‘hydrogen
racism’ – by which I mean categorising hydrogen
according to colour and how it is produced – can
delay the deployment of hydrogen technologies.
I am convinced that we are currently at a stage
in the development of hydrogen applications where
the results of those applications are more important
than insisting on hydrogen from renewable sources.
Renewable hydrogen is also in short supply and available
at prices that completely undermine existing economic
calculations. As a result, new hydrogen technologies
are more likely to remain isolated applications rather
than being deployed on a large scale. But that is not
what we should be aiming for at this stage.
The Czech Government’s resolution updating
the development of hydrogen technologies sets out
The staon will therefore be the rst
to supply exclusively renewable or,
if you prefer, green hydrogen.
Ing. Vladimír Dynda, CSc.
I see the future of energy in nuclear
power, with hydrogen producon
as an integral part of it.
Ing. Jan Světlík
| Text: Monika Ševčíková, foto: Karel Juchelka, Vladimír Dynda, Dolní oblast VÍTKOVICE, z.s.