Green hydrogen is essential for Poland’s energy transition, argued Kamil Kobyliński of TotalEnergies Poland during the annual PWEA conference. BalticWind.EU was a media partner of the event. 

With the following editorial, we continue our series of publications on technologies that will play a key role in the green reindustrialisation of Europe and the implementation of the ‘Net-Zero Industry Act’.

Kamil Kobyliński, Head of Offshore Poland at TotalEnergies during the debate “Green Hydrogen Production from Offshore Wind Farms” presented what role his company can play in Poland’s energy transition.

“The slogan – there’s no hydrogen without offshore – may sound over the top, but there is a lot of truth in it. There is no transformation of our economy without large-scale RES” – said Kobyliński, stressing the importance of the renewable energy sector. As he pointed out, in the case of offshore wind energy and green hydrogen, the barrier to enter the market is high. That is why it is so important to create regulations that will encourage investment in these areas.

“I would prefer not to change the current law on offshore promotion, because investors who won locations for the construction of farms in the Polish Baltic Sea in the II phase should focus on acquiring partners and implementing projects. Any potential change means uncertainty and holding up work on projects. We are therefore keeping our fingers crossed for the ongoing work on hydrogen legislation in the Ministry of Climate and Environment.” – said Kamil Kobyliński. 

In the opinion of the TotalEnergies representative, it is necessary to develop comprehensive legislation that promotes the production of green hydrogen from RES (including in particular offshore wind – economies of scale) not only in the context of energy utilization, but also as a component for the production of synthetic fuels with their further use in transport.

Another important aspect is the need to improve the country’s energy transmission system and build new interconnectors. Otherwise, according to Kobyliński, Poland will not be able to take full advantage of the potential arising from expanding renewable energy.

“If anyone thinks that with 20 GW of offshore in Poland, and at least as much installed capacity in onshore projects (PV and wind) and new nuclear capacity we will be able to effectively dispose of this capacity in our system will be disappointed. Our peak power demand is 27-28 GW, and in 10-15 years it will not be 3-4 times higher whatever we do” – as pointed out by Kobyliński.

According to him, one answer to this challenge is to invest in the grid, building new cross-border interconnectors and developing large-scale energy hubs based on, among others, green hydrogen, a project that requires a lot of financing. However, these costs could be reduced by engaging foreign partners to to co-finance, inter alia, the development of offshore wind farms , which would allow some of the domestic funds to be used to invest in transmission.

Kobylinski stressed the importance of TotalEnergies’ experience – “We are a multienergy company listed on the New York Stock Exchange, next year we will be celebrating our 100th anniversary. We come from the petrochemical industry hence the production and use of hydrogen has been familiar to us for years. Hydrogen plays a major role in the context of our company’s transformation, which will be fulfilled by decarbonization by 2050 at the latest”.

The company’s goal is to generate 100 GW of electricity from renewable energy sources by 2030, much of which will come from offshore wind farms. In parallel, the company is betting on the development of new fuels such as biomethane, green gas (e-NG “electric natural gas made from hydrogene”), green hydrogen, and, based on this, synthetic fuels or sustainable fuels for transport including aviation. These activities are intended to be complementary, by complementing to generate as many synergies as possible in our integrated value chain.

The company is currently involved in several pioneering projects related to the production and use of green hydrogen in Europe. One is a 40 MW electrolyzer project (which will be increased to 120 MW), powered by a hybrid renewable energy system combining a photovoltaic farm and an onshore wind farm.

“In this project, we will produce 5-10 tons of green hydrogen per day, which we will use to produce biodiesel at the La Mede refinery.” – Kobyliński said.

In Scotland, TotalEnergies is implementing the Flotta Hydrogen Hub project. – a 500 MW electrolyzer that complements the 2 GW West of Orkney offshore wind farm – supplied by a direct line from this farm. The green hydrogen from the plant is expected to have three uses: it will serve as fuel for a new generation of marine vessels, it will be exported in liquefied form via a special fleet of ships to fuel terminals, and some of the hydrogen produced will also power the UK gas system.

Another project is the “Hydrogen Highway”, an infrastructure of hydrogen refueling stations for heavy transport, which is currently under construction in France, Benelux and Germany. These are commercial projects that demonstrate TotalEnergies’ commitment to the practical application of green hydrogen.

TotalEnergies is going further – the company is one of the funders of , the Green Hydrogen Development Fund promoting projects on the use of RES for the production and utilization of green hydrogen. We are also collaborating with the Royal University of Denmark, where researchers will carry out several pilot projects on the production and optimization of the use of green hydrogen.

During the debate, Kamil Kobyliński pointed to TotalEnergies’ readiness to cooperate with Polish partners who won the proceedings for the construction of the II phase of offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea. With their experience in offshore wind and hydrogen projects, TotalEnergies argues that it is an ideal partner for future energy transition activities in Poland offering to leverage synergies across the energy transition value chain.

More about TotalEnergies’ hydrogen projects:

Total and Engie partner to develop France’s largest site for the production of green hydrogen from 100% renewable electricity 
https://totalenergies.com/media/news/press-releases/total-and-engie-to-develop-france-s-largest-site-of-green-hydrogen

Scotland: Green Investment Group, TotalEnergies and RIDG partner with Repsol Sinopec and Uniper to develop large-scale green hydrogen facility in Orkney
https://totalenergies.com/media/news/press-releases/GIG_TotalEnergies-and-RIDG-partner-with-Repsol-Sinopec-and-Uniper-to-develop-green-hydrogen-facility

TotalEnergies and Air Liquide join forces to develop a network of over 100 hydrogen stations for heavy duty vehicles in Europe
TotalEnergies and Air Liquide join forces to develop a network of over 100 hydrogen stations for heavy duty vehicles in Europe | TotalEnergies.com

TotalEnergies, Air Liquide, VINCI and a Group of International Companies Launch the World’s Largest Clean Hydrogen Infrastructure Fund
TotalEnergies, Air Liquide, VINCI and a Group of International Companies Launch the World’s Largest Clean Hydrogen Infrastructure Fund | TotalEnergies.com

Research: TotalEnergies and the Technical University of Denmark Create a Center of Excellence in Decarbonized Energies
Research: TotalEnergies and the Technical University of Denmark Create a Center of Excellence in Decarbonized Energies | TotalEnergies.com

TotalEnergies and renewables electricity
As part of its ambition to get to net zero by 2050, TotalEnergies is building a portfolio of activities in electricity and renewables. By the first half of 2023, TotalEnergies’ gross renewable electricity generation installed capacity was 18 GW. TotalEnergies will continue to expand this business to reach 35 GW of gross production capacity from renewable sources and storage by 2025, and then 100 GW by 2030 with the objective of being among the world’s top 5 producers of electricity from wind and solar energy.

About TotalEnergies
TotalEnergies is a global multi-energy company that produces and markets energies: oil and biofuels, natural gas and green gases, renewables and electricity. Our more than 100,000 employees are committed to energy that is ever more affordable, cleaner, more reliable and accessible to as many people as possible. Active in nearly 130 countries, TotalEnergies puts sustainable development in all its dimensions at the heart of its projects and operations to contribute to the well-being of people.