Optimisation of the green hydrogen supply chain based on overseas production and import to Belgium
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Scheirman_50731700_2022.pdf
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- Green hydrogen has seen a growing interest in recent years, motivated by the pressing need to decarbonise the energy system. Some countries can produce cost-effective green hydrogen all year long, supported by their abundant renewable electricity, while others are limited by a deficit in renewable potential. The international trade of green hydrogen can mitigate the imbalance between countries with an excess of hydrogen supply and countries with high demand but insufficient production capabilities. An optimisation model has been designed to study the feasibility of a green hydrogen supply chain from an economic perspective. A particular attention has been paid to the case study of the Belgian industrial sector, characterised by a high energy end-use demand and low potential of carbon-free production. The optimised results reveal that it is most advantageous for Belgium to import from Spain, using liquefied hydrogen in the near term (2020). In the medium term (2030), Australia becomes a cost-competitive supplier and in the long term (2050), green hydrogen purchases from Morocco could be an option. Overall, this thesis aims to serve as a tool for designing the best green hydrogen supply chain for many countries.