Hydrogen supply to the West Coast

Currently, several industrial actors on Sweden’s west coast, such as Preem, St1, Perstorp, and Borealis, are exploring increased hydrogen usage in their processes. Many existing concepts rely on local electricity production, grid capacity expansion, or fossil-based production combined with carbon capture and storage (CCS).

In contrast, the concepts presented in this project focus on importing hydrogen produced abroad, either as “pure” hydrogen or in the form of liquid hydrogen carriers (e.g., ammonia) for local cracking before use on the west coast. The climate emissions of these evaluated concepts are assessed (in line with the updated Renewable Energy Directive RED III) to ensure a minimum emission reduction of 70% compared to current fossil-based processes, aligning with the European Commission’s definition of “low-carbon hydrogen.”

Four Concepts for Hydrogen Import

This study evaluates four concepts for hydrogen import alongside two reference cases for local production:

1. Production of LNG in the USA and the Middle East, transportation of LNG to Sweden’s west coast, and hydrogen production in Sweden using Steam Methane Reforming (SMR) with Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and CO₂ storage in Norway.
2. Production of ammonia with CCS in the USA, the Middle East, and Rotterdam, transportation of ammonia to Sweden’s west coast, and cracking of ammonia locally to produce hydrogen.
3. Production using Steam Methane Reforming (SMR) with natural gas and Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) on Norway’s west coast, with hydrogen transported via pipeline to Sweden’s west coast.
4. Production of green hydrogen based on offshore wind power and electrolyzers off the Danish west coast (with hydrogen storage in salt caverns), followed by pipeline transportation to Sweden’s west coast.

Reference case 1: Local production of hydrogen via electrolyser with renewable electricity from offshore wind power on the west coast

Reference case 2: Local production of hydrogen via steam reforming of biogas on the west coast

All four import concepts are considered potential solutions for supplying large quantities of hydrogen to industries on Sweden’s west coast within the next ten years. The concepts provide alternatives for how hydrogen use in the region can be integrated with global markets and the effects of viewing hydrogen as a global or regional commodity. The concepts presented in this study are compared to the reference cases. The goal is to compare how the import-based concepts (as outlined above) measure up against national hydrogen production solutions.

Literature study

A literature study is planned within the framework of the project, focusing on the costs and energy losses along the value chain. An essential part of the work involves a sensitivity analysis, where various parameters—such as costs for raw materials, transport/storage, hydrogen demand scale, electricity production costs, electrolyzer costs, etc.—will be evaluated. This analysis will help highlight challenges and opportunities for each concept and identify potential “showstoppers.”

Based on estimated future hydrogen demand for actors on the west coast in 2025, 2030, 2035, and 2040, cost estimates will be made, taking into account the scale of the hydrogen value chain for each of these years. The project aims to shed light on and quantify the factors that influence the cost structure for the evaluated concepts. The literature study is planned to include costs for the entire hydrogen supply chain to the west coast (production, distribution, storage, and usage), as well as ammonia cracking and CCS.

The hope is that stakeholders planning to use hydrogen in the future will use this project as support for strategic decisions within the hydrogen sector.

Participating partners

Chalmers Industriteknik, Borealis, Chalmers, Nouryon, Perstorp, Preem AB,

Time period

2024-10-25 – 2025-04-30 

Total budget

620 000 SEK 

Contact the Operational Area Manager