According to an analysis by the Intelligent Energy Association, European funding for gas networks is no longer eligible, but hydrogen networks are. Instead, many companies want to “charm” the system by announcing that they will build “hydrogen-ready” networks to access the money, but their intention is to use it to transport natural gas. This is possible in the absence of special regulatory acts.

This situation can lead to the creation of networks that, in the end, will not be able to supply all the consumers with gas for which they are planned to be built, due to different design principles of hydrogen-ready networks compared to natural gas networks. .

Differences between hydrogen and gas transport

Hydrogen and natural gas are both combustible gases, but their different properties mean we have different flow paths. In the case of hydrogen, the flow is much easier because it moves at a faster rate than natural gas, says the Intelligent Energy Association.

A study conducted by the Intelligent Energy Association, “Flow of Gases in Distribution Systems Mixed with Hydrogen,” found that as the amount of hydrogen present in the gas mixture increases, the transport capacity of pipelines increases.

The introduction of hydrogen mixed with natural gas into existing pipelines increases the transport capacity of gas systems. If the use of current gas systems helps us to transport a larger volume of the gas+hydrogen mixture, then, on the contrary, a pipeline designed to transport hydrogen, if it is filled with gas, will transport less natural gas, that is, they will no longer reach the gases for all consumers.

EU funding conditions no longer consider funding natural gas transmission and distribution systems as eligible, instead numerous funding systems are open to hydrogen networks. And so there are companies that came up with smart distribution projects (which also means a system ready to use hydrogen) to get access to the money, but obviously only to transport the gas after the network is built. The volume that can be transported by a pipeline designed for hydrogen requires the transportation of about 3 times less volume of natural gas.

A lack of regulation can result in grids not supplying enough energy to all consumers

The number of homes that can no longer be supplied with energy from natural gas mixed with hydrogen, according to the proportion of hydrogen in the gas mixture in a network designed to be hydrogen-ready, which will later be used to transport the gas

Gas systems are built to provide consumers with the necessary energy for various activities. Thus, the main condition that the converting system must meet is to have the ability to transport the necessary energy for the consumers for whom they were connected to the system.

The calorific value of natural gas is 3.1 times higher than that of hydrogen, therefore, for the development of the same power released by a unit volume of gas, 3.1 times more volume of hydrogen is required.

The disguised activity of building natural gas networks in Romania under the guise of a “hydrogen-ready” system could lead, in the absence of appropriate regulations, to the creation of networks that no longer supply all consumers with sufficient energy.