Question reference: S6W-27161
- Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 1 May 2024
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Current status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 14 May 2024
Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it is exploring the use of hydrogen as an energy storage and balancing asset to the national electricity grid and the national gas grid, as set out in its Hydrogen Action Plan.
Answer
We are convinced that hydrogen will play an important role as an energy storage and balancing asset to the wider energy system electricity and gas grids as the share of renewable generation continues to increase.
We published a report in 2023 which can be found here investigating the options for storing energy in the form of hydrogen in Scotland and its potential for reducing curtailment of renewable energy and the role of hydrogen peaking power plants for electricity generation during times of low renewable energy generation.
The study found that hydrogen storage will play an important role in balancing an energy system that has large amounts of intermittent renewable energy. These findings have informed our position and engagement on strategic programme discussions such as the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) and Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) and the ESO Constraints Collaboration project, which is seeking solutions for thermal constraints, which can reduce costs to the consumer or reduce the curtailment of renewable generation.