The Hydrogen Office case study

An innovative demonstration project, the Hydrogen Office aims to highlight the potential for renewable energy and hydrogen to reduce carbon emissions and provide security of supply.

Some of the electricity generated by the turbine at the Scottish project is stored as hydrogen in a pressurised steel tank. The hydrogen can then be used to power the building at times of low or no wind via a fuel cell.

The £4.7 million project was financed by the European Union and Scottish Enterprise and is funded by the income generated from surplus energy generated by the turbine.

With the project reliant on that income for the bulk of its running costs, including education programmes and research, securing the best deal for the exported electricity was vital.

“We had entered into a short term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with one of the large utilities when the turbine was first commissioned but when that came up for renewal we asked a number of companies to quote,” explained the project’s technical officer David Hogg.

“SmartestEnergy came up with the best price but they also offered us the best service and we found them very helpful throughout the process.”

In the longer term, the project is hoping to explore the possibility of a linked supply deal with a local energy user through SmartestEnergy.

“We see our turbine as very much a community project and supplying electricity to a business or organisation in the area would tie in well with that.”

Gregor Murray, Executive Director of the Hydrogen Office added: “Hydrogen is the fuel of the future and at the Hydrogen Office you can see it in use today.”

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