Techno-economic evaluation and resource assessment of hydrogen production through offshore wind farms: A European perspective

The demand for hydrogen is expected to increase radically in the coming years, as it is an important lever for decarbonization and offshore wind is a credible option for running electrolyzers. A unified and detailed cost modeling is produced from the sparse literature that considers a variety of configurations (onshore, centralized offshore, and decentralized offshore electrolysis). A resource assessment at European scale is performed by combining the developed cost modeling with a geospatial analysis considering the levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH). Geolocated power generation as well as technical and environmental constraints are considered to improve the assessment.The results reveal enormous resources in European seas, with LCOH falling from 4.5-7.5 euro/kg in 2020 to 1.5-3.0 euro/kg in 2050 as the costs of wind turbines and electrolyzers decrease. More than 1000 TWh of green hydrogen could be produced at a price of less than 3.0 euro/kg in 2030 and 2.0 euro/kg in 2050, making it competitive with gray hydrogen. A valuable resource of 200 TWh is identified in 2030 where offshore wind -to-hydrogen projects have a much lower LCOH than their wind-to-power counterparts. The results, provided at the country level, are valuable for energy modelers and local stakeholders. Finally, a detailed cost analysis shows that offshore electrolysis is becoming more relevant over time: In 2020, offshore electrolysis is preferred only for far-from-shore and deepwater seas while in 2030 it is closer to shore (over 100 km). In 2050, onshore electrolysis is only relevant for nearshore and shallow waters.