Pumped hydro potential buoys Duqm’s green hydrogen appeal
Published: 03:12 PM,Dec 19,2023 | EDITED : 07:12 PM,Dec 19,2023
Reggy Vermeulen, CEO – Port of Duqm, speaking at the GHSO Forum last week.
MUSCAT, DEC 19
Rolling headlands along parts of the Duqm coastline afford opportunities for investment in pumped hydro storage - a cost-effective solution to intermittency issues associated with large-scale renewable energy resources planned for development in the wider Al Wusta Governorate.
According to a key official, the potential for pumped hydro storage will complement Duqm’s robust appeal as a hub for green hydrogen investment in the Sultanate of Oman.
Billed as a sustainable and cost-competitive energy storage solution, pumped hydro storage typically involves two interconnected reservoirs with one built at a higher elevation than the other. In times of surplus renewable energy supply, water from the lower reservoir is pumped to the higher one. In times of energy demand, such as during night-time, the stored water is released back into the lower reservoir, generating hydroelectricity in the process.
Opportunities for pumped hydro storage abound along Duqm’s lengthy coastline, punctuated by 80-metre high cliffs in places that are suitable for such investment, says Reggy Vermeulen, CEO – Port of Duqm.
Speaking at the Green Hydrogen Summit Oman (GHSO) 2023 forum, which took place in Muscat week, Vermeulen said Duqm, with its natural and environmental characteristics, was advantageous for green hydrogen investment.
“Very few locations in the world have the combination of (ample land), wind, sun and cliffs as Duqm,” said the CEO. “What people do not always know, when it comes to Duqm, is that not only do we have the sun, the wind and the space, but we actually have possibilities for alternative ways of storing energy.”
Although conceived initially as a hub for industrial and hydrocarbon related investment, Port of Duqm is rapidly adapting to Duqm’s new positioning as a green hydrogen hub - a turnaround made possible because of its largely green-field nature, he said.
Accordingly, large tracts of land originally earmarked for development only in the second phase of the port’s expansion are now being redesigned to prepare them for investment downstream of the green hydrogen value chain, said Vermeulen.
At the same time, other areas within the port’s massive concession – onshore and offshore – are being unlocked to support the growth of the new green hydrogen industry at Duqm. As part of this effort, part of the 4.2 kilometres of jetty is proposed to be developed for the storage of hydrogen-related commodities. Furthermore, with the port’s concession extending far out to sea, options to install a single buoy mooring (SBM) facility for the handling of hydrogen export cargoes can be explored as well, Vermeulen stated.
But in laying the groundwork for the growth of a hydrogen ecosystem in Duqm, the port is also seeking to ensure that the benefits of this new industry ripple across the wider national economy, he said.
This future ecosystem, the CEO said, envisions opportunities for investment in the manufacture of equipment and hardware necessary to drive the growth of the renewables and green hydrogen industry. Manufacturing opportunities span, among other goods, solar panels, wind blades, masts and turbines, and even electrolyzers, he added.
Rolling headlands along parts of the Duqm coastline afford opportunities for investment in pumped hydro storage - a cost-effective solution to intermittency issues associated with large-scale renewable energy resources planned for development in the wider Al Wusta Governorate.
According to a key official, the potential for pumped hydro storage will complement Duqm’s robust appeal as a hub for green hydrogen investment in the Sultanate of Oman.
Billed as a sustainable and cost-competitive energy storage solution, pumped hydro storage typically involves two interconnected reservoirs with one built at a higher elevation than the other. In times of surplus renewable energy supply, water from the lower reservoir is pumped to the higher one. In times of energy demand, such as during night-time, the stored water is released back into the lower reservoir, generating hydroelectricity in the process.
Opportunities for pumped hydro storage abound along Duqm’s lengthy coastline, punctuated by 80-metre high cliffs in places that are suitable for such investment, says Reggy Vermeulen, CEO – Port of Duqm.
Speaking at the Green Hydrogen Summit Oman (GHSO) 2023 forum, which took place in Muscat week, Vermeulen said Duqm, with its natural and environmental characteristics, was advantageous for green hydrogen investment.
“Very few locations in the world have the combination of (ample land), wind, sun and cliffs as Duqm,” said the CEO. “What people do not always know, when it comes to Duqm, is that not only do we have the sun, the wind and the space, but we actually have possibilities for alternative ways of storing energy.”
Although conceived initially as a hub for industrial and hydrocarbon related investment, Port of Duqm is rapidly adapting to Duqm’s new positioning as a green hydrogen hub - a turnaround made possible because of its largely green-field nature, he said.
Accordingly, large tracts of land originally earmarked for development only in the second phase of the port’s expansion are now being redesigned to prepare them for investment downstream of the green hydrogen value chain, said Vermeulen.
At the same time, other areas within the port’s massive concession – onshore and offshore – are being unlocked to support the growth of the new green hydrogen industry at Duqm. As part of this effort, part of the 4.2 kilometres of jetty is proposed to be developed for the storage of hydrogen-related commodities. Furthermore, with the port’s concession extending far out to sea, options to install a single buoy mooring (SBM) facility for the handling of hydrogen export cargoes can be explored as well, Vermeulen stated.
But in laying the groundwork for the growth of a hydrogen ecosystem in Duqm, the port is also seeking to ensure that the benefits of this new industry ripple across the wider national economy, he said.
This future ecosystem, the CEO said, envisions opportunities for investment in the manufacture of equipment and hardware necessary to drive the growth of the renewables and green hydrogen industry. Manufacturing opportunities span, among other goods, solar panels, wind blades, masts and turbines, and even electrolyzers, he added.