GE and Uniper to prepare Grain Power Plant for hydrogen conversion

GE has commenced its hydrogen plant readiness assessment of Uniper’s Grain power station in Kent, England.

Since the signing of their cooperation agreement, Uniper and GE have been collaborating closely on the long-term decarbonisation of Uniper’s gas-fired power plants and natural gas storage facilities.

This could also play a part in helping the UK reach its target of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. To support this effort, GE’s plant assessment at Grain will seek to develop detailed solutions to enable the 1,365 MW combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) plant to use blends of hydrogen up to 40% by volume which could lower its carbon emissions and help achieve Uniper’s decarbonisation target.

Investigating lower carbon options for gas turbines could help the power generation industry reduce its carbon emissions over the next decade, and blending hydrogen with natural gas to lower carbon emissions is one of the options.

The assessment will provide Uniper with the scope of the upgrade needed to support the operation of up to 40% hydrogen by volume while maintaining both plant economics and reliability.

This project will define the plant equipment modifications necessary for the existing GT26 gas turbines to accommodate hydrogen fuel blends of significant volumes.

Uniper set the strategic goal of carbon-neutrality in its European generation by 2035, and this project marks a tangible step toward the decarbonisation of its gas assets.