INNIO Group (Jenbach, Austria; www.innio.com) today announced that it was awarded the COGEN Europe Recognition Award 2024 in the Technology and Innovation category for its 1 MW-class hydrogen combined heat and power (CHP) plant. Powered by green hydrogen, INNIO Group collaborated with RAG Austria AG to develop this project and operate the hydrogen engine for the start of this heating season. At RAG Austria’s site, green hydrogen is produced in summer through water electrolysis from surplus renewable production and stored in the world’s first underground hydrogen storage in a porous reservoir in Rubensdorf near Gampern, Austria. This storage facility can hold up to 4.2 GWh of surplus solar power in the form of hydrogen. To make this hydrogen usable in winter, RAG Austria selected INNIO Group’s Jenbacher technology to convert it back to electricity and heat for the site’s local requirements.
“This award celebrates our teams’ achievements and highlights our collaboration with RAG Austria AG in addressing three critical aspects of green energy supply: storage, transport, and generation. By harnessing the summer sun for winter energy, the project serves as a blueprint for utilizing green hydrogen to sustainably balance seasonal energy demand,” emphasized Andreas Eberharter, VP – Product Management & Marketing for INNIO Group’s Jenbacher brand, who was presented the award at the COGEN Annual Conference.
With this flagship project, INNIO Group and RAG Austria are taking an important step towards net zero. Working together, they are helping solve one of the central challenges of the energy transition: the seasonal storage of surplus renewable electric power from the summer months for the energy-intensive winter. At the same time, the Jenbacher CHP plant in Gampern is an important showcase project for the subsequent upscaling and gradual replacement of natural gas with hydrogen – and thus serving as a blueprint for the transition to purely emission-free power generation all year.