The increased penetration of variable renewable energy (VRE) in the future will require backup technologies due to intermittency, and long-term energy storage in the form of a chemical vector (such as green ammonia) is increasingly favoured. FASTER will develop and demonstrate the techno-economic feasibility and reliability of a non-noble catalyst based on metal nitrides/ hydrides/amides active at low temperature (< 250 C) and pressure (<50 bar) in combination with a new reactor concept using structured catalysts and temperature swing absorption unit for synthesis and separation at TRL4. The use of highly thermally conductive reactor and absorption scaffolds will increase heat transfer, allowing fast transitions during operation at fluctuating loads (0-100 %). FASTER is a consortium of 5 companies and 3 research universities. The consortium aims to develop (1) novel catalysts highly active at low temperature and pressure for ammonia synthesis, (2) improved heat and mass transport reactor concepts using structured reactors and absorbers, (3) develop and validate a demonstration installation for the FASTER technology, and (4) generating accurate and reliable techno-economic models to identify suitable locations to deploy the concept across Europe and beyond. The innovation tasks will be supported by a dissemination, communication and exploitation strategy focusing on an effective market roll-out by the industrial project partners in the European Union. For this purpose, FASTER gathers a selected group of private and public organizations as Advisory Board Members (ENEL, STEDIN, UPL Mumbay, Fertiberia, Abengoa, TNO, Ammonia Energy Association, Smart Port Systems, and Port of Huelva) to ensure fast-tracking of technology take-up. Ultimately, FASTER will deliver an affordable and clean alternative for hydrogen storage and transport using ammonia as vector in the EU context.

ARENHA (Advanced materials and Reactors for Energy storage tHrough Ammonia) is a European project with global impact seeking to develop, integrate and demonstrate key material solutions enabling the use of ammonia for flexible, safe and profitable storage and utilization of energy. Ammonia is an excellent energy carrier due to its high energy density, carbon-free composition, industrial know-how and relative ease of storage. ARENHA demonstrates the feasibility of ammonia as a dispatchable form of large-scale energy storage, enabling the integration of renewable electricity in Europe and creating global green energy corridors for Europe energy import diversification. Innovative Materials are developed and integrated into ground-breaking systems in order to demonstrate a flexible and profitable power-to-ammonia value chain but also several key energy discharge processes. Specifically, ARENHA will develop advanced SOEC for renewable hydrogen production, catalysts for low temperature/pressure ammonia synthesis, solid absorbents for ammonia synthesis intensification and storage, catalysts and membrane reactors for ammonia decomposition. Energy discharge processes studied in ARENHA tackle various applications from ammonia decomposition into pure H2 for FCEV, direct ammonia utilization on SOFCs for power and ICEs for mobility. ARENHA will demonstrate the full power-to-ammonia-to-usage value chain at TRL 5 and the outstanding potential of green ammonia to address the issue of large scale energy storage through LCA, sociological survey, techno-economic analysis deeply connected with multiscale modeling. ARENHA’s ambitious objectives will be tackled by a consortium of 11 partners from universities, RTO, SMEs and large companies covering the adequate set of skills and market positioning. Considering the global nature of the ARENHA project, the consortium will strongly interact with its international advisory board composed of key energy stakeholders from the 5 continents.

Natural gas (NG) fired Combined Cycle (CC) power plants are currently considered the most flexible power plants to operate in the EU grid to facilitate RES penetration. They changed their role in the EU electric market from the backbone of EU electrical grid to providing most of regulation services necessary to increase the share of non-programmable renewable sources into the electrical grid. In order to enhance their flexibility and also start to sell flexibility/ancillary services (also considering potential virtual aggregation), GT Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and Utilities are investigating new strategies and technologies for power flexibility, also considering that a “fuel switch” is close foreseen from coal to NG among most used fossil based dispatchable power plants and that the role of CC will be of “RES best friends” at least up to 2030. In this sense reducing their emission is also a strong need of GT R&D panorama promoting the exploitation of different fuels than Natural gas only. FLEXnCONFU aims to demonstrate at TRL7 in Ribatejo EDPP CC Power Plant a Power-to-gas-to-power (P2G2P) solution that will enhance CC flexibility (thus enabling them to provide grid flexibility services and getting higher revenues), reduce their NG consumption and therefore their related emission. The P2G2P system will be based on a Power-to-Hydrogen solution developed by HYGS+ICI, while a Power-to-ammonia-to-power solution developed by PROTON and ICI will be demonstrated in a properly modified microgas turbine operating in a UNIGE laboratory within the Savona Smart Microgrid (TRL6). The P2G2P solution will be directly controlled by a grid driven/responsive management system developed by MAS. GT combustion acceptability of different NG/H2/NH3 mixtures will be studied in CU labs. FLEXnCONFU will be a demonstration to market project and upscale and replication of the demonstrate P2H/P2A will be studied (in ENGIE and TP CC plants) and properly promoted by ETN.

The MAGPIE consortium, consisting of 4 ports (Lighthouse Port of Rotterdam, Fellow ports DeltaPort (inland), Port of Sines and HAROPA), 9 research institutes and universities, 32 private companies and 4 other institutes, forms a unique collaboration addressing the missing link between green energy supply and green energy use in port-related transport and the implementation of digitisation, automation, and autonomy to increase transport efficiency. MAGPIE accelerates the introduction of green energy carriers (batteries, hydrogen, ammonia, BioLNG and methanol) combined with realisation of logistic optimisation in ports through automation and autonomous operations. The main objective of MAGPIE is to demonstrate technical, operational, and procedural energy supply and digital solutions in a living lab environment to stimulate green, smart, and integrated multimodal transport and ensure roll out through the European Green Port of the Future Master Plan and dissemination and exploitation activities. A living lab approach is applied in which technological and non-technological innovations are developed or demonstrated. Innovations demonstrated are: On-site BioLNG production; Smart Energy Systems; Shore power peak shaving; Port digital twin (GHG tooling and energy matching); Ammonia bunkering; Offshore charging buoy; Autonomous e-barge and transhipment; Green energy container for inland shipping; Hybrid shunting locomotive; Green connected trucking; Spreading of road traffic; Non-technological innovations to increase the use of green energy. Demonstrators will lead into the Master Plan for the European Green including a roadmap and handbook for implementation. To increase the reach and exploitation of the project results, stakeholders will be in the project through stakeholder consultation groups, targeted communication and dissemination activities. Technical collaborations will be set up with other actions to multiply the results of MAGPIE and of the other actions.