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Press Release08 April 2020Siemens Gas and Power and UniperMunich, Düsseldorf
Siemens and Uniper join forces to decarbonize power generation
Power-to-X: the technological answer to decarbonize economy. Siemens supports global decarbonization, the shift from fossil to renewable energy sources and the associated massive reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
The scope of the new
cooperation agreement also includes the evaluation of the potential of Uniper’s
existing gas turbines and gas storage facilities for the use of hydrogen. The
focus of the work is to define what role hydrogen can play in the future
evolution of Uniper’s coal power plants. Uniper recently announced that it
would close or convert its coal-fired power plants in Europe by 2025 at the
latest. Uniper’s coal-exit plan is instrumental to make the company achieve its
objective of becoming carbon neutral in Europe by 2035.
Siemens Gas
and Power is helping its customers achieve their decarbonization goals.
“Brownfield transformation” projects are designed to decarbonize coal-fired
power plants and significantly reduce CO2 emissions from gas-fired
power plants,
including the integration of storage solutions and the
use of “green gas”. By building infrastructures for Power-to-X, Siemens Gas and
Power is making a global contribution to cross-sector decarbonization. Siemens
offers all core technologies for a long-term CO2-free energy supply – from
power and heat generation by renewable energies or gas-fired power plants, to
power transmission and distribution, to efficient electrolysis for hydrogen
production.
Uniper initiated the
transition to a more climate-friendly energy supply, as described in its new
company strategy recently presented. The company has set itself the goal of
reducing CO2 emissions in the European generation segment from 22 million tons
today to net-zero emissions by 2035. Uniper already produces around 24 terawatt
hours of carbon-free electricity with its hydroelectric and nuclear power
plants in Germany and Sweden. Under its new strategy it now intends to
gradually increase the share of “green” gas or “green hydrogen” in its
conventional gas business, in both power generation and energy trading.
Uniper is a pioneer in the
use of power-to-gas technology, which makes “green hydrogen” possible, having
been one of the first to implement such kind of projects. The company has
already built the first power-to-gas plant in Falkenhagen in 2013, followed by
another one in Hamburg in 2015. Uniper added a methanisation plant to the
Falkenhagen plant in 2018. In addition, Uniper is pushing forward cross-sector
industrial projects together with refineries and the automotive industry with
various real-life laboratory projects, which could make it possible to enter
hydrogen production at market conditions in the near future.
Siemens and Uniper have
been partners for many years in integrated products, solutions and services
along the entire energy value chain. In addition, the companies share a
pioneering role in power-to-gas plants in which hydrogen or methane are
produced from renewable energies. Power-to-gas plants can provide a technical
answer to one of the key questions of the energy revolution: How can the
fluctuating energy sources sun and wind be stored and thus made plannable? The
aim of this cooperation is to contribute to improving the economic efficiency
and thus the marketability of power-to-gas plants.
Uniper CEO Andreas
Schierenbeck says: “After the coal phase-out and the switch to a secure
gas-based energy supply, the use of climate-friendly gas will be a major step
towards successful energy system transformation; therefore, the decarbonization
of the gas industry, including gas-fired power generation, is essential if
Germany and Europe are to achieve their climate targets. We are ready to invest
and have set the strategic course to significantly accelerate the
decarbonization of our portfolio. In doing so, it is important to bundle
energies, act openly in terms of technology, and work with proven
high-technology partners like Siemens.”
Jochen Eickholt, Siemens
Energy Executive Board Member, said: “ʻGreen
hydrogenʼ can contribute to achieving climate targets and is thus a key to a
successful energy turnaround. And it can do so across sectors in industry,
mobility, and heat and power generation. But we’re only at the beginning. Joint
projects with our customers, such as the partnership with Uniper focusing on ʻbrownfield
transformationʼ and the design of the ʻgreen hydrogenʼ value chain, are
extremely important here. Here we can show that a CO2-free,
environmentally friendly energy supply is possible and makes sense under real
conditions and using existing plants. Together, we are working to master the
challenges up to series production and use of hydrogen on a large scale and to
make this clear to the world: Our future lies in hydrogen. This is what we are
committed to as a company,” added Eickholt.
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Siemens Gas and Power GmbH & Co. KG is the global energy business of the Siemens group, which has been working with its customers on solutions for the evolving demands of industry and society for more than 150 years. With planned stock listing, Siemens’ energy business will operate independently as Siemens Energy in the future. It will offer broad expertise across the entire energy value chain, along with a comprehensive portfolio for utilities, independent power producers, transmission system operators, the oil and gas industry, and other energy-intensive industries. With its products, solutions, systems, and services, Siemens Energy will address the extraction, processing, and transport of oil and gas as well as power and heat generation in central and distributed thermal power plants, and power transmission and technologies for the energy transformation, including storage and sector-coupling solutions. The majority stake in Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy will round out its future-oriented portfolio. With its commitment to leading the way in decarbonization of the global energy system, Siemens Energy will be a partner of choice for companies, governments, and customers on their path to a more sustainable future. With around 90,000 employees worldwide, Siemens Energy will help shape the energy systems of today and tomorrow.
www.siemens.com.
Uniper is a leading international energy company with around 11,500 employees and activities in more than 40 countries. With about 34 GW of installed generation capacity, Uniper is among the largest global power generators. Its main activities include power generation in Europe and Russia as well as global energy trading, including a diversified gas portfolio that makes Uniper one of Europe’s leading gas companies. In 2019, Uniper sold a gas volume of 2.179,3 bln kWh. The company is headquartered in Düsseldorf, being the third-largest listed German utility. Under its new strategy, Uniper aims to become carbon neutral in Europe by 2035.
Contact
Alfons Benzinger
Siemens Gas and Power GmbH & Co KG
Freyeslebenstr. 1
91058 Erlangen
Germany
91058 Erlangen
Germany
+49 9131 17 34649
Georg Oppermann
Uniper SE
Holzstr.
6
40221 Düsseldorf
Germany
40221 Düsseldorf
Germany
+49 211 45 79 55 32