Techno-Economic Analysis of the Integration of Large-Scale Hydrogen Production and a Hybrid CSP+PV Plant in Northern Chile

Abstract

Green hydrogen has been considered as one of the energy carriers of the future, and Chile can become a production leader due to its great renewable energy potential. Cheap electricity is one of the key drivers for making green hydrogen a cost-effective energy carrier for many sectors. However, without energy storage, only a small operational electrolysis capacity can be achieved, and therefore, the share of the CAPEX in the levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH2) increases [1]. This work set out to conduct a techno-economic analysis for the integration of large-scale green hydrogen production and a hybrid CSP+PV plant of 100 MWe in northern Chile, one of the world's solar hotspots. For a better understanding on the benefits of such integration, the performance of the hybrid solar plant was compared to the performance offered by each independent solar technology and with a grid-connection via a PPA mechanism. In addition, this study takes into account the costs of storage and transport to potential local and international consumers.