Feasibility Assessment of Producing Hydrogen as an Alternative Fuel from Floating Solar Technology

This research presents a feasibility assessment of producing hydrogen via water electrolysis using three types of electrolyzers, comprising Alkaline (AEC), Proton Exchange Membrane (PEMEC), and Solid Oxid (SOEC), which consumes electrical energy from the EGAT’s first floating solar project at Sirindhorn Dam. In this research, technical and economic data sets of the electrolyzers and other equipment were studied to perform the assessment of the quantity of the hydrogen produced and the levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH). The economic feasibility assessment was carried out using various financial indicators, consisting of the net present value (NPV), payback period (PB), and internal rate of return (IRR). The sensitivity analysis was also studied. The result shows that 82.16 GWh of the annually generated electrical energy from the floating solar farm can be maximally converted to 1,278,006 kg of hydrogen. When utilizing this amount of hydrogen in the energy sector, it can be converted to the carbon dioxide emission reduction of 18,432 tons or carbon dioxide equivalent (tonCO2eq) a year, which is equivalent to 1.97 million baht. And the least calculated LCOH value is 383.88 baht/kg. To achieve the positive NPV, the results of the economic feasibility assessment reveal that the capital expenditure (CAPEX) of AEC, PEMEC, and SOEC must be below 674$/kW, 613$/kW, and 790$/kW, respectively. Likewise, the highest evaluated financial result of the 25-year project lifetime shows a net present value of 670.82 million baht with 9.97 years of payback period at an 11.31% internal rate of return. According to the sensitivity analysis in this work, the NPV deviation is most affected by the change in the pricing of hydrogen and the following electricity price.