New Horizon Europe project to advance underground hydrogen storage
The Clean Hydrogen Partnership and its members have awarded €3 million in funding through the Horizon Europe Program to the "HyDRA" project.
We are combining our expertise in microbiology and geochemistry to help Europe secure large-scale hydrogen storage.
Officially launched on 1 January 2025
This pioneering EU-funded project aims to advance the understanding and implementation of underground hydrogen storage (UHS) across Europe.
The HyDRA research consortium (HyDRA- Diagnostic Tools and Risk Protocols to Accelerate Underground Hydrogen Storage) gathers together eight leading research institutions and one enterprise across six countries: BGR, GNS Science, IDAEA-CSIC, ISO, KIT, TU Clausthal, UEDIN, UiB and UNINA. These institutions are collaboratively addressing the pressing need for large-scale hydrogen storage solutions to support Europe's transition to a low-carbon energy future.
Unlocking underground hydrogen storage
To meet the EU's climate targets, diversify the energy market, and ensure a reliable energy supply, expanding hydrogen infrastructure is crucial. Large-scale storage solutions are needed, as current facilities cannot handle the anticipated increase in hydrogen availability.
Storing hydrogen underground in naturally occurring sealed formations, such as sedimentary basins, presents a significant opportunity for Europe. These formations are robust, have large storage capacities, are cost-effective, and can be easily integrated into existing systems.
However, critical knowledge gaps remain, particularly regarding how microbial processes might influence underground storage. The HyDRA project aims to address these gaps by developing scientific protocols and regulatory frameworks to ensure hydrogen can be stored safely and efficiently.
Key objectives of the HyDRA project
- Investigate hydrogen-consuming microbial activity and its interaction with storage formations to establish risk mitigation strategies.
- Develop methodology and enhance understanding of bio-geochemical processes affecting hydrogen storage in porous media.
- Provide science-based recommendations to support the development of ISO standards and regulatory codes for underground hydrogen storage.
Our role
Dr Karen Houghton and Dr Peter Rendel will be leading the team at GNS Science and hosting two early career scientists in partnership with the University of Auckland.
Dr Houghton will oversee standardised protocols for DNA extraction, sequencing and analysis to determine which microbes are present in the existing and proposed hydrogen storage sites, and their potential metabolic functions. Microbes from a range of European and New Zealand sites will be cultured to determine how microbial communities respond to reservoir environmental conditions (e.g., temperature, pressure, salinity, and pH).
Dr Peter Rendel will investigate site-specific geochemical reactions between hydrogen and reservoir rocks and fluids. Coupled microbial and geochemistry experiments will be carried out to identify the role of the rock properties on microbial community composition and activity, and changes in the rock caused by microbial processes.
A Europe (and NZ)-wide investigation
HyDRA is collaborating with a network of storage site operators (SSOs) to ensure broad geographic coverage and minimize duplication of research efforts. The project includes over 20 sedimentary basins across Europe and New Zealand, representing a range of geological conditions, pressures, temperatures, and depths.
Additionally, HyDRA will incorporate bio-geochemical sampling of natural hydrogen seeps and accumulations to analyze microbial communities in hydrogen-rich environments. This data will be instrumental in shaping monitoring and remediation technologies for safe and efficient deployment of underground hydrogen storage.
For more information about the HyDRA project, visit www.hydrahydrogen.eu(external link) or contact contacthydra@uib.no.
We are grateful to the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) for providing a top-up funding scheme to support New Zealand research organisations participating in Horizon Europe Pillar 2 projects.
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Project Consortium
- BGR (Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources)
- GNS Science (Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited)
- IDAEA-CSIC (Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research at Spanish National Research Council
- ISO (Isodetect GmbH)
- KIT (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology)
- TUC (Clausthal University of Technology)
- UEDIN (University of Edinburgh)
- UiB (University of Bergen)
- UNINA (University of Naples Federico II)
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Disclaimer
The project is supported by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership and its members. Co-funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement No. 101192337 — HyDRA. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.