Xcel Energy’s Prairie Island likely hydrogen demo site

Specifics: According to an October 15 article in Minneapolis’s Star Tribune, Xcel is putting $2 million of its own money into the project and will do engineering and planning work on the pilot plant through next year, with construction expected to start in 2022. It is projected to come online in 2023.

According to the project abstract, a pilot plant capable of producing about 4 kg of hydrogen per hour will first be commissioned and operated at INL. It will then be commissioned by Xcel Energy to monitor performance and interactions with the nuclear power plant and with electricity distribution systems. Connections for steam and electrical power output between the electrical grid and electrolysis unit will be developed, tested, and refined.

A recent analysis performed under the DOE’s H2@Scale initiative estimated that hydrogen produced by high-temperature steam electrolysis at a nuclear plant could be cost-competitive in the current hydrogen market.

What they’re saying: “Xcel Energy was the first major American utility to pursue a vision of 100 percent carbon-free electricity, and now we’ll be the first company to produce carbon-free hydrogen at a nuclear plant using this technology,” said Tim O’Connor, Xcel Energy’s chief generation officer. Xcel Energy has a large amount of wind in its energy generation portfolio, which offers an opportunity to demonstrate how a nuclear plant’s electricity could be used to make hydrogen when wind energy satisfies grid demand.

Richard Boardman, national technical lead for the DOE Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program’s Flexible Plant Operations and Generation Pathway, said, “This is a game-changer for both nuclear energy and carbon-free hydrogen production for numerous industries. It offers a view of the energy structures of the future, which will integrate systems to maximize energy use, generator profitability, and grid reliability, all while minimizing carbon emissions.”