OREANDA-NEWS. E.ON's power-to-gas (P2G) pilot unit in Falkenhagen in eastern Germany has delivered a positive performance in its first year of operation, injecting more than two million kilowatt-hours of hydrogen into the gas transmission system.

“Falkenhagen has given us valuable experience that will help us refine all aspects of power-to-gas technology, from conducting the regulatory approvals process to building and operating P2G units and marketing their hydrogen output. After just one year we can already say that P2G has significant potential. We even see near-term opportunities for commercial applications in areas like mobility,” E.ON Deutschland CEO Ingo Luge said.

The Falkenhagen unit uses renewable-source electricity to power electrolysis equipment that transforms water into hydrogen, which is injected into the natural gas transmission system. With a capacity of two megawatts, it can produce 360 cubic meters of hydrogen per hour. This stored energy becomes part of the natural gas supply and can be used for space heating, industrial applications, in areas like mobility, and power generation. E.ON delivers some of Falkenhagen's hydrogen output its project partner, Swissgas AG, and makes some available to its residential customers through a product called “E.ON WindGas.”

E.ON is currently building a second P2G pilot unit in Reitbrook, a suburb of Hamburg. The purpose of this unit, which will enter service in 2015, is to optimize the transformation process by means of more compact and efficient electrolysis equipment.