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    Xcel Energy’s Prairie Island Nuclear Plant to support clean hydrogen production

    Sept. 21, 2022
    Bloom Energy to install electrolyzer capable of operating at high temperatures, facilitating more efficient conversion of water to hydrogen than low temperature electrolysis alternatives
    Photo by Royalbroil, Wikimedia Commons.
    Prairie Island Nuclear Power Plant 632b4dc33d12d

    Bloom Energy will install its electrolyzer at Xcel Energy’s Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant in Welch, Minnesota to help produce clean hydrogen.

    The electrolyzer is built on a solid oxide platform and operates at high temperatures to efficiently convert water to hydrogen. The high heat and steam from the nuclear facility will feed into this electrolyzer to produce zero-carbon hydrogen more efficiently than when produced using low temperature electrolysis alternatives, like polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) or alkaline. It will use 40% less electricity than the low-temperature alternatives.

    “Xcel Energy’s nuclear power plants already play a vital role in our energy mix, delivering clean, reliable and affordable power for our customers while avoiding hundreds of millions of tons of emissions,” said Peter Gardner, Senior Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer at Xcel Energy, a clean energy provider that serves eight Western and Midwestern states. “This project will provide a tremendous opportunity to better understand how our existing nuclear plants can contribute to the development of hydrogen technologies and build a carbon free future.”

    The engineering work for the 240-kW demonstration is underway. Construction is expected to start late in 2023. It is expected to be operational in early 2024.

    “Xcel Energy has long championed what we at Bloom Energy know is true: Our net-zero future hinges on energy that’s not only clean but also resilient, accessible and affordable,” said Rick Beuttel, Vice President, Hydrogen Business, Bloom Energy. “In today’s climate of extreme weather, fluctuating costs, and global energy insecurity, hydrogen offers unmatched potential to leverage existing infrastructure for clean, abundant energy. Combined with Xcel Energy’s nuclear infrastructure, Bloom Energy’s solid oxide platform – which offers exceptional efficiency – can help us achieve our shared goal of an accessible net-zero future through low-cost, zero-carbon hydrogen.”

    About the Author

    EnergyTech Staff

    Rod Walton is senior editor for EnergyTech.com. He has spent 14 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist.

    Walton formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.

    He can be reached at [email protected]. 

    EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids.

    Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.