Oilgen, in partnership with Hydrenor, has today announced the launch of its HRE division and new website hydrogen-re.com. HRE is the first ever reservoir engineering consultancy group dedicated to evaluating hydrogen flow in porous rocks.

HRE will provide geological, reservoir simulation and economic feasibility studies applied to the future flow and reactions of hydrogen in rock formations and the conversion of depleted oil or gas fields into large hydrogen storage.

HRE team

HRE has appointed Jonathan Scafidi, a PhD researcher at the University of Edinburgh, as Hydrogen Consultant. Mr Scafidi, a geoscientist who studied on the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) MSc at Edinburgh University, previously published a paper in the International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control. His current research, co-financed by Hydrenor, investigates storing hydrogen underground in porous rocks using computer simulations.

Ambitious plans from the UK Government and EU Commission are now in place to implement hydrogen infrastructure on time for net zero targets by 2050. Large scale hydrogen production is seen as an enabler of green energy from wind or solar energy, with a place in the value chain at infrastructure, transportation and intermittency management levels. Hydrogen generation from Steam Methane Reformation after CCS is also projected. This implies seasonal solutions for storage at mass scale and also for strategic reasons. HRE sees an opportunity for gas producers or storage companies to evaluate conversion projects from now.

Laurent Schirrer, Managing Director of Oilgen Ltd, said: 
“Hydrogen has already been stored in underground porous rocks in the past as a component of “town gas” generated from coal. A recent injection project in Austria had positive results. Hydrogen reservoir engineering builds on known science, adapted to the specificity of this light, mobile and reactive molecule, and we are delighted to initiate this new discipline. To be ready for commercial storage by 2030 at the latest, companies can work with HRE for site-specific evaluations concerning fluid, rock and flow interactions. As depleted gas fields become available traps, infrastructure can get re-purposed before decommissioning, while more offshore wind and carbon capture projects are being permitted, meaning the North Sea has great potential. ”

HRE invites Oil & Gas companies currently rationalising or re-purposing their assets to get in touch to asses hydrogen options. HRE will work internationally with private clients, Governments and academia to pioneer the hydrogen reservoir engineering science.

The HRE team has gained experience in studying flow and reactions of hydrogen in reservoir rocks through Hydrenor’s involvement in the screening of candidate gas fields for conversion and the ongoing PhD work. Hydrenor is an Advisory Member of the HyStorPor research project lead by Edinburgh University. Oilgen’s team of experts have more than 20 years’ extensive expertise in compositional gas storage simulation, PVT, thermodynamics, gas storage and geological modelling. The firm is a gas storage and Carbon Capture and Storage compositional simulation specialist.

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