Assessment of the Future Waste Heat Potential from Electrolysers and its Utilisation in District Heating

Hydrogen will play a significant role in the decarbonization of an integrated energy system, i.e. the European Hydrogen Strategy sets the ambitious goals of the production of 10
Mio. tons of green H2 by 2030. The International Energy Agency expects a hydrogen demand of up to 530 Mt in 2050. However, to foster the transition to a smart energy system, synergies
within the energy systems need to be utilized. Especially for increasing the overall system efficiency, the generated waste heat of electrolysers will need to be considered. This can
amount to a significant potential for providing heat to e.g. low-temperature processes, offices, service buildings, or residential applications, either directly or via a district heating network.
The focus of this paper is the assessment of the potential of waste heat from electrolysers on a national level in Europe and worldwide, based on scenarios for their expected capacities and
key technology performance data. Further on, a comparison of the waste heat potential and the projected final heat demand supplied by district heating networks has been done.