Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for IIR News Intelligence (Sugar Land, Texas)
Summary
Europe dominates the world when it comes to investing in the pipeline networks needed to support the commercial scale rollout of hydrogen.
Europe accounts for 90% of global investment in the development of hydrogen pipeline infrastructure, followed a long way back by Asia and the U.S.
According to Industrial Info Resources data there are 346 hydrogen pipeline projects globally worth more than US$61 billion in investment. Europe accounts for more than 300 of those projects and nearly US$55 billion of total investment. Asia comes next with 34 projects worth US$4.7 billion with the U.S. having just seven active projects worth US$1.6 billion.
Finland and Germany Leading
Within Europe, Finland and Germany are neck and neck in terms of investment values of roughly US$11.4 billion each although the number of projects differs greatly. Finland has five major projects, including the proposed Nordic Baltic Hydrogen Corridor (NBHC) which will run from Finland via the Baltic Sea through Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland to Germany. Germany has 123 projects, consisting of mainly smaller pipeline networks located in clusters around heavily industrialized regions, often referred to as “hydrogen valleys” and interconnector projects across the country, with some international links. The largest single project is the US$1.25 billion AquaDuctus project, Europe’s first planned large-scale offshore hydrogen pipeline project, designed to transport green hydrogen produced from North Sea wind power directly to the German mainland. It will involve roughly 400 kilometers (km) of total pipeline length, up to 300 km offshore and about 100 km onshore with a planned capacity of up to 10 to 20 gigawatts (GW) of green hydrogen capacity when commissioned sometime between 2030 and 2035.
Leading Projects
Some of the leading European projects include the Baltic Sea Hydrogen Collector (BHC), a cross-border project that will secure the supply of green hydrogen in the Nordics and Central Europe. The main section will connect hydrogen infrastructure in Finland and Germany first, followed by Sweden and if demand allows, Poland and some other Baltic States. It will comprise a 1,250-km pipeline system developed in several phases and sections.
H2med
The H2med project is a cross-country initiative to interconnect the hydrogen networks of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) to northwest Europe. Using cheap solar and wind power, it aims to supply affordable green hydrogen by 2032. The European Union’s (EU’s) REPowerEU Plan has the goal of developing 10 million tonnes of domestic renewable hydrogen production and 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen imports by 2030. The H2med corridor aims to transport 2 million tons. It comprises two key projects: CelZa and BarMar. CelZa is a 270-km pipeline that will join Portugal and Spain’s developing core hydrogen backbones. BarMar is a 400-km offshore hydrogen pipeline project that will join Barcelona (Spain) to the industrial hub in Fos-sur-Mer, near Marseille (France). It will be the key pipeline for exporting cheaply produced green hydrogen in Spain and Portugal to France, and then onwards to Germany and northwest Europe.
The European Hydrogen Backbone (EHB)
The European Hydrogen Backbone (EHB) is Europe’s grand plan for a European-wide interconnected hydrogen network, backed by more than 30 of the region’s leading transmission systems operators (TSOs) and infrastructure operators across 28 countries. Its goal is to have up to 31,000 km of pipelines by 2030, expanding to roughly 53,000 km by 2040. Most of this network will consist of repurposed gas pipelines. In reality, and despite the impressive number of projects, things are moving slower than expected thanks to a range of issues including funding, customer demand and stalling green hydrogen project investment. Much of Europe’s current hydrogen network is in private hands with little third-party access and much of that has been traditionally used for the transport of grey hydrogen. Only in Germany and the Netherlands are sections of national hydrogen networks starting to come online. Germany has embarked on the construction of Europe’s largest planned hydrogen network, which will span more than 9,000 km. The Hydrogen Core Network (HCN) is backed by Germany’s gas transmission system operators (TSOs) and the government and will cost 19.7 billion euro (US$22.4 billion) to build. In the Netherlands, HyNetwork Services (HNS) – part of Gasunie – is developing the Dutch hydrogen transmission network which will cover 1,200 km and cost 3.8 billion euro (US$4.3 billion) – double the original estimate – and which has received 750 million euro (US$854 million) in government funding. It will connect six industrial clusters and have connections to networks in Germany and Belgium. The completion date has been pushed out from 2030 to 2033, with the first 32-km section in Rotterdam commissioned in May, with a ramp-up in production expected in 2027, according to Shell plc.
Key Takeaways
- Europe’s hydrogen pipeline infrastructure accounts for 90% of the world’s global investment.
- Industrial Info Resources is tracking 346 hydrogen pipeline projects globally worth more than US$61 billion in investment.
- Germany and Finland are the most active markets, followed by Spain.
About Industrial Info Resources
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR’s Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, Industrial Info Resources is tracking over 250,000 current and future projects worth $30.2 Trillion (USD).
