EnBW injects €1b into Germany’s hydrogen grid
Germany’s third biggest utility, EnBW announced on Tuesday a €1 billion ($1.09 billion) investment in the nation’s planned hydrogen transport network on Tuesday.
This critical infrastructure, expected to be operational by 2032, will transport both domestically produced and imported hydrogen – a clean alternative to fossil fuels for various industrial and consumer uses.
The new investment aligns with Germany’s ambitious goal of reducing reliance on fossil fuels and their carbon footprint. By facilitating hydrogen transportation, Germany is paving the way for a clean energy future.
EnBW’s investment signifies participation in a national approval process recently initiated by the energy regulator, Bundesnetzagentur, it said in a statement.
“The hydrogen core network is the entry point into the hydrogen economy of the future and therefore the prerequisite for the complete decarbonisation of the German economy and the achievement of climate goals,” said EnBW board member Dirk Guesewell in the statement.
Bundesnetzagentur is currently evaluating a comprehensive network design submitted by FNB, an industry group representing German gas transmission network operators.
“The core network is intended to optimally promote and accompany the ramp-up of the hydrogen economy in Germany and Europe,” FNB chairman Thomas Goessmann stated.
The regulatory authority will study for the next two months the plans, which involves 9,666 kilometres (km) of lines costing roughly 19.7 billion euros.
The German government plans to partially finance the plans with amortisation accounts that will spread the cost over generations.
Approximately 60 per cent of the project involves converting existing natural gas pipelines for hydrogen transportation. New pipelines will also be built, while some existing gas lines will be decommissioned.
As part of a joint application by EnBW and its subsidiaries VNG, an eastern German gas distributor, and Baden Wuerttemberg operator terranets, investments are planned to initially connect regional transport lines in Germany’s east and southwest, and later beyond those areas.
Attribution: Reuters and EnBW’s press release
