(Oldenburg / Emden) – The northern German energy supplier EWE AG wants to install a 320 megawatt electrolysis plant in Emden, East Frisia. The aim is to implement “for the first time a project on a market-relevant scale for a future hydrogen value chain,” explained EWE boss Stefan Dohler. “Hydrogen is an indispensable component for achieving climate goals and for linking the three sectors of electricity, mobility and industry.” Construction could begin in 2023 and green hydrogen could be produced from 2026.
Construction only with federal and state funding
According to Dohler, EWE “could not implement such a mammoth project alone”. Electrolysis requires investments of almost half a billion euros. 
With federal and state funding as well as EU approval under state aid law, the framework would be in place and further planning and investigations could begin.
The energy service provider has chosen a site in Borssumer Hammrich as the location, in the immediate vicinity of the substation of the transmission system operator Tennet. Analyzes have shown “that Emden is currently one of the best locations for optimally integrating renewable hydrogen production into the existing energy system.” EWE can build on the existing infrastructure and use it to transport and store green energy. The East Frisian districts of Aurich, Leer, Wittmund and the independent city of Emden, which have pooled their hydrogen activities in “H2Ostfriesland”, are jointly pursuing the goal of developing East Frisia into one of the most important regions for hydrogen in Germany.
Electricity from offshore wind farms for electrolysis
According to Geert Tjarks, head of the hydrogen business development department at EWE, “so much renewable energy is being generated in large wind farms around Emden that it cannot always be consumed directly or transported away via the power lines.” “We want to change that with the planned hydrogen production via electrolysis.” By using this, over one terawatt hour of green hydrogen could be produced in Emden every year.
The water required for production is not drinking water, but mostly surface water. The resulting oxygen, amounting to more than 200.000 tons annually, is supplied to “the environment,” according to an EWE statement.
The project is part of a large project
Large-scale hydrogen production is part of the four-stage project “Clean Hydrogen Coastline". 
A consortium applied for funding in February 2021 as part of the European IPCEI program (Important Project of Common European Interest) and reached the second stage of the process in May 2021. In addition to EWE, the steel group ArcelorMittal Bremen, the vehicle manufacturer Faun, the transmission system operator Gasunie, the energy supplier SWB and the transmission system operator Tennet are involved. The companies want to build 2026 megawatts of electrolysis capacity in the northwest region by 400.
Since October 2018, another consortium made up of Thyssengas, Gasunie and Tennet has been pursuing the concept of an industrial power-to-gas plant in the 100 megawatt class as part of a project called “Element One”, in order to convert electricity from renewable energies into green energy convert hydrogen. As part of a feasibility study, East Frisia (Diele, Leer district) was identified as a suitable location for the electrolyzer.
Consortia cooperate
In November 2021, both consortia decided to merge their projects. According to Thyssengas, this laid the foundation “for a complete value chain with the stages of hydrogen production, electricity infrastructure, large-scale hydrogen storage in salt caverns and transport via future hydrogen pipelines based on existing infrastructure.” The common goal is now to develop the coastal region of Lower Saxony into a “first European hydrogen cluster” by 2026.
Huntorf near Elsfleth in Lower Saxony also plays a role in this development. EWE AG and Uniper SE want one there Hydrogen hub establish. Uniper operates a compressed air storage power plant at the Huntorf site for emergency power supply and grid stabilization. EWE uses a natural gas cavern storage facility in the immediate vicinity. In the future, cavern storage facilities could also be used for hydrogen storage and existing natural gas pipelines could be used to transport hydrogen.
Photo above
As part of the “BorWin3” project, the transmission system operator Tennet built a converter station with a substation in Emden/East in order to feed the wind power generated near Borkum in the North Sea into the power grid. © Tennet TSO
Photo middle
EWE boss Stefan Dohler (second from left) with Tennet COO Tim Meyerjürgens, Emden's mayor Tim Kruithoff and Olaf Meinen, district administrator of Aurich, in front of the Emden town hall on Delft © EWE AG / Tobias Bruns
Class schedule
A consortium of well-known companies wants to build a hydrogen cluster in the northwest with an electrolysis capacity of 400 megawatts. © EWE AG
