(Madrid / Spain) – The cross-border initiative “H2med” aims to determine the infrastructure requirements of the hydrogen economy along the planned hydrogen network from the Iberian Peninsula to Northwest Europe. The corridor includes connecting pipelines between Portugal and Spain (CelZa, Celorico da Beira-Zamora) with a capacity of 0,75 million tons per year, as well as an underwater pipeline between Spain and France (BarMar, Barcelona-Marseille) with a capacity of two million tons.
Determine the need for main lines
With the call for expressions of interest, the five project sponsors want to determine in particular the demand on and near the national hydrogen main pipelines, which are to be built by the time they come into operation in 2030.
- In Portugal the transmission system operator Redes Gasodutos SA, part of Energéticas Nacionais SGPS, SA (REN), plans to build a hydrogen infrastructure that will export 0,75 million tons of the energy carrier per year via H2med.
- In Spain the long-distance gas network operator wants Enagas SA, Interim Manager of the Hydrogen Transport Network (HTNO), will build and operate the Spanish hydrogen network with 2.700 kilometers of pipelines and two storage facilities, and develop the H2med corridor together with its partners to position the Iberian Peninsula as a hub for the export of renewable hydrogen.
- In France the transmission system operator works GRTgaz SA on "Hy-Fen", a 1.000-kilometer-long hydrogen connection from Marseille to Obergailbach on the German border. This is intended to connect the energy source from the Iberian Peninsula with the most important consumption and storage centers in France and Germany. Storage infrastructure will be added along the route.
- The French gas network and infrastructure operator Teréga SAS is leading the Hydrogen Southwest Corridor (HySoW) project, a 650-kilometer hydrogen transport project to decarbonize the industrial clusters and mobility centers in the Occitanie and Nouvelle Aquitaine regions in southwest France and along the border with Spain. HySoW will provide access to additional volumes of hydrogen and, thanks to its storage capacity, increase the flexibility of the corridor, connecting HyFen to the MidHY project developed by GRTgaz.
- In Germany The H2med project will support the “H2ercules” project of Open Grid Europe GmbH (OGE), part of the German Hydrogen core network with a length of around 9.000 kilometers. H2ercules is a 2.000-kilometer-long pipeline network that will supply consumers, mainly in southern and western Germany, with hydrogen from various sources: hydrogen produced in the country and imported hydrogen, mainly via H2med.
In mid-October, Enagás, GRTgaz, REN, OGE and Teréga applied for funding for studies through the EU's Connecting Europe Facility. Their applications were supported by letters of recommendation from the governments of Portugal, Spain, France and Germany.
The consortium of European transmission system operators calls on the hydrogen industry to express interest in H2Med infrastructure (from left): Natalia Latorre (Enagás), Nicolai Raß (OGE), Pedro Furtado (REN), Marie-Claire Aoun (Teréga), Jean-Marc Brimont (GRTgaz). © H2Med
As part of "REPower EU", Europe wants to produce ten million tons of green hydrogen in the EU and import another ten million tons. The consortium estimates the total cost of H2Med at 2,5 billion euros. The project is supported by more than 20 companies, some of them multinational, also from neighboring countries.
Interested parties can submit their contributions via the H2Digital platform until December 18th . The results will be presented once the expression of interest period has ended.
Photo above
H2med is building a hydrogen network from the Iberian Peninsula to Germany. © H2med
