(Münster / Germany) – The long-distance pipeline operator Nowega GmbH has begun filling a 55-kilometer section of its hydrogen core network in Nordhorn. The pipeline between the Lower Saxon towns of Lingen and Bad Bentheim consists of 95 percent existing pipelines.
In the first step, a total of 28.500 cubic meters of hydrogen will be injected into the network section and brought to a pressure of 3 bar. The energy source will be delivered by trailer. Operational readiness is expected by mid-April, says Dennis Hoeveler, Head of Technology at Nowega: "Once the system is brought up to operating pressure, we can then begin the first transports."
Total Energies and RWE have agreed to supply 30.000 tons of hydrogen. The energy source from Lingen will be stored in Gronau-Epe to ensure availability even on days with little sun and wind. © RWE AG
The first "connection" to the Nowega network is the 300-megawatt electrolysis plant of RWE Generation SE in Lingen, which is scheduled to begin producing green hydrogen from renewable electricity this year. This will make "the connection between Lingen and the RWE hydrogen storage facility in Gronau-Epe tangible," says Sopna Sury, COO Hydrogen at RWE Generation. This connection is needed "for the stable supply of our customers, such as Total Energies in Leuna."
Demand: Reduce production costs
"With the commissioning, we are providing the first transport capacities for the early phase of the hydrogen economy," said Nowega Managing Director Frank Heunemann. It is now important that the new federal government continues to consistently support the ramp-up of the hydrogen economy. He calls for "important steps" to be taken: reducing the production costs of climate-friendly hydrogen and creating incentives for its use. This could enable the economic use of hydrogen as a decarbonization option for industry.
Project outline of GET H2: The first stage is the connection of hydrogen production in Lingen to Gelsenkirchen. © Nowega GmbH
In July 2024, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Robert Habeck awarded Nowega a grant of almost 38 million euros for the implementation of the pipeline projects in Emsland, Münsterland, and the northern Ruhr region, part of the overall "GET H2" project. In addition to Nowega and RWE, the project partners include Open Grid Europe GmbH, BP, and Evonik. Of the 203 kilometers of planned pipelines, 177 kilometers are existing pipelines that will be converted to transport hydrogen. The funds are part of the IPCEI (Important Projects of Common European Interest) funding program, which supports a total of around 60 projects in Germany in the areas of hydrogen production, transport, storage, and use. The federal government is providing 70 percent of the funding, with Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia contributing a further 30 percent.
Core of the hydrogen economy
Nowega is a founding member of the GET H2 hydrogen initiative, in which around 60 companies, institutions, and municipalities have joined forces to establish the core of a German hydrogen economy. The subsidiary of Erdgas Münster GmbH operates, maintains, and markets a total of 1.500 kilometers of high-pressure gas pipelines. The pipeline network stretches from the Dutch border across Lower Saxony and parts of North Rhine-Westphalia to the Wendland region and is part of the intra-European natural gas transport routes.
OGE starts construction of new H2 pipeline
According to Nowega, the network will then expand further south in the second half of the year. The Essen-based transmission system operator OGE announced today the start of construction on the joint pipeline, dubbed "HEp," which runs between Heek and Epe in the Borken district. It connects RWE Gas Storage West's cavern storage field in Epe with the existing pipeline from Emsland. The partners in the HEp project are OGE (50 percent) and Nowega (50 percent). The pipeline will cover a total length of approximately eleven kilometers and is scheduled to go into operation this year.
These pipelines, in turn, are connected to further connections, for example to the Marl Chemical Park and to the connection to industrial customers and the import route from the Netherlands.
Photo above
Starting the initial filling of the Nowega hydrogen pipeline (from left): Dennis Hoeveler (Nowega Head of Technology), Frank Heunemann (Nowega Managing Director), Sopna Sury (COO Hydrogen RWE Generation), Detlef Brüggemeyer (Technical Managing Director OEG), Frank Doods (State Secretary in the Lower Saxony Ministry of Economic Affairs). © Nowega GmbH
