(Berlin, Germany) – The Berlin-based energy company Securing Energy for Europe GmbH (SEFE) plans to source green hydrogen from Saudi Arabia. The company has now signed a letter of intent with ACWA Power. According to the agreement, the companies intend to establish a "hydrogen bridge." The delivery volume will comprise 200.000 tons annually starting in 2030. ACWA Power will act as the developer, investor, and operator of production facilities for green hydrogen and green ammonia, while SEFE will be a co-investor and the main customer.
The managing directors of SEFE, Egbert Laege, and ACWA Power, Marco Arcelli, signed a letter of intent in Riyadh to supply 200.000 tons of hydrogen to Germany annually. The ceremony was attended by Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman (center) and German Finance Minister Jörg Kukies (right). © SEFE
“By expanding our green hydrogen portfolio and investing in local production, SEFE is able to offer solutions that enable our customers to achieve their decarbonization goals,” says CEO Egbert Laege. The company develops transport and storage infrastructure for hydrogen in Germany. Through its subsidiary Gascade Gastransport GmbH, SEFE is converting part of its 4.100-kilometer pipeline network for hydrogen transport as part of the “ Flow – making hydrogen happen ” project.
In addition, SEFE is building the new offshore hydrogen pipeline “ Aqua Ductus ”. This project combines the activities of the transmission system operators Gascade and Gasunie, as well as the energy companies RWE and Shell, in the development, construction and operation of an offshore collector pipeline that will transport green hydrogen from the North Sea to the mainland.
SEFE is also involved in the storage facility in Jemgum (Lower Saxony), which, once completed, will be able to store up to 500 gigawatt-hours of the energy carrier. According to its own statements, the German state-owned company sees itself as a "strategic partner in the green hydrogen supply chain" with a customer portfolio of 200 terawatt-hours per year (TWh/a).
Second deal for ACWA Power in Europe
ACWA Power has thus announced its second major business deal in Europe within just a few days. Shortly before, the Saudi company announced an agreement with the Italian long-distance gas network operator Snam , according to which the companies intend to explore the creation of an international supply chain for green hydrogen from Arabia to Europe (as we reported).
Neom Green Hydrogen, a joint venture between ACWA Power, Air Products, and the developing city of Neom in Saudi Arabia, will be the world's first large-scale green hydrogen plant with an annual capacity of 1,2 million tons of green ammonia. ACWA Power is also developing a green hydrogen project in Uzbekistan with an initial capacity of 3.000 tons. Furthermore, ACWA Power has signed letters of intent with Tunisia and Egypt to explore projects for the production and export of green hydrogen to Europe via the South H2 corridor.
Höegh Evi provides infrastructure
A few days earlier, SEFE had announced an agreement with Höegh Evi Ltd. The company, which is registered in Bermuda and operated as "Höegh LNG Holdings Ltd." until September 2024, claims to have the world's largest fleet of floating storage and regasification units (FSRU).
According to SEFE, the aim is to analyze the feasibility of various hydrogen corridors and to develop them. The aim is to "establish international supply chains for clean hydrogen." This includes the procurement of ammonia, transport by ship and delivery to floating import terminals.
There, the gas will be converted back into hydrogen using an ammonia cracker and the energy source will then be delivered to SEFE customers via the German hydrogen core network, which is currently being set up. Potential locations for such floating terminals will be sought on the Baltic and North Sea coasts of Germany and in other regions of Europe. These will then supply "clean hydrogen that is ready for demand and capable of base load," says Höegh Evi.
From Gazprom to Federal Ownership
Securing Energy for Europe GmbH was once part of the Russian Gazprom empire as Gazprom Germania GmbH. In April 2022, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection appointed the Federal Network Agency, an independent German regulatory authority, as a trustee for the time being. The reason was the unresolved transfer of the shares to a company based abroad, which is prohibited under German law without prior notification and review.
In December 2022, the trust administration was completed and SEFE was nationalized. The company, which claims to have around 2.000 employees worldwide, has since been federally owned and supplies over 50.000 customers, from small businesses to municipal utilities and multinational corporations.
Photo above
SEFE wants to build international supply chains to provide clean hydrogen for Germany and other European countries. Höegh Evi has floating storage and regasification plants, which can convert ammonia back into hydrogen and make it usable. © Höegh Evi Ltd.
