Chemical company Evonik will help develop a hydrogen infrastructure in Germany together with BP, Nowega, OGE, RWE, Salzgitter Flachstahl and Thyssengas.

The companies are partnering in the GET H2 hydrogen initiative and have applied for government funding and to the Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) programme. The aim is to accelerate the use of green hydrogen in industrial sectors such as refineries and steel production, covering the entire value chain from production to storage, transport and delivery across a vast geographical area from the Dutch border to Salzgitter. The project should span from 2024 to 2030, Kallanish notes.

The green hydrogen facility in Lingen, Germany, operated by RWE will supply the BP refinery in Gelsenkirchen starting from 2024 using the existing gas network adapted for hydrogen. In 2025, the network will be extended to the Dutch border and in 2026 RWE will integrate a “cavern storage facility” in Gronau-Epe. By 2030, the infrastructure will reach the Salzgitter steel mill, Evonik explains in a note.

“The link to the Dutch gas market lays the foundation for a trans-European hydrogen market. The expansion of the project by partners from the transport sector and for the distribution of green hydrogen in the area is also already in preparation. Other partners from the GET H2 initiative have also submitted expressions of interest for IPCEI funding for projects aimed at building a hydrogen infrastructure,” the company adds.

As the IPCEI programme will guarantee funding for a part of the infrastructure project,  Evonik calls for “further political steps” to stimulate development of a green hydrogen reliable infrastructure for the industry.

Germany’s environment ministry in December launched its support programme for the "Decarbonisation of Industries," aimed at reducing emissions that go with industrial production processes.The programme is part of the govenment’s Climate Protection Plans until 2030 and 2050, and amounts to €1 billion ($1.19 billion) that will be distributed to different purposes until the end of 2023. The German government has also passed a draft for the regulation of dynamic power supply and hydrogen networks.