Enagas believes green hydrogen will be competitive in 2030, with Spain’s share at 20%.
Enagás CEO Arturo Gonzalo believes that technological progress and the rising cost per tonne of CO2 will make it possible to place “green hydrogen at competitive prices” in 2030 and assures that Spain, in accordance with forecasts by the company and the International Energy Agency (IEA), is able to provide 20% European production of this clean fuel.
At a conference with investors on the occasion of the presentation of quarterly results, Gonzalo also explained that both Enagas and his colleagues from Portugal, France and Germany had just submitted a joint application for funds from the European Connectivity Fund to qualify for community funding for the project. H2Med, which will have a hydraulic pipeline between southern and northern Europe.
Enagas estimates that the investment in the Spanish gas network associated with this project will amount to 4.9 billion euros, to which two storage facilities will be added. “We believe there will not be a significant delay in the project,” Gonzalo told analysts.
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The companies’ request to develop H2Med includes letters of support signed by the four governments involved in the project. The release is scheduled for November 7th. call if interested promote its development and “identify the infrastructure needs of participants throughout the hydrogen value chain.” “This is the first great call if interested which is carried out at the pan-European level,” said the manager.
‘Business’ sector of ‘strategic importance’
In addition to Enagás, the launch includes the French GRTgaz and Teréga, the Portuguese REN and the German OGE. For the CEO of Enagás, this is a project of “strategic importance” in “a rapidly developing sector in Europe with a large pipeline projects in production.
The government’s 2030 Energy Infrastructure Plan (PNIEC) calls for the installation of 12,000 megawatts of hydrogen electrolyzers in Spain over the next few years. It is a document that, according to Gonzalo, gives “tremendous confidence in the future of green hydrogen.”
Following the approval of H2Med by the Council of Ministers at the end of July, Enagas is now progressing through projects of common European interest (PCI) for its implementation. “We are already preparing public participation processes corresponding to these projects, which will be structured in a large part of our country and in which local territories and communities will play a fundamental role,” the manager assured.
The H2Med corridor will include a connection between Celorico da Beira in Portugal and Zamora in Spain (CelZa), as well as another sea link between Barcelona and Marseille (BarMar). CelZa will have a maximum capacity of 0.75 million tons of renewable hydrogen and will be 248 kilometers long, while BarMar will have a maximum capacity of 2 million tons and will be 455 kilometers long.
Germany will allocate almost 19 billion for hydrogen
It was on Tuesday that the German regulator BNetza approved projects for the construction of a hydrogen plant, which will include a connection with France, coming specifically from H2Med.
In particular, the construction of the German hydrogen backbone network was approved with an investment of 18.9 billion euros and a length of 9,040 kilometers.