In response to EU recommendations to increase green hydrogen generation and imports, the European Hydrogen Backbone (EHB) initiative has increased its objectives for a pan-European hydrogen pipeline network.
EHB, an industry association comprised of gas transmission system operators (TSOs), has increased its objective for hydrogen pipes to over 28,000 kilometers (kilometers) by 2030 and 53,000 kilometers by 2040. Around 60% of this would be accomplished through the repurposing of existing natural gas pipes, while 40% would be accomplished through the construction of new pipelines.
Last year at this time, the EHB planned an 11,600-kilometer network by 2030, increasing to 39,700-kilometers by 2040. Since then, the EHB has grown to 31 TSOs in 28 countries, up from 23 in 21.
The EU’s Repower EU initiative proposes 20.6 million tons of renewable hydrogen per year by 2030, including 10 million tons of imports, to replace around 25 billion to 50 billion tons of Russian gas per year.
By 2030, EHB proposes five supply and import lanes. One would link Tunisia and Algeria to central Europe via Italy, utilizing existing pipelines in Italy, Austria, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. This could contribute to the decarbonisation of industry in southern Germany. A southwest channel would carry green hydrogen produced on the Iberian peninsula through France and into western Germany, eventually providing access to Moroccan imports.
A North Sea corridor would build on Dutch plans for 2027, connecting Rotterdam to the Belgian ports of Zeebrugge and Antwerp, Germany’s Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbuttel, and France’s Le Havre, all of which are projected to play a role in importing hydrogen and its derivatives.
According to EHB, a Nordic and Baltic corridor that taps offshore wind potential might sustain hydrogen exports to central Europe. However, because this would primarily consist of new pipelines, it would be highly reliant on funds and a swift approval and planning procedure, it stated.
Through repurposed gas pipes, a fifth corridor in eastern and southeast Europe may connect purchasers in central Europe to locations with high renewable energy potential, such as Romania, Greece, and Ukraine. However, there is ambiguity about the future evolution of natural gas flows in this region, which has an impact on the development of this corridor, according to EHB.
The EHB estimated that the cost of transporting hydrogen via onshore pipes will be roughly €0.11-0.21/kg per 1,000 kilometers, compared to €0.17-0.32/kg via subsea pipelines.
