Five large-scale pipeline corridors are envisioned by the European Hydrogen Backbone program in order to meet the REPowerEU plan’s accelerated 2030 demand and supply goals for hydrogen.
The corridors will initially connect domestic local supply and demand in Europe, before expanding and connecting European regions and neighboring nations with export potential for low-cost hydrogen.
The corridor study has discovered adequate hydrogen supply to surpass European domestic supply targets for 2030, hence contributing to European energy independence and supply security. 12 million tonnes (Mt) (about 400 terawatt-hours, TWh) of prospective EU hydrogen supply have been found by the EHB, exceeding the REPowerEU domestic target of 10 Mt of green hydrogen by 2030. In addition, import potentials for hydrogen have been identified.
These five corridors traverse all Central and Eastern European nations, allowing regional Gas Transmission System Operators (TSOs) such as Slovakia’s Eustream, the Czech Republic’s Net4Gas, Hungary’s FGSZ, Lithuania’s Amber Grid, Poland’s Gaz-System, etc. a significant role.
Corridor A (North Africa and Southern Europe) would deliver huge quantities of cost-competitive green hydrogen potential from Tunisia and Algeria through Italy to Central Europe by utilizing the existing gas infrastructure. The need to meet the demand for hydrogen from industry, transportation, and the power sector in Central Europe is a primary factor driving this growth. Repurposing a substantial portion of existing gas pipeline infrastructure in countries such as Slovakia and the Czech Republic is a significant potential presented by the corridor. This corridor’s hydrogen supply potential will reach 97 TWh in 2030 and 340 TWh in 2040, with a 6 percent decrease in emissions in 2030 and an 18 percent reduction in 2040.
The majority of nations have established or are in the process of establishing national strategy. The NECP of Slovenia has set a target of 10 percent renewable methane or hydrogen in the network by 2030. With a supply potential of 1.3 gigawatts (GW) electrolysers, Croatia anticipates a growing demand in industry, buildings, transportation, and power. Hungary anticipates an annual generation of 36,000 tons using about 240 MW of electrolyser capacity to decarbonize its industrial and transportation sectors. In addition, the Czech Republic prioritizes the transportation sector, followed by the energy and chemical industries. In addition, Slovakia plans to utilize hydrogen in the chemical, petrochemical, steel, and heating industries, as well as in transportation.
Corridor D (Nordic and Baltic areas) would convey green hydrogen supply potential from onshore and offshore wind in Baltic Sea-adjacent countries. Corridor D would be constructed around regional networks surrounding industrial clusters, serving numerous new green steel, e-fuel, fertiliser, and green chemicals projects in the Nordics as well as decarbonizing existing industry along the corridor route in the Nordics, Baltics, Poland, and Germany.
The use of hydrogen as part of the decarbonization of industry, transportation, and electricity in the Nordics, Baltics, Poland, and Germany is the primary impetus driving the development of this corridor. Initially, the growth of the corridor will be driven by new green steel and e-fuel projects as well as Sweden’s and Finland’s early national decarbonization goals. In the near future, the corridor provides access to an abundance of inexpensive onshore wind and grid-based hydrogen from the Nordics. Long-term, the corridor also enables access to offshore wind hydrogen supplies in the Nordics and Baltics. By 2030, the corridor would be operational, encompassing 13,500 kilometers of large-scale hydrogen pipelines across all corridor countries, of which about 45 percent will be repurposed pipelines.
Here, countries need to build their national strategies further. In fact, Estonia has simply expressed an ambition to develop a national hydrogen strategy, Latvia does not have one, and Lithuania is in the process of developing one. Poland is the only nation with a comprehensive plan for the power/heat sector, transportation, industry, production, network, and the establishment of a regulatory framework.
Corridor E (East and South-East Europe) would connect locations with strong supply potential, such as Romania, Greece, and Ukraine, utilizing large land availability and high capacity factors for solar and wind power.
The adoption of hydrogen associated with the decarbonisation of industry, transport, and power across Eastern and South-Eastern Europe is the driving force behind the development of this corridor, particularly new green steel projects and existing industry along the corridor through Greece, Romania, Hungary, Austria, and Germany.
Utilizing the rich renewables potential in Eastern Europe, with its large land availability and high capacity factors for solar and onshore wind, in relation to Ukraine’s high hydrogen export potential, is a big opportunity of the corridor. The possibility for hydrogen storage offered by depleted resources throughout the corridor in Greece, the Czech Republic, Austria, and Germany represents a further significant prospect.
Some nations have formed national strategies, while others are still in the process of doing so. The establishment of hydrogen regulation in all nations will be crucial to infrastructure investment in the future. In 2020, the Greek government established a committee to develop a national hydrogen strategy, and the final draft is anticipated to be completed in the second half of 2022. In addition, Romania expects to publish a strategy by the end of the year, whereas Bulgaria lacks a national hydrogen strategy and only considers hydrogen in the NECP.
To secure the development of these supply corridors by 2030, time is of the importance and immediate action is required. The EHB recommended the development of new and repurposed hydrogen infrastructure, the release of financing to expedite the deployment of hydrogen infrastructure, the simplification of planning and permitting procedures, the intensification of energy partnerships with exporting countries that are not members of the EHB, and the facilitation of integrated energy system planning.
