More than 15.5 gigawatts of renewable hydrogen projects are now in development in Spain, more than doubling the 4 GW objective set in the government-approved “roadmap” for this energy source for 2030.
There are about 80 projects underway across the nation, although most of them are concentrated along the southern, Cantabrian, and Mediterranean coasts because they are more industrialized and have more opportunities to implement this technology.
With a total of 27, and 29 respectively, the majority of these are focused on transportation (land and sea).
Although it is likely that many of these projects won’t be consolidated, this “mega-portfolio” of plans for the installation of electrolyzers with an installed capacity of more than 15 GW shows the enthusiasm that green hydrogen has sparked in Spain.
By the conclusion of this decade, sources from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge said that this appetite provided “a clear picture that the aim of 4 GW will be reached and exceeded.”
They also noted that the renewable hydrogen objective by 2030 will undoubtedly be revised upward in the revision of the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC) that the Government is working on for next year.
The promotion of renewable hydrogen has been proclaimed a national strategy by the government. In reality, the roadmap for 2030 calls for the installation of 4 GW of electrolyzer capacity, the requirement that at least 25% of the hydrogen consumed by industry comes from renewable sources, and the use of hydro generators, trains, and other large transport vehicles.
In terms of wind energy, Spain is ranked fifth in the world, and eighth in terms of renewable generation, and 20% of all green hydrogen projects worldwide are in Spain, placing it second only to the United States.
The current competition among all the major energy corporations in the nation to create projects is an illustration of the interest in “green” hydrogen now present.
Without further ado, this week Cepsa launched its ambitions to invest 3,000 million euros in Andalusia to develop the largest green hydrogen project in Europe.
Two additional plants with a combined capacity of 2 GW and a production capacity of up to 300,000 tons of green hydrogen will be installed in the energy parks of Campo de Gibraltar (Cádiz) and Palos de la Frontera as part of the Andalusian Valley of Green Hydrogen (Huelva). The project will also be accompanied by an extra investment of €2,000,000,000 to establish a portfolio of 3 GW of wind and solar energy projects for the production of renewable electricity.
The Shyne project, which Repsol is leading and for which it intends to invest more than 2,200 million euros, aims to install 500 MW in 2025 and 2 GW in 2030.
Additionally, the Basque Hydrogen Corridor (BH2C), the Hydrogen Valley of Catalonia, and the Hydrogen Valley of the Region of Murcia are just a few of the important regional activities around hydrogen that this project hopes to connect. Along with Repsol, other businesses take part in Shyne, including Enagás, Navantia, Sidenor, and Tubacex.
For its part, Iberdrola and Fertiberia presented a broad initiative that includes the creation of 800 MW of green hydrogen with a total expenditure of 1,800 MW until 2027.
A hydro generator that will be utilized by the buses of Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB), as well as other fleets and industries inside the Zona Franca polygon, has also been given to the electrical company for construction and operation for 10 years.
Due to the project that encourages up to 100 MW of electrolyzer that will be supplied with the wind projects in the area that already have the right to connect, Endesa will also create green hydrogen generation facilities in As Pontes (Galicia).
Similarly, Naturgy and Exolum have a partnership dubbed “Win4H2” to build a network of 50 hydrogen stations across the nation.
However, Spain’s appetite for green hydrogen does not just appeal to domestic businesses; it also draws foreign investors. In fact, just a month ago, the Danish shipping corporation Maersk declared its intention to build a sizable hub in Spain for the manufacture of green methanol and ammonia from hydrogen for use as fuels in the marine industry. The hub could require an investment of up to 10,000 million euros.
There is also the BarMar project to construct the Iberian hydrogen corridor, which includes a sizable tube between Barcelona and Marseille. More information on this project will be revealed at the summit this week in Alicante, and once it is operational, it could enable the export of 20% of the estimated production of the entire European Union in 2030.
A 250 million euro aid to promote green hydrogen in Spain was also conditionally authorized by the government last week. This help will support 29 projects throughout nine autonomous communities, channeling a total investment of about 900 million euros.
These 29 projects were chosen out of a total of 487 MW, or 12% of Spain’s 2030 goal to promote green hydrogen. The major energy companies in the nation, including Repsol, Iberdrola, Cepsa, Endesa, EDP, and Enagás, are among the successful bids.
