The race to build the biggest multi-megawatt power-to-gas plant has begun: On February 11, in Berlin, TenneT and two transmission system operators, namely Amprion and Open Grid Europe, or OGE for short, announced their joint plans to construct a 100-megawatt electrolysis system. As part of Hybridge, they intend to put up a hydrogen production system and adapt an OGE pipeline near Lingen, in Germany’s Emsland region, to transport the gas. The project is expected to cost EUR 150 million.
The government has yet to approve the venture. Klaus Kleinekorte, Amprion’s chief technology officer, said the goal was to “create an environment that will make multi-gigawatt power-to-gas systems available post-2030 to meet demand across several sectors.” Thomas Hüwener, a member of OGE’s board of directors, added that the companies aimed to “bring large-scale installations successfully to market. We already have what we need: the technical specifications, a suitable site and opportunities for hydrogen use. We’re ready.”
Both businesses would like to start right away. However, they were still waiting for “the government to give the go-ahead,” said Hüwener. Kleinekorte explained they needed “a regulatory framework to carry out the project. This is where politics comes in. If the government helps set the proper course, the system could be operational as early as 2023.” This means as soon as it is announced that Hybridge is getting underway, stakeholders in the energy industry can take it as a sign that public officials and network operators have come to an agreement on the market conditions that will keep risks manageable.
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