The contract was signed by EWE CEO Stefan Dohler for EWE Hydrogen and Tesa CEO Dr. Kourosh Bahrami yesterday in Hamburg. The supply is intended to cover the planned hydrogen demand of the Tesa plant in Hamburg from 2028. It is to replace fossil fuels in steam generation.
Hydrogen complements electrification in steam generation
The hydrogen intended for tesa will be produced in EWE's 320-megawatt electrolysis plant in Emden, which is scheduled to go into operation at the end of 2027. The plant is to meet the European requirements for hydrogen from renewable energies (RFNBO). From there, the hydrogen will be transported via the emerging hydrogen core network to Hamburg.
Tesa is simultaneously preparing to connect its plant to the Hamburg Hydrogen Industry Network HH-WIN. The connection is to be established by the end of 2027. Two H2-ready dual-fuel steam boilers will create the technical prerequisites for hydrogen use. According to tesa, the first of the two boilers is already installed and connected.
The plant in Hamburg is tesa's largest energy and emissions site. The first use of hydrogen in steam generation is planned from 2028. Tesa has committed to aligning its production to be climate-neutral by 2030. "Green hydrogen complements electrification, heat storage, and intelligent energy management where process heat cannot be fully electrified," says Bahrami. He also sees the contract as an important step for the long-term competitiveness of the site.
For these measures, tesa receives funding through a climate protection contract from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and local funding from IFB Hamburg.
Second supply contract for EWE
For EWE, it is the next industrial supply contract for green hydrogen after the agreement with Salzgitter AG in July (H2international reported). EWE CEO Stefan Dohler: "With tesa, another renowned industrial customer after Salzgitter has opted for green hydrogen from EWE. This shows: supply and demand can come together, even if the market is still in its infancy."
For EWE, the agreement with tesa is the first hydrogen supply contract where a climate protection contract from the federal government supports the use of green hydrogen on the customer side. The contract thus shows how government instruments could stimulate industrial demand, it is said.
EWE is active in several value-added stages for green hydrogen, from production to transport and storage to delivery to industrial customers. As part of the IPCEI major project "Clean Hydrogen Coastline," electrolysis, storage, and pipeline infrastructures are being developed in northwest Germany. The federal government and the state of Lower Saxony support the development of this hydrogen infrastructure with funding. This includes the 320-megawatt production plant in Emden, from which the hydrogen for tesa will originate. The supply contract itself is a private sector agreement.
EWE calls for political support in ramping up hydrogen
To turn individual projects into a viable market, further industrial partnerships and reliable framework conditions are needed, emphasizes EWE. This particularly refers to competitive electricity prices, practical production specifications, and sufficient renewable electricity.
"Now we need to move from individual projects to scaling. Green hydrogen must be able to be produced and used competitively in Germany and Europe. For this, companies need long-term security and practical rules so that hydrogen can simultaneously strengthen the resilience of our energy supply and Europe's energy sovereignty," says EWE CEO Dohler.
EWE also cites sufficient renewable electricity as a prerequisite for the ramp-up of green hydrogen—a criterion that seemed self-evident a few years ago. But with the latest draft of the Renewable Energy Sources Act, this prerequisite for green hydrogen is now in question, as our sister magazine Renewable Energies reports.
