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The Swiss company Infener wants to promote hydrogen throughout Europe. Decentralized H2 hubs will be used to generate green electricity as well as green heat. The Ecore One is a compact containerized solution that combines various energy technologies in one unit: electrolyzer, fuel cell and battery as well as compressor and a heat pump with its own energy management system or EMS. H2 production is due to start 2027 at a site in the Black Forest, Germany. However, the needs of regional industry are already far greater today.
With one of the largest hydrogen production facilities in Europe and the refueling center in Marl, the company not only supplies local companies, but also chemical sites throughout Nordrhein-Westfalen (NRW). As the H2EL hydrogen coordinator, we keep an eye on all projects in the region and their progress and create the necessary transparency regarding the market ramp-up through our regular monitoring. Our Hydrogen Roadmap 2024 is simultaneously a progress report, an inventory and an outlook on the development of the hydrogen economy in the Emscher-Lippe region.
Germany is at a crossroads: Is hydrogen the load-bearing pillar of our climate-neutral energy supply or does it remain a large, expensive promise? The political course of the coming months will decide whether we create a globally competitive hydrogen market – or whether Germany loses connection to international development. This was pondered with our members at the German hydrogen association Deutscher Wasserstoff-Verband (DWV). We therefore formulated and published recommendations before the election of the German parliament under the title "H2Five: Fünf vor 2030" (five before 2030).
Transport iron to use hydrogen: The new H2 storage technology of Ambartec AG conveys iron granulates and obtains the hydrogen on site through oxidation. In mid-February 2025, Ambartec, together with Purem by Eberspächer, signed a cooperation agreement (MOU) to prepare a serial production of this iron-nugget hydrogen storage and for its transport in standard 20-foot containers.
Fuel cell systems have much fewer components compared to other energy converters such as internal combustion engines, but even they need pumps and valves as well as the corresponding sensors. Thus, among other things, precise hydrogen dosing, safe hydrogen cut-off and precise water separation in the anode circuit of the fuel cell must be guaranteed.
In the summer of 2025, the first hydrogen vehicles will compete against vehicles with conventional drive systems at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Styria, Austria. To ensure that both fuel cells and combustion engines can be used there, Formula Student Austria, in cooperation with other race organizers, has published corresponding H2 regulations that will enable student teams to design, build and race hydrogen-powered racing cars in the future.
What developments! We are living in turbulent times. Several transformative processes are currently taking place at the same time: Not only the energy, transport and heating transition with the move away from fossil fuels or the social trend towards increasingly autocratic structures, but also the...
UFI Hydrogen may not yet be particularly well known to many industry participants in Germany, but the company, based in the Trento area of Italy, is part of the globally active UFI Group, which has 57 commercial offices and 22 plants worldwide (in Europe, Tunisia, China, India, Korea and Brazil, among others). Its products, mainly filters and components for thermal management, are in demand in many sectors. H2-international spoke to Marco Lazzaroni, CEO of UFI Hydrogen, the youngest company in the UFI Group, about the current economic situation in Europe, the potential of the H2 economy and, of course, the ambitions of UFI’s hydrogen business.
For hydrogen to be able to be used as an important part of the energy transition comprehensively in industry, mobility and energy supply in Germany, new lines must be built and existing natural gas pipelines must also be upgraded for hydrogen transport. This can be challenging, as hydrogen is explosive and attacks the materials of the pipes. Professional material testing creates the necessary security regarding this.
The hydrogen economy as a crucial technology for replacing fossil resources is subject to high expectations in terms of sustainability. Hardly any other growth area is the subject of such controversial discussions about how ‘green’ it really is. In the context of resources, the hydrogen economy however is about more than just ideological considerations. Electrolysers and fuel cells contain rare and valuable raw materials, such as the precious metals iridium and platinum. From economic and strategic perspectives, they must be recovered after the end of their life. Recycling is a must—and should be considered from the outset, not only when the end of life of the plants and vehicles is reached. But where does the circular economy stand today in the context of hydrogen? We provide an overview using the example of PEM technology.
The course to success of Siqens began with special methanol fuel cells. Then came the electrochemical hydrogen separation (EHS) in addition, based on the self-developed HT-PEM-FC stacks. With their help, hydrogen can be separated from natural gas or waste gases from industry and waste incineration with a high degree of purity. The manufacturer also sees EHS in combination with its own fuel cells as a solution to the last mile problem.
To facilitate and accelerate the recovery of hydrogen from ammonia, researchers from the institute for inorganic chemistry of the university Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (CAU) have developed, in its project AmmoRef (duration 04/2021-03/2025), a more active and cost-effective catalyst together with its cooperation partners. The results of this work are retained in the hydrogen lead project (Wasserstoff-Leitprojekt) TransHyDE of the Germany ministry for education and research (BMBF). AmmoRef is one of ten TransHyDE projects that are funded by the BMBF. In it, existing technologies for hydrogen transport are to be improved.
A new study by the consulting firm DNV investigates the H2 export potential from Sweden, Finland and the Baltic states as well as alternative transport routes to Germany and Central Europe. The study shows whether there is sufficient potential for the production of hydrogen for export in the Baltic Sea region, how economically this hydrogen can be produced and how the countries in the region can benefit from the development of an H2 network and the corresponding trade in hydrogen. For the large-scale export of hydrogen, pan-European pipeline systems can play a decisive role, which is why the study also contains a comparative analysis of possible pipeline routes.
Green hydrogen is considered one of the key ingredients for meeting global climate targets. And it is also a possible alternative to gas, which makes the need to accelerate the hydrogen economy in Germany and Europe all the more urgent. However, establishing a hydrogen economy requires more than just innovative technologies for its production, transmission and utilization. It demands digital solutions to raise efficiency, forecast hydrogen demand and supply, monitor transmission and storage and ensure the safe use of hydrogen in a variety of applications. Yet there has so far been little or insufficient sharing of the data needed to perform these tasks among potential market participants. The primary reasons for this are a lack of trust and a fear of competitive disadvantage. The HyTrust project, funded by the German education and research ministry, now intends to tackle these challenges by creating a data trustee model in the hydrogen economy.
The challenge in designing a fuel cell electric drive lies in the vehicle- and vehicle application-specific dimensioning of the drivetrain components. The essential parameters to be considered for an optimization are the fuel cell output, the dynamics of the fuel cell, the mass of hydrogen in the tank, the capacity and maximum charging power of the HV battery, the output of the drive machine in motor and generator mode and also the dynamic behavior of the converters.
At a container terminal in Hamburg, a test field for heavy-duty vehicles with hydrogen drives is being built. The first tractor unit is now in use.
Where East Germany’s famous Trabant cars were once made, H2 trucks will now exit cleanly from the production hall. This technological shift from two-stroke engines to fuel cell trucks won’t just benefit automotive service provider FES. Michael Kretschmer, minister president of the German state of Sachsen who witnessed the milestone on July 22, 2024, hopes the region as a whole will reap the rewards.
In its last legislative period, the EU with the Green Deal agreed on net-zero decarbonization by 2050 – as the first continent ever. This is a bold and necessary step. Hydrogen plays an important role here. The new EU Commission must not lose this momentum, because slowness and nit-picking could jeopardize the goals of the Green Deal. To counter this, it helps to take a look at the reports of the European Court of Auditors (ECA).
In the chemical park Leuna, there was an accident involving hydrogen on August 26, 2024. During a deflagration reaction, there was a loud bang followed by a fire in the morning on the premises of the gas producer Linde.
The EU has set itself overly ambitious targets in its hydrogen strategy for 2030. This was the conclusion made by the auditors of the ECA in a special report published July 2024. They are now calling for an adaption of the strategy and better controlling.
Like a dating site, the international hydrogen marketplace Localiser has been connecting the players in the hydrogen value chain for two years. Around 500 companies have been registered so far. The marketplace now also includes other European countries.
How to ramp up the production of green hydrogen in just a few years and distribute it quickly across the country independently of the development of the H2 core network explained Jens Cruse, shipbuilding engineer, at the end of January this year before an expert audience in Hamburg.
Germany’s greenhouse gas reduction quota (GHG quota) is a climate policy tool which is designed to cut the country’s transport emissions and encourage the use of renewable energy in the mobility sector. It implements the provisions of the European Union’s Renewable Energy Directive in German law and aims to meet the minimum renewables share required in the transport sector for 2030 and beyond.
When the European Hydrogen Bank’s first pilot auction (Innovation Fund Auction IF23) was announced on Sept. 5, 2023, it drew much attention. April 30, 2024, then saw the publication of the results for the pilot auction, for which the European Union was making EUR 800 million of support available. Seven projects from northern and southern Europe were successful in obtaining funding. The aim of the hydrogen auction is to accelerate the rollout of green hydrogen and send price signals by narrowing the cost gap between green and fossil-based hydrogen.
In the field of flow measurement, the use of hydrogen, especially regeneratively produced hydrogen, as a process gas and energy carrier has become a focal point in many applications. Due to the need to use storage capacity efficiently, hydrogen must be stored under high pressure or in liquid state. Metrologically verified quantity measurement is needed for the low to high pressure range of gaseous and liquefied hydrogen applications. In addition, appropriate traceability chains to the SI system need to be established for the wide range of operating conditions in order to make valid statements about the measurement accuracy and stability of the flow meters used. The EMPIR project 20IND11 MetHyInfra addresses these challenges by providing reliable data, metrological infrastructure, validated procedures and normative support.
