At The smarter E Europe trade fair in Munich this June, the full spectrum of the energy transition will be on display—including many hydrogen industry exhibitors. HZwei will be present at the Gentner Energy Media booth, featuring two live expert interviews.
Politicians have big plans, and to reduce harmful greenhouse gases, they’re putting billions into the expansion of production and pipeline networks for "green" hydrogen. One of the ambitious targets is to increase its share of total energy consumption in the EU to over 20 percent by 2050 if possible. In Germany alone, they want to invest around 19 billion euros in the planned H2 core network, which is to increase to over 9,000 kilometers across all German states by 2032. With these pipelines, hydrogen should then flow from the northern German ports to storage facilities or power plants. In the final expansion – around 60 percent of the network will be former natural gas pipes – the feed-in capacity is to be over 100 gigawatts, according to the German network agency (Bundesnetzagentur).
Processes for the production, storage and use of hydrogen scaling, reducing costs and increasing efficiency: The trade fair Hydrogen + Fuel Cells Europe in Hannover is again proving the progress the hydrogen economy can show.
The transport transition is a central component of the German climate protection strategy. As part of this, hydrogen is seen as a key energy source, especially for heavy-duty goods vehicles. But how can hydrogen refueling stations (HRSs) be supplied with hydrogen efficiently, sustainably and economically? A joint study by the National Organisation Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology (NOW GmbH) and the German Energy Agency (dena) examines four supply options via a future H₂ pipeline network. In the study, H₂ hubs that act as connecting elements between the emerging H₂ network and the HRSs are of particular importance.
In the electrolyzer sector, not only Enapter needed to bury its production plans in Saerbeck last year (see H2-international Jan. 2025). Quest One is also struggling and announced the dismissal of 120 employees in February 2025. Quest One had just, with a lot of pomp, opened the production hall in northern Hamburg last autumn (see H2-international Jan. 2025), but now has initiated a "program to strengthen the company's competitiveness" for the north.
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).
The current tense economic situation does not stop at the H2 industry. Home Power Solutions (HPS) now had to step into a series of insolvencies. The Berlin company is currently looking for investors who enable the Heliocentris successor to continue working or restructuring. Dr. Henrik Colell, the co...
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.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz took time for the opening of a new H2 gas station four days before the federal election. In Bremerhaven, together with representatives of HY.City.Bremerhaven as well as Bremen's mayor Andreas Bovenschulte and SPD member of the Bundestag Uwe Schmidt, Scholz cut the ribbon...
Together with Air Liquide, Limak Cement Group has successfully tested the first hydrogen-blended fuel supply for cement production in Ankara, Turkey. H2-international conducted an interview with Erkam Kocakerim, CEO of Limak Cement Global.
After more than 50 years of experience with hydrogen, Honeywell is also banking on green hydrogen with its company Energy and Sustainability Solutions (ESS). The US conglomerate takes the entire value chain into account: from more efficient PEM electrolysis all the way to transport infrastructure.
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.
The US is investing a lot of money in renewable energies and also in hydrogen. With the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the Biden administration has released large sums of money to promote sustainable technologies. Even if at least some of this is likely to be reversed under a new Trump administration, a number of states have embarked on this path and - like New Mexico - are focusing on hydrogen. HZwei spoke to Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham about this in Rotterdam in the summer of 2024.
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.
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.
A research environment along the H2 value chain is being created at the Research Airport in Braunschweig. Research is being conducted on green hydrogen production as well as the storage, transportation and use of hydrogen in heavy-duty mobility. Based on designs by Jahn Architektur, a unique H2 research landscape on a real laboratory scale has been created on the approximately 5,000-m2 (54,000-ft2) site, making it a demonstrator of a future energy center in the megawatt range.
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.
Big plans and professional marketing – HH2E’s appearance was downright impressive, but on November 8, 2024, the Hamburg-based start-up filed for insolvency on its own initiative. The reason for this was probably that the British majority shareholder Foresight Group did not want to finance the planned large-scale H2 project in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern after all.
In October 2024, the German Federal Network Agency approved the plans for the hydrogen core network. Hydrogen is expected to flow through some sections as early as 2025. Despite turbulent times, the network operators remain confident about the new infrastructure.
The German fuel cell manufacturer Proton Motor has announced the provisional end of its production activities at the end of 2024 if no new investor is found. Despite diligent efforts to save the Bavarian company, it announced in mid-September that the employees of the Puchheim branch would have...
Nordrhein-Westfalen is further expanding its capacities in the H2 research sector. In September 2024, the expanded HyTechLab4NRW in Duisburg went into operation. Since then, the site of the Center for Fuel Cell Technology has provided even better conditions for research into fuel cells and...
To strengthen its “role in the global hydrogen economy,” Enertrag, a developer and producer of renewable energies, opened its Hamburg office in fall 2024. At the new branch, Enertrag wants to contribute to the decarbonization of the logistics and shipping industry. And: “We want to supply not only...
There is extensive demand for hydrogen in both municipalities and industry. In this environment, plans for implementing these market requirements are now becoming more concrete. The recent decision to set up an H2 core network (see p. 18) is seen as the initial spark for this. In view of the supply situation, however, it is clear that the focus must increasingly be on the distribution network, which was also made clear at the DVGW Congress.
The great excitement surrounding hydrogen seems to be over for the time being: Most H2 shares have been on a downward trend for some time. This seems paradoxical, as climate change is accelerating and time is running out to slow it down. This makes a consistent energy transition all the more necessary, and that includes the hydrogen sector. However, energy policy is currently running with the handbrake on when it comes to renewable energies. Meanwhile, the companies that earn their money with fossil fuels are securing their sinecures.
The MAN subsidiary Quest One, formerly H-Tec Systems, celebrated the opening of its “Gigahub” in the north of Hamburg at the end of September 2024. It wants to produce flexible PEM electrolyzers with meter-high stacks on a large scale.
