German govt co-funds conversion of natural gas cavern into hydrogen storage
MDR / Clean Energy Wire
The German government is co-funding a hydrogen storage project in the Saale region, with economy minister Robert Habeck having handed over the funding notice of 61 million euros on 27 August, reported public broadcaster MDR. The money will go to gas trader VNG who are expected to convert an existing natural gas cavern into a hydrogen storage facility. Habeck said he expects Germany could produce a third to half of its hydrogen needs domestically. “That’s a lot,” the minister said, arguing this could cut fossil energy imports from 70 to 30 percent. “This isn’t just about protecting the climate and it’s not just about securing an energy supply that avoids carbon dioxide, it’s also about creating value in the region,” said Habeck.
VNG board member Bodo Rodestock welcomed the funding, saying that it had made the company confident to go ahead with construction of the facility. Bernd Protze, managing director of VNG Gasspeicher GmbH added that “with a capacity of 46 million cubic metres (Nm³) of hydrogen, it would be the first cavern of this size in Germany.”
In July, Germany’s gas transmission operators submitted a joint application for a planned hydrogen core network. The network will connect focal points in hydrogen production, consumption and storage and will be completed by 2032. Germany has also adopted an import strategy for green hydrogen, with the economy ministry (BMWK) expecting around 50 to 70 percent of demand for the gas to be met by imports by 2030. Hydrogen made from renewable electricity is seen as crucial to decarbonise certain industry processes and for large-scale renewable power storage, thus helping to make the economy climate-neutral.
