By intensifying their cooperation, Schleswig-Holstein Netz AG (SH Netz) and Gasunie are pursuing the goal of jointly developing a high-performance and interconnected transport infrastructure for hydrogen in Schleswig-Holstein. This is the result of an agreement signed by both companies in Hanover on 12 October 2023.
Schleswig-Holstein plays a key role in the ramp-up of the hydrogen economy: the federal state has a high potential for renewable energies (onshore and offshore). Companies in the industrial locations of the state have a great need for sustainable energy and thus a desire to be connected to the future hydrogen network. SH Netz and Gasunie would like to exploit the opportunity - which exists due to their supra-regional transport infrastructure for hydrogen - to connect the production and import of hydrogen with consumers and storage sites.
Key technology still in its infancy in Schleswig-Holstein
"Hydrogen technology is a key technology for the energy transition - so it is already important to lay the foundations for a hydrogen-capable grid infrastructure today. This is true even though the development of a hydrogen economy in our region is currently still in its infancy", says Dr. Benjamin Merkt, Director of Grid Technology at SH Netz.
"With Hyperlink, we are building the hydrogen highway between the Netherlands and Denmark in northern Germany", explains Britta van Boven, Managing Director of Gasunie Deutschland. "The pipeline section between Ellund and the Hamburg area is scheduled to go into operation as early as the end of 2028 - when green hydrogen from Denmark will reach Schleswig-Holstein for the first time. By connecting Hyperlink to an existing SH Netz pipeline that has already been converted to run hydrogen, we can integrate an important industrial location like Brunsbüttel into the hydrogen network."
SH Netz and Gasunie can already look back on many years of cooperation in the grid sector. As recently as 2022, both companies succeeded in connecting the LNG terminal in Brunsbüttel to the European gas interconnection network within a very short time.
