German energy company Eon has warned that the country may fall behind on its domestic hydrogen production and import targets for 2030 based on the current project pipeline.

Germany’s electrolytic generation capacity will only reach 5.6GW by 2030, or just over half of the government’s target of at least 10GW, according to Eon’s analysis of a study conducted by the Energy Economics Institute at the University of Cologne.

And assuming demand reaches 66TWh by 2030, the import gap is currently at 50.5TWh—equivalent to Germany’s natural gas consumption in September 2022.

While more projects are likely to be announced in the coming years, the ongoing lack of a clear definition of green hydrogen within the EU has left developers cautious to invest in new projects.

5.6GW – Projected green hydrogen capacity by 2030

Eon also takes aim at the European Commission’s proposal for unbundling, or separating out ownership of energy generation and supply from transmission networks, as a roadblock to the development of hydrogen pipelines. It notes that Germany currently only has 417km of hydrogen networks, or less than 0.1pc of the country’s gas grid.

“The…proposal for unbundling would not allow natural gas and hydrogen networks to be managed within one company in the long term. This would mean that gas network operators would lack the incentive to convert their networks,” says the company.

Eon also calls for substantial acceleration of approval processes and the extension of the legal classification ‘of overriding public interest’ planned for wind and solar to also cover hydrogen projects. While hydrogen pipelines are already included in current legislation, a cut-off date is planned for 2025, well-before major investment is expected, according to Eon’s analysis.

“Only if this time limit is lifted will there be long-term planning security,” it says.

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Author: Polly Martin