Cross-border Hydrogen Valley around the Baltic Sea

Project Information

BalticSeaH2

Grant agreement ID: 101112047

DOI

10.3030/101112047

EC signature date 7 June 2023

Start date 1 June 2023

End date 31 May 2028

Funded under

• Climate, Energy and Mobility

Total cost

€ 32 360 447,14

EU contribution

€ 24 998 830,00

Coordinated by

CLIC INNOVATION OY
Finland

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - BalticSeaH2 (Cross-border Hydrogen Valley around the Baltic Sea)

Reporting period: 2023-06-01 to 2024-11-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

BalticSeaH2 builds the first significant, cross-border hydrogen valley in Europe. The goal is to create an integrated hydrogen economy around the Baltic Sea to enable self-sufficiency of energy and minimise carbon emissions from different industries. The project includes 40 partners from nine Baltic Sea area countries. Combining local areas into a broader valley supports creating a genuinely integrated, interregional hydrogen economy, which has not been done previously on this scale in Europe.

The area between Finland and Estonia is an optimal location for a cross-border hydrogen market. The necessary infrastructure – natural gas pipelines, electricity grids, and active marine traffic – already exist in the Gulf of Finland. The project will also support the reduction of the carbon emissions from existing marine traffic. In addition, Gasgrid Finland is already preparing hydrogen infrastructure: Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor, Baltic Sea Hydrogen Collector and Nordic Hydrogen Route enable strong growth for hydrogen economy and hydrogen markets in the Baltic Sea region.

BalticSeaH2 projects enables over 20 use cases and over 10 investment cases to showcase the different sectors of hydrogen economy, adding up to 3 billion euros in total investments. The production potential for hydrogen will reach 60 000 tonnes of hydrogen annually by the end of the project. The hydrogen and its derivatives can be utilised or sold by different industries brought together by the project.

BalticSeaH2 project has prerequisites to create a fast-growing clean hydrogen market to accelerate the development of hydrogen economy in the Baltic Sea region. Subsequently, this model will be extended to encompass neighbouring valleys, creating a highly advantageous hydrogen economy in northern Europe that exemplifies system integration. The key objectives involve demonstrating various applications of hydrogen in production, distribution, and storage across diverse sectors, facilitating sector coupling and system integration. The findings will be shared collaboratively with other valleys in order to foster widespread progress of clean hydrogen economy in Europe.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

Four renewable H2 production Use Cases will be established within BalticSeaH2 project. The investments are in different phases regarding their maturity and expected schedule for FID. (The first H2 production Use Case with a production capacity of 3,000 t/a is currently in commissioning. Second Use Case got FID for a plant that will produce H2 for refuelling with a capacity of 500 t/a. The third plant with expected FID in H1/2025 for hydrogen and e-methanol with a capacity of 5,500 t/a. The fourth plant is in front-end engineering phase and is expected to start operation in 2028 with a capacity of 36,000 t/a.)

A study on the feasibility of repurposing selected existing natural gas pipelines for hydrogen transmission in Finland has been conducted. TSO’s of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Germany’s Ontras have successfully completed a pre-feasibility study of the Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor (NBHC) transporting renewable hydrogen between the six countries. By 2040, the corridor is projected to transport up to 2.7 Mt of renewable hydrogen annually between the countries and 4 Mt by 2050.

Monitoring structure for different hydrogen Use Cases has been established. The Use Cases will report to the Valley Steering Group, which will monitor the overall progress. The Use Case experts will also participate in the Safety Expertise Group, the Main Valley Comms Team and the annual reporting to the Clean Hydrogen Joint Undertaking. In addition, a 'Performance evaluation handbook of the BalticSeaH2 Valley' has been developed

In total, the amount of additional external funding secured by the consortium for the development of the needed investments is 78 M€ during the 1st period. The total amount of secured financing for the projects in the area is 155 M€.

Green hydrogen production can contribute to net-zero cities in multiple ways. BalticSeaH2’s Strategic Weeks organised by WP2 can support cities in developing their net zero plans. The BalticSeaH2 project has so far carried out or planned activities with the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, Espoo, Tampere, Oulu and Tallinn in the Main Valley. Most of the activities will start during 2025.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

At the present moment, BalticSeaH2 is the largest interregional hydrogen valley in operation in Europe. It aims creating beyond state of the art solutions for linking the operators across the value chain of hydrogen economy. The individual partners of the project are utilising and developing state of the art technologies to overcome the possible feasibility and technology related issues in their field of expertise.

The potential impacts are the following:
1.Green Energy Transition: Accelerates the shift to sustainable energy by promoting the use of green hydrogen from renewable sources.
2.Economic Growth: Stimulates the economy and creates jobs through the development of a cross-border hydrogen value chain.
3.Energy Security: Enhances regional energy security by diversifying energy sources and reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
4.Cross-Border Collaboration: Fosters stronger ties between countries, encouraging collaborative research and development in hydrogen technologies.
5.Technological Innovation: Drives advancements in hydrogen production, storage, and transportation technologies.
6.Reduced Carbon Emissions: Contributes to carbon emission reduction in challenging sectors like heavy industry and transportation.
7.Infrastructure Development: Spurs the development of hydrogen infrastructure, improving overall regional connectivity.
8.International Leadership: Positions the region as a global leader in sustainable energy practices, attracting international collaboration and investments.

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