Germany’s hydrogen plans take a second hit: Danish state-owned Energinet will postpone the planned operational start date for its hydrogen pipeline connecting to Germany from 2028 to 2031, dealing the country another significant setback as major suppliers alter course, Bloomberg reported on Saturday. The news comes on the heels of Norway's Equinor scrapping plans for a pipeline to Germany and Denmark, delaying a similar project until 2032. The delays complicate Germany's goal of meeting up to 70% of its hydrogen demand through imports by the end of the decade.

This comes as no surprise: Equinor attributed the delays and setbacks to higher-than-expected costs and a lack of customers, while Denmark's transmission system operator Energinet attributed to increased project complexity and the need for more time by hydrogen developers. However, the Danish provider remained more positive about future demand for hydrogen fuel than Equinor. “There will be great demand for green hydrogen transported through the Danish-German hydrogen infrastructure,” the Danish Climate, Energy, and Utilities Minister Lars Aagaard said.

The consequences: German utilities like Uniper and EON have expressed concerns about the viability of the hydrogen market, Bloomberg reported. Uniper said it would postpone EUR 8 bn investments into green hydrogen and other emissions-friendly technologies beyond 2030 due to a lack of demand. Meanwhile, Norway is exploring converting natural gas into blue hydrogen in the Netherlands and feeding it into Germany's network.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

  • UK to experiment with new incentives for energy storage businesses: Long-duration renewable energy storage developers in the UK will now be eligible for guaranteed minimum income “cap and floor” contracts in return for a limit placed on revenues. The experimental scheme is part of efforts to boost investment in the technologies that can help the country achieve its target to decarbonize the energy sector by 2030. (Reuters)
  • EU to amend ESG naming rules: The European Securities and Markets Authority is considering making changes to its soon-to-be-imposed rules on ESGlabelss — to be effective on 21 November — that target greenwashing. The potential revision comes on the back of complaints from investors worried that the rules would block polluters from accessing the financing they need to decarbonize. (Reuters)
  • Greece sets more ambitious climate plan: Greece on Friday revised its energy and climate plan with more ambitious solar and wind power 2030 targets, raising the renewables share in electricity from 66% to 82%. The modified plan would require EUR 95 bn euros (c. USD 103.97 bnn) more funding to achieve its goals by 2030. (Reuters)
Tags: