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Germany to join Mediterranean hydrogen pipeline project

January 22, 2023

The hydrogen pipeline will bring "green" gas from the Iberian Peninsula to the rest of Europe. France, Portugal, and Spain previously agreed to build the pipeline, which should be operational by 2030.

https://p.dw.com/p/4MYzX
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron leave after a joint press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris
Scholz and Macron said they are committed to investing in renewable and low carbon energiesImage: Benoit Tessier/AP/picture alliance

Germany will join a new hydrogen pipeline project between Spain, Portugal and France, according to the Franco-German declaration on Sunday's 60th anniversary of the Elysee Treaty.

The project, called H2Med, will connect Portugal and Spain with France and now Germany to supply about 10% of the European Union's hydrogen demand by 2030.

The pipeline under the Mediterranean Sea will carry green hydrogen, made from water via electrolysis using renewable energy.

The Spanish government estimates H2Med will be able to supply some two million metric tons of hydrogen annually.

It comes as Europe scrambles to reduce dependence on Russian energy and shift from fossil fuels to cleaner energy.

Is bureaucracy stalling the energy transition?

Germany and France committed to developing hydrogen production

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron said they were "stepping up our investments in the technologies of tomorrow, particularly renewable and low carbon energies."

A joint working group between the two countries will make "recommendations on our strategic choices regarding hydrogen development," at the end of April 2023.

Macron said after hosting Scholz in Paris, "We started to talk about a strategy for what we want to do on an energy point of view."

Scholz noted, "We want hydrogen to be available in large quantities and at affordable prices as the gas of the future."

Scholz added, "This is a technological advance that we can only achieve together. And we have also agreed closely that we want to achieve this together."

Spain welcomes Germany's inclusion

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez welcomed the news by posting a message on Twitter saying it "definitely strengthens its pan-European dimension."

He added it showed support for European energy sovereignty, adding a muscle emoji to his message.

When Madrid, Paris and Lisbon agreed in December to build the pipeline, it was expected to cost €2.5 billion ($2.6 billion). However, it wasn't immediately clear how much Germany's inclusion would add to the costs.

lo/ar (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)