North Sea Port to get hydrogen pipeline network

Fluxys, ArcelorMittal, North Sea Port, and Belgian energy minister join forces on hydrogen, CO2, and ecosystem infrastructure at the Belgian part of North Sea Port.

The pipelines for hydrogen, CO2, and heat planned by the Belgian energy minister, port authority, gas infrastructure company and industry player, represent a step towards the energy transition and carbon neutrality in the port and in the region.

Via these pipelines, companies that deal with hydrogen, CO2, and heat will be able to connect with companies that use these as raw materials in their production processes. This way, supply is matched with demand, which is said to be a crucial step in the development of a Belgian hydrogen hub.

This pipeline infrastructure in the port will be connected to Fluxys’ national grid.

It will also be connected to the pipeline network in the Netherlands.

This will help ArcelorMittal Belgium to reduce CO2 emissions during the production of (green) steel, which it in turn supplies as a raw material for other companies.

The hydrogen and CO2 infrastructure will also be needed to enable the reuse of CO2, such as in projects like North-C-Methanol where an industrial consortium including ENGIE will combine green hydrogen with CO2 for the production of green methanol.

The cross-border nature of hydrogen infrastructure is important when it comes to linking up wind farms in Zeeland, whereby wind energy is used to produce hydrogen.

North Sea Port CEO Daan Schalck: “Thanks to its unique location, North Sea Port is ideal for connecting CO2, hydrogen, heat and high-voltage infrastructure across borders. This new infrastructure is an extra asset for encouraging additional sustainable, circular industry to set up operations in the port zone.”

Federal energy minister Tinne Van der Straeten said: “Belgium has a lot of heavy industry, which accounts for nearly 30 per cent of total CO2 emissions, and it is precisely that sector that is best suited for switching to hydrogen in order to, among other things, produce carbon-free or green steel. Green hydrogen is playing a crucial role on the path towards a carbon-neutral economy.”

Fluxys Belgium CEO Pascal De Buck. added: “Our collaboration with North Sea Port and ArcelorMittal Belgium is an important step forward, neatly dovetailing with our market consultation to find out which hydrogen and CO2 projects they currently have in progress, what their needs are and how we can respond to them. The market’s response to our consultation has been especially broad and positive. With this information, we will go back to the market in order to build bridges between demand and production. In this way we lay the foundation for the transport of the molecules for a carbon neutral future.”