Spain gives provisional go-ahead for Enagas to start developing H2Med hydrogen corridor

Enagás Infraestructuras de Hidrógeno, a unit of Spanish gas grid operator Enagas, has received preliminary approval from the government to start developing the Spanish section of H2Med, Europe’s first major green hydrogen corridor, and related hydrogen infrastructure.

On July 29, the Council of Ministers approved the agreement authorizing Enagas to provisionally exercise the functions of developing European Projects of Common Interest (EPCI) for hydrogen network.s

These functions include the application for authorization, construction, commissioning, operation, monitoring, and maintenance of the hydrogen networks recognized as European PCI – H2Med, the Spanish hydrogen network, and the two associated underground storage facilities.

The H2med project is a transnational effort to connect the hydrogen networks of the Iberian Peninsula to those of France, Germany and the whole of North-West Europe. Its goal is to enable Europe to be supplied with affordable, renewable hydrogen by 2030.

It consists of a hydrogen interconnection between Portugal and Spain (CelZa) and a subsea pipeline connecting Spain and France (BarMar).

The €2.5 billion project was launched in October 2022 by the President of the Government of Spain, the President of France, and the Prime Minister of Portugal. In October 2023, German transmission system operator OGE joined Enagás, GRTgaz, and Teréga on a quest to develop the H2Med.

Contracts for preliminary engineering and environmental impact studies were awarded in March 2024.

In June 2024, Enagás, GRTgaz, and Teréga, in coordination with OGE, signed a joint development agreement (JDA) for the development of the BarMar hydrogen infrastructure, a subsea pipeline connecting Spain (Barcelona) and France (Marseille).