Study confirms ‘great potential’ for future Germany-UK subsea hydrogen pipeline

The UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) have presented the results of the joint feasibility study on the potential pipeline-based hydrogen trade between the UK and Germany.

The joint study authored by Arup, Adelphi, and the German Energy Agency (dena) is part of the UK-Germany Hydrogen Partnership initiated in 2023.

The study examines the political framework, the requirements for future pipeline infrastructure, and the regulatory, technical, and commercial measures to implement and operate a hydrogen pipeline between the two countries.

As explained, the outcomes of this study confirm the “great potential” for a future Germany-UK hydrogen pipeline through the North Sea.

The specific outputs included: determining the high-level infrastructure requirements; identifying the regulatory, business model and commercial requirements to enable a market to trade hydrogen between the UK and Germany; developing a roadmap outlining the next steps to realise hydrogen trade including associated delivery enabler decisions; and providing a list of proposed actions for the respective governments.

The scope of this study covered the infrastructure assessment, which looked at the following four route options:

• Connection to Germany offshore (base case): a subsea pipeline from a UK east coast landfall to an offshore tie-in point on the AquaDuctus offshore pipeline system.
• Connection to Germany onshore: a direct subsea pipeline from a UK east coast landfall to a German coast landfall.
• Connection to the Netherlands onshore: a direct subsea pipeline from a UK east coast landfall to a Netherlands coast landfall.
• Connection to Belgium onshore: a direct subsea pipeline from a UK east coast landfall to a Belgian coast landfall.

Commenting on the results of the joint study, State Secretary at BMWK, Philipp Nimmermann, said: “Germany and the United Kingdom significantly intensified their bilateral cooperation in the field of energy and climate protection in 2023, and both countries recognize hydrogen as a key building block for a climate-neutral energy supply.

“The feasibility study lays the foundation for the development of cross-border hydrogen trade as a key element for the decarbonization of energy-intensive sectors.”

To remind, the UK and Germany signed a Joint Declaration of Intent to collaborate on the development of an international hydrogen industry in September 2023.