Gasunie and Petrogas are Assessing North Sea Pipelines for Green Hydrogen

Gasunie and Petrogas Transportation B.V. are investigating the potential reuse of the Petrogas pipeline under the North Sea for transporting green hydrogen. This research is part of the Demo 1 offshore hydrogen project, initiated by the Ministry of Climate Policy and Green Growth, which involves building a 20 to 50 MW electrolysis plant in the North Sea to produce green hydrogen and bring it to shore at the North Sea Canal Area.

The Netherlands has ambitious goals to scale up offshore wind energy, which is essential for making the country's energy supply more sustainable and affordable. Offshore wind energy will help reduce dependence on foreign energy and enhance the Netherlands' competitive edge. To fully harness this potential, an offshore hydrogen network is needed to transport the energy generated by wind turbines. Hydrogen is converted from wind energy on-site and brought to shore via offshore pipelines, reducing the need for on-land infrastructure like cables and electrolysers. This method is more cost-efficient and allows for importing hydrogen from other North Sea nations.

Gasunie has been preparing for its role in developing a hydrogen network in the North Sea, connecting to the national hydrogen grid. The company is exploring how existing gas infrastructure can be repurposed for this purpose. Gasunie is working with the Dutch Ministry of Climate and Green Growth and other partners to assess technical feasibility, economic viability, legal frameworks, and environmental impacts.

Petrogas is also exploring options to repurpose its infrastructure for green hydrogen transport. While Gasunie has extensive experience in the safe transmission of hydrogen through pipelines on land, the reuse of offshore pipelines is a newer concept requiring further research. Gasunie is involved in international research projects focused on developing safety standards for offshore hydrogen transport. The collaboration with Petrogas will assess whether the Petrogas pipeline can be safely repurposed to transport hydrogen according to these standards.

For further developments, Germany, which shares similar renewable energy goals, could also benefit from such cross-border hydrogen infrastructure as part of the broader European energy transition.