Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor
The Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor is a hydrogen transmission infrastructure project that would enable the transport of hydrogen via a pipeline in Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Germany.
Parties to the project are six gas system operators: Gasgrid, (Finland), Elering (Estonia), Conexus Baltic Grid (Latvia), Amber Grid (Lithuania), Gaz System (Poland), and ONTRAS (Germany).
The Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor will enable the connection of hydrogen production, consumption and storage points in the Baltic Sea region, establishing a common regional hydrogen system and market.
Why is the hydrogen corridor neededori vaja on
In Estonia, the establishment of hydrogen infrastructure will contribute to meeting climate and energy policy goals and create the prerequisites for establishing new clean industries, contributing to Estonia’s economic development.
The existence of hydrogen infrastructure enables the establishment of additional renewable electricity generating capacities, providing electricity producers with an alternative market to sell their energy when renewable energy generation is high, and converting water into hydrogen using electricity. Hydrogen infrastructure combined with underground hydrogen storage creates the opportunity to store renewable energy in the long term for periods when renewable electricity generation is low and it is necessary to re-generate electricity from hydrogen in the short term, contributing to the security of supply of the power system. Additional connections with neighbouring countries will increase energy security and allow Estonia and Europe more broadly to reduce dependence on energy imports from third countries. The use of hydrogen or its derivatives in industry, shipping or aviation helps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in sectors where full electrification is not technically feasible or is prohibitively expensive.
At the European level, the project will help to implement the European Union’s hydrogen strategy and the RePowerEU plan to reduce dependence on imported Russian energy, supporting, among other things, the achievement of Europe’s climate goals and the creation of a new sustainable economy.
Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor
Project stages
Gas system operators conducted a preliminary analysis of the feasibility of hydrogen infrastructure 9 September 2024.
The gas system operators of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Germany successfully completed the pre-feasibility study for the Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor. The study, launched in January this year, defines the basic conditions for the implementation of a hydrogen corridor, which aims to transport hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources between the six countries. The location of the route in Estonia will be determined in the future as part of the designated national spatial plan process.
The study presents a comprehensive plan covering the technical, legal, organisational and economic aspects necessary for the deployment of the hydrogen corridor. The proposed corridor will play an important role in achieving the European Union’s goals for the reduction of carbon emission in the future, with hydrogen produced and subsequently supplied within the EU.
The pre-feasibility study identified significant renewable hydrogen potential in the Baltic Sea region, with a capacity of approximately 27.1 million tonnes (Mt) of hydrogen produced from renewable sources (onshore and offshore combined) per year by 2040. This means a large hydrogen transmission potential between the Nordic countries and Continental Europe, enabling which is the main goal of the Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor.
It is estimated that by 2040, up to 2.7 million tonnes of hydrogen produced from renewable sources will be transported between countries annually. The diameter of the proposed hydrogen corridor pipeline is 1,200 mm and the length is approximately 2,500 km.
Based on the results of the pre-feasibility study, the gas system operators next plan to start a feasibility study, which will include a detailed technical analysis of the project and a commercial and economic assessment.
The Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor is included in the list of European projects of common interest
In April 2024, the European Commission confirmed that the Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor had been included in the list of projects of common interest as part of the Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan (BEMIP Hydrogen).
The status of a project of common interest brings several advantages, including the right to apply for EU project funding and accelerated permit procedures.
European projects of common interest announced on 28 November 2023