Construction of the hydrogen industry network HH-WIN in Moorburg and HGHH is underway after Robert Habeck, Germany's Minister for Economics, handed over funding decisions on IPCEI worth over EUR 250 million last August. "Now the 60-kilometre-long expansion of the hydrogen network can begin and will then be integrated into the nationwide 10,000 kilometre hydrogen network," said Dose. Then, industry all over Hamburg will benefit from standard hydrogen grid fees. The funding underlines the national importance of HH-WIN. "While grids are the foundation of the hydrogen economy, they are only one building block," said Dose, pointing out that a sufficient supply of green hydrogen must be competitively priced. A study by the North German Reallabor predicts an average demand of around 360 terawatt hours per annum by 2045 - the year in which Germany hopes to be climate neutral.
The course has been set for a hydrogen economy in Hamburg, but not been without setbacks. Airbus is postponing the development of its hydrogen aircraft, Arcelor Mittal is shelving plans to use hydrogen to produce green steel, and Quest One, a company specialising in the manufacture of electrolysis stacks, is cutting its workforce. Yet, the City of Hamburg continues to develop the infrastructure needed to drive the transition to a climate-friendly economy and industry. Enter Moorburg. Dismantling of the former coal-fired power station began on 24 November 2024 with the detonation of the 130-metre, 2,300-tonne twin chimneys. The blast cleared the way for the Hamburg Green Hydrogen Hub (HGHH) project to build a 100 MW green hydrogen electrolysis plant. If all goes according to plan, commercial hydrogen production could start in 2027 and increase to 800 MW in future. "The construction of the electrolysis plant is an 'Important Project of Common European Interest' (IPCEI) and will be funded accordingly," said Astrid Dose, Deputy Managing Director of the Erneuerbare Energien Hamburg Clusteragentur GmbH (EEHH). So can Hamburg build on its goal of becoming a centre of hydrogen?
Grids keys to hydrogen economy
"Unrivalled cluster bridge project"
Yet, setting up a a sustainable hydrogen economy requires patience, Dose stressed, and the the pooling of expertise. To this end, seven clusters across Hamburg joined forces in KLIMAready, which has received EUR 2 million in subsidies from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and is also funded by the City of Hamburg. "This is an unrivalled cluster bridge project. Climate is a truly unifying topic that naturally brings together different sectors of the economy," said a delighted Dose.
International trade fairs
Green topics took centre stage during trade fairs last autumn and met with keen international interest. Around 800 exhibitors welcomed 15,000 global delegates to the premiere of Hydrogen Technology Europe, which will next be held from October 21-23, 2025. Earlier, Wind Energy Hamburg attracted over 43,000 delegates from 100 countries and will next be held from September 22-25, 2026. The leading SMM maritime fair also focused on decarbonisation and digitalisation and attracted well over 48,000 delegates from some 100 countries. SMM will next be held from September 1-4, 2026. Conversely, EEHH 2025 will attend several international trade fairs such as Wind Europe in Copenhagen in April and the leading International Offshore Wind Partnering Forum (IPFI) in North America. Other firm fixtures include Munich’s The Smarter E Europe in May and Husum Wind in September. The various events and the annual German Renewables Award offer plenty of impetus to significantly advance the Cluster Strategy 2025, said Dose. "We hope to turn the Hamburg Metropolitan Region into a model of the networked energy transition in Germany."
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Sources and further information
Renewable Energy Hamburg (EEHH)
Founded in December 2010 by the City of Hamburg and the Association for the Promotion of the Renewable Energy Hamburg cluster, EEHH bundles the expertise of more than 280 renewable energy companies across the Hamburg Metropolitan Region. Emphasis is on wind and solar energy generation, sector coupling and the hydrogen economic sector as well as digitalisation to slash CO2 emissions.
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