Green hydrogen initiative HY-5 presents innovative projects from the North to business leaders and politicians from Great Britain. 

Northern Germany is one of the drivers of a green hydrogen economy in Northern Europe. To leverage synergies in location marketing, the economic development agencies of the five northern German states of Bremen, Hamburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Lower Saxony, and Schleswig-Holstein have joined forces to form the HY-5 green hydrogen initiative. The goal is to establish northern Germany as Europe’s leading hydrogen region in the long term. Since its establishment in 2020, the initiative has already forged an extensive network with international partners. In Europe, the main focus is expanding cooperation with business, politics, and science in the United Kingdom. To mark this occasion, a high-ranking business delegation from the UK will be visiting the northern German states from September 18 through 23. Networking and discussions about possible partnerships and investment options are on the agenda, as is the presentation of lighthouse projects for green hydrogen.

A hydrogen economy of short distances
During the five-day trip, sponsored by Germany Trade and Invest (GTAI) the UK representatives will visit important projects along the entire hydrogen value chain. The first stop will be Bremen and Bremerhaven with stops at Airbus, dem Fraunhofer-Institute for Wind Energy Systems (IWES), the ttz Bremerhaven, the Bremerhaven University of Applied Sciences, and the bremenports GmbH & Co. KG. In addition, participants will have the opportunity to ride the Coradia iLint from Bremerhaven to Cuxhaven, the world’s first hydrogen train fleet to run in continuous line operation. The next day, Cuxhaven, Bremen, and Brunsbüttel are on the agenda. In Cuxhaven, not only a tour of the port is planned, but also a visit to Siemens Gamesa on the projects Wind Turbine Production Site Cuxhaven and Siemens Hydrogen Projects, in addition to a stop at Enginius/FAUN Umwelttechnik. The following day, the tour continues in Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, among others at the ChemcoastPark Brunsbüttel and at Voigt Logistik. At ChemcoastPark, four highlights will be presented at the same spot: the Hydrogen filling station by H2 MOBILITY, the green hydrogen production in the scope of the HySCALE100 project by Raffinerie Heide, the LNG respectively H2 terminal as well as fertilizer manufacturer Yara’s flagship project for green ammonia as a hydrogen carrier. After that, the delegation’s trip will include, among others, the Leibniz-Institute for Catalysis (LIKAT Rostock) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Large Structures in Production Engineering (IGP), followed by a production site visit at APEX Group. Last but not least the delegation will spend time in Hamburg at the ZAL Center of Applied Aeronautical Research. In addition to visiting these high-profile projects, a special focus will be on introducing further projects and initiatives, networking with local players from business and politics, as well as possible on cooperation and investment opportunities. 

Northern Germany: on its way to becoming Europe’s leading hydrogen region
A strong ecosystem of business and science, individual funding programs, and a strong political commitment to implementation are all driving the development of a green hydrogen economy in the north. The northern German states already belong to one of the world’s most important clusters for green hydrogen and benefit from numerous locational advantages (existing wind power for the generation of climate-friendly energy, available grid infrastructure, industrial customers, established port logistics for imports). In conjunction with the national and northern German hydrogen strategy, the HY-5 initiative aims to help establish the north as an important international value creation and innovation partner.

Quote: „The energy transition is a global task that must be implemented locally. The northern German states are already successfully harnessing synergy effects to jointly build a green hydrogen economy by 2035. We have the innovative strength and economic clout to achieve our goal. In doing so, we are relying on alliances with international partners to develop new business models for sustainably produced hydrogen and to cover all areas of the value chain. The result is future technologies that pave the way for the energy transition,” says Heike Tipmonta, representative of the HY-5 green hydrogen initiative.