• Franco-German collaboration looking to further hydrogen distribution

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    • Post Author

      Patrick Lavery

      Combustion Industry News Editor


German and French gas network operators ONTRAS Gastransport, GRTgaz and GRTgaz Deutschland have signed a memorandum of understanding to “enhance knowledge and research sharing in relation to the transportation and blending of hydrogen and natural gas” in their networks. As the ONTRAS Gastransport website states, the agreement is the most important one to date in Europe, and shows that the networks are taking seriously the deployment of hydrogen for a low-carbon future. Two projects are reported to be involved, the building of a batch of pilot membranes for separation of hydrogen from hydrogen/natural gas mixtures, and a test facility for what is known as the FenHYx platform, a method for testing network devices for their suitability for using hydrogen, as well as internal and external leakage tests. The work will build upon research and development work each organisation has been carrying out for years.