EnBW intends to invest around €1bn in establishing and expanding a national hydrogen core network (HCN) in Germany, which is expected to be completed by 2032.

As part of a joint application by the German transmission system operators, the EnBW subsidiaries of terranets bw and VNG/ONTRAS Gastransport submitted concrete commitments for pipeline projects to the Federal Network Agency. These are currently awaiting approval. The connection to the core network will supply hydrogen to major industrial centres, power plants and generation facilities in the future, while transnational corridors for hydrogen imports will also be opened.

The 9,700km HCN was approved by the European Commission  in June 2024, giving the go ahead to Germany’s plans to spend €3bn ($3.2bn) on supporting its construction. 60% of the network will be converted natural gas pipelines and the remaining 3,880km is set to be new dedicated hydrogen pipelines.

Through EnBW’s terranets bw subsidiary, the south German natural gas pipeline (SEL) currently under construction will be integrated into the HCN, supplying customers in Baden-Württemberg with natural gas and later with hydrogen. The company may also explore potential transport pipeline projects to Upper Swabia and Lake Constance, along with a cross-border connection to the French Breisgau region.

ONTRAS plans to build hydrogen transport pipelines in central Germany, connecting the Leipzig region with the industrial centres in Saxony-Anhalt and Lower Saxony, the Berlin region and the Meissen industrial arc. In addition, ONTRAS could explore a connection between Berlin via Eisenhüttenstadt to Poland.

“EnBW welcomes and supports this groundbreaking project,” claimed Dirk Güsewell, EnBW’s Board Member for System Critical Infrastructure. “This marks the beginning of another important chapter in the energy transition, in which our company will invest a total of around €40bn by 2030.”