Hydrogen power plant in Leipzig in operation

In Leipzig, one of the most important milestones for a sustainable heat supply of the largest city in eastern Germany was laid on Monday. According to Leipzig's municipal utility, Germany's first certified hydrogen power plant went into operation. "The Leipzig-Süd combined heat and power plant is a real showcase project for the energy turnaround," said Saxony's energy and climate protection minister Wolfram Günther at the start of the combined heat and power plant.

The Green politician stressed that local authorities are a very decisive driver in advancing the energy turnaround and climate neutrality. "And those who have already set out on the path toward climate neutrality are more crisis-proof today than those who still have the step ahead of them."

Hydrogen is one of the energy sources of the future, said Klaus-Dieter Barbknecht, a presidium member of the World Energy Council. "It will be crucial to lower the production costs for green hydrogen via electrolysis with renewables. In the start-up phase, therefore, start-up financing makes sense for production."

According to the municipal utility, however, it will take until 2025 before electricity and heat supply with green hydrogen and synthetic fuels can be purchased on the market in the required quantities and at affordable prices. Until then, the company said, it would rely on a natural gas-based cogeneration plant as a bridge technology.