Saxony and the Czech Republic plan joint hydrogen network

Saxony and the Czech Republic are planning to build a cross-border hydrogen network. The Saxon Ministry of Economic Affairs announced on Thursday after signing a declaration of intent in Dresden that the two countries also want to promote exchange and cooperation between research institutions and companies in this field. In addition to Minister of Economic Affairs Martin Dulig (SPD) and Minister of Energy and Climate Protection Wolfram Günther (Greens), the Czech Minister of Industry and Trade Jozef Síkela also signed the letter of intent.

The rapid development of a pipeline infrastructure for the transportation of hydrogen is of great interest to Saxony and the Czech Republic, it said. Both countries primarily want to convert existing natural gas pipelines for this purpose. This should ensure the supply of large quantities of hydrogen from Eastern and Southern Europe at low cost by 2029 if possible. "Important European transport pipelines for gas already run through the Czech Republic today, which will also be used for hydrogen in the future."

"The development of an efficient green hydrogen infrastructure is not just a national task. In addition to the core network in Germany, we must also keep an eye on the European network from the outset," explained Günther. Green hydrogen is a pillar of the energy transition and a key location factor. Green hydrogen makes an important contribution to decarbonization and thus to achieving the climate and energy goals.

Dulig was also convinced that the energy and mobility transition will only succeed with green hydrogen. "Saxony's companies in the steel and chemical industries and very probably also in microelectronics will be early adopters of this climate-neutral energy source." Together with the Czech Republic and Poland, they are working on breaking away from one-sided dependencies in the energy supply and establishing a broader base. In order for the transformation of the economy to succeed, "hydrogen pipelines had better not end at the national borders".

Síkela pointed out that the Czech Republic and Saxony do not have sufficient resources of renewable raw materials for industry. This leads to the search for alternative solutions. "One suitable way to solve this is to import hydrogen from areas with a surplus of renewable energy sources."

In addition to Trade and Industry Minister Síkela, another guest from the Czech Republic was received in the Free State on Thursday. Regional Development Minister Thomas Schmidt (CDU) met with State Governor Martin Netolický, who is responsible for the Pardubice region. "Together, we are concerned with how we can position our regions - whether urban or rural - as regions of the future," said Schmidt. We can learn a lot from each other.