Feasibility study to be launched for cross-border Belgium-France hydrogen transmission

• Follows from market call launched in June 2022
• 17 companies expressed interest in proposal
• Partnership between GRTgaz and Fluxys Belgium

LONDON (ICIS)–A feasibility study for cross-border hydrogen transmission between Belgium and France will be launched following the results of a market call earlier this year, Fluxys confirmed on 26 October.

GRTgaz and Fluxys Belgium launched a market call for developing the first open access, cross-border hydrogen transmission network between France and Belgium – 17 companies expressed an interest in connecting their production or consumption site to the proposed transmission network.

Production capacity ranged from 300-600MW and associated hydrogen consumption ranged from 1.5-3TWh/year. As a result, the two transmission system operators (TSOs) will now launch a feasibility study.

The feasibility study itself will be aimed at “designing the infrastructure and making an initial evaluation of its cost. The results of the feasibility study will be disclosed in the first quarter of 2023 to customers who have invested in this operation,” Fluxys said.

The hydrogen pipeline could potentially be located between Feluy in Belgium and Valenciennes in France, with infrastructure at Terter, Mons, and La Louviere.

“The respondents’ profile varies from owners of electrolysis production projects of different sizes to industrial consumers who see hydrogen as a lever to meet their decarbonisation targets. Beside industrial uses, some players in the ecosystem envisage using the network for mobility purposes, to supply future refuelling stations,” Fluxys said.

FRANCE, BELGIUM HYDROGEN STRATEGY

France’s National Hydrogen Strategy, released in September 2020, pledged to install 6.5GW of electrolysis capacity by 2030, and in October 2021, French President Emmanuel Macron vowed that the country aimed to become a leader in green (renewable) hydrogen production.

If the majority of hydrogen production in France is powered via nuclear then load hours for the electrolyser system jump massively compared with green, meaning total hydrogen production can be much higher. This is because renewable hydrogen is intermittent and reliant on weather output, whereas nuclear power offers consistency.

From a project perspective this means that a hydrogen producer could run their electrolysers almost year-round. Given 95% utilisation rate of the electrolyser, roughly 8,322 hours/year – compared with 4,000 hours/year as stated in the European Commission’s hydrogen strategy for renewable-sourced hydrogen – production from France’s electrolyser capacity could be around 39TWh/year by 2030.

Comparatively, if running on renewables, then generation would be lower, around 18TWh/year given 4,000 load hours.

Conversely, Belgium revised its National Hydrogen Strategy in mid-October with a larger emphasis on imports of hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives.

Belgium has increased its import targets of renewable hydrogen from 3-6TWh in 2030 and 100-165TWh in 2050 to cover its domestic demand, to 20TWh in 2030 and 200-350TWh in 2050 to cover “the transit activities to neighbouring countries” as well as its domestic demand.

The three main routes for hydrogen imports into Belgium are from the North Sea via pipeline, from North Africa and Iberia via pipeline, and from global markets (Middle East, Africa, Americas) via bulk shipping.