Capturing hydrogen opportunities through cooperation in North Europe
Energy Valley has together with the Northern European Alliance for Sustainability mapped how to speed up hydrogen strategies across Europe and development actions.
Recently they applied for Horizon funding for the hydrogen project BalticSeaH2. If funded the project will establish the first, large-scale interregional hydrogen valley in Europe, and develop an international hydrogen economy and markets that work optimally both from the technical, economic, and environmental perspectives across country borders in Northern Europe, more specifically around the Baltic Sea.
Helene Urth, Head of Internationalisation & Partnerships, Energy Cluster Denmark
North Europe has huge potential
Renewable hydrogen is expected to play a key role in the clean energy transition for solving the climate challenge. The estimated potential for production in Northern Europe is significant enough to establish carbon-neutral societies in Northern Europe and beyond.
The Northern European Alliance for Sustainability consists of members from seven Northern European countries, i.e., Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Scotland/UK and Sweden.
Joining forces
The collaboration alliance was initiated by CLIC innovation, an open innovation cluster with the mission of facilitating the creation of breakthrough solutions in bioeconomy, circular economy, and energy systems.
“We want to join our forces to boost the sustainable transition and get access to European and Nordic funding for common projects within the energy transition, the circular economy and the bioeconomy.”, says Jatta Jussila, CEO of CLIC Innovation.
“This project gives us access to the European market, as well as the possibility of connecting our members with each other and across borders. Each country has specific strongholds, areas, and levels of expertise, and being able to map this together, with this initiative, will help us collaborate better. We understand how each country and our companies and SMEs can contribute” says Helene Urth from Energy Cluster Denmark.
Speeding up the hydrogen potential
The full utilization of the clean hydrogen potential introduces an opportunity to reduce imported carbon through coordinated use of local resources and by implementing sector integration possibilities.
Jatta Jussila, CEO CLIC Innovation. Photo: Private.
The position paper produced by the alliance, The Northern European Hydrogen Opportunity – to capture the opportunity through cooperation, calls for fast implementation of the hydrogen strategies across Europe and suggests concrete actions to speed up the process.
Finding strengths and opportunities
Reaching the full potential of the hydrogen economy requires tight cooperation in Northern Europe. The paper highlights the industrial strengths and opportunities in each of the seven countries and calls for action in building tight cooperation in Northern Europe.
“Our countries have different specialties, but also similarities. If we can bring these topics on the European agenda, also through R&D activities, we can contribute to bringing energy security to Europe” says Jatta Jussila, CEO of CLIC Innovation.
The jointly developed project proposal BalticSeaH2 includes investment and demonstration projects, involves innovation capacities across borders for all parts of the hydrogen value network, develops system optimization and advanced sector coupling, as well as suggests actions for shaping the common operational environment to enable implementation of a full hydrogen economy in the future.