PCI 9.1.3 – Spanish Hydrogen Backbone Studies

ongoing

PCI 9.1.3 aims at the development of the Spanish Hydrogen Backbone, a crucial infrastructure project that will transport renewable hydrogen, facilitating its uptake by industrial clusters in Spain, and enabling interconnections with other neighbouring EU countries. The Spanish Hydrogen Backbone will enhance energy security, support the EU’s climate goals and strengthen connections between Spain, Portugal, and France, further advancing the EU’s energy independence and system integration. Embedded in the wider Western Europe HI West PCI Corridor, the Spanish Backbone PCI project aims to deliver 10% of the hydrogen necessary for the achievement of the REPowerEU objective of producing 10 million tons of hydrogen per year in Europe by 2030. The Spanish Hydrogen Backbone project is also a key enabler for the success of the H2Med-BarMar project (PCI 9.1.4 Hydrogen interconnector Spain – France), as the Spanish Backbone is expected to provide an annual export capacity of up to 2 Mt H2 by 2030, available to be delivered to other European off-takers in North-West Europe. PCI 9.1.3 is composed of two main Transmission Axes: (1) the first one encompasses the Cantabrian Coast Axis, the Ebro Valley Axis and the Levante Axis; (2) the second Transmission Axis comprises the Vía de la Plata Axis connected to the Puertollano Hydrogen Valley. Besides the two main Transmission Axes, additional international interconnections are considered. Particularly, in the western part of Spain, the Spanish Backbone connects to Portugal via the H2-Med CelZa connection (PCI 9.1.2), and in the north-east it links with France via the H2-Med BarMar line (PCI 9.1.4), which connects Spain with central European markets such as Germany, Belgium and Netherlands. Of the roughly 2,600 km covered by the Backbone, approximately 550 km are being analysed to be repurposed natural gas pipelines (for exclusive transportation of hydrogen), while the remaining 2,050 km will be new constructions of dedicated hydrogen pipelines. Fully embedded within the logic of the PCI project described above, the overall objective of the “Spanish Hydrogen Backbone Studies” is the completion of all preparatory Studies and the preparation of the procurement and permitting processes necessary to start the construction of the Spanish Hydrogen Backbone, including a hydrogen pipeline network of approx. 2,600 km and the required compression stations and valves. Specifically, the main expected results of the project are: (a) the delivery of all technical engineering studies and authorisations required for the implementation of works for the construction and operation of the national hydrogen pipeline network in Spain; (b) the preparation of all the necessary PCI permitting documentation, and completion of the 2 Phases of the PCI permitting process required for the implementation of the abovementioned works.