Enagas' chief executive says that Spain's national hydro network plan is ahead of schedule

The chief of Spanish gas grid operator Enagas announced on Friday that plans to build a 2,600 km (1.615 mile) network of hydrogen in Spain were progressing ahead of schedule. Infrastructure is also on track for a start-up in 2030.

The H2Med Corridor is a planned trans-European corridor that will connect the Iberian Peninsula with Northwest Europe.

Arturo Gonzalo, the Chief Executive of the company, said that the company will make a final decision on investment in 2027. Construction is expected to begin the following year.

He said that the Spanish network would include new pipelines and some repurposed assets for a total investment of around 2.6 billion euro ($2.95 billion).

He said, "The project has started to become a real thing, and it's progressing very well, faster than we expected."

Today we set in motion an important milestone that will make hydrogen infrastructure in Spain a reality.

Enagas, one of the most ardent supporters of green hydrogen, uses renewable energy to produce its product, but still has high costs and heavily relies on subsidies. It also struggles to find buyers.

The company has decided to diversify its business in order to manage a hydrogen infrastructure network, as the demand for gas in Spain is declining. The company is also focusing on ammonia capture and CO2 capture. It has reduced dividends, sold assets and cut debt to fund its plans.

Plans are in line the ambitious green agenda of Spain. The country wants to become a leader in Europe for green hydrogen thanks to its abundant wind and solar power. It set an electrolyser target of 12 gigawatts by 2030 for the production of green hydrogen.

(source: Reuters)