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EnBW chooses Stade for LNG and H2 imports

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Future-flexible booking: EnBW chooses Stade for LNG and H2 imports

  • Long-term capacity booking for 3 bcm/a LNG with option for green hydrogen in the form of ammonia
  • Contract in line with EnBW’s climate neutrality path
  • Land-based terminal to be commissioned ammonia-ready

Karlsruhe/Stade. EnBW will import three billion cubic meters of LNG per year via the Hanseatic Energy Hub in Stade beginning with commissioning. The capacities were booked bindingly in the past few days as part of a sales process and will make a significant contribution to Germany’s security of supply with affordable energy. In addition, EnBW will have the option to move to ammonia as a hydrogen-based energy source at a later date. This possibility is open to all Hanseatic Energy Hub customers with a long-term contract of more than 10 years.

“At EnBW, we are working intensively on the transition from fossil fuels such as coal to non-fossil fuels such as hydrogen. The cooperation with the Hanseatic Energy Hub fits very well into our efforts to become climate-neutral by 2035,” explains Georg Stamatelopoulos, Member of the EnBW Board of Management and Chief Operating Officer Sustainable Generation Infrastructure. “Initially, we will ensure security of supply with the help of LNG imports from the terminal in Stade, and in the long term we will be able to substitute natural gas with climate-neutral green hydrogen.”

The Hanseatic Energy Hub is a future-flexible modular system for the green energy transition that utilizes the diverse opportunities of the Stade energy region. The terminal, port, industrial park and connecting infrastructure are designed so that a conversion can take place in a modular way. Main tanks, pipelines and other immovable parts will be commissioned ammonia-ready. The foundations are already structurally designed to support a higher load. Additional space has also been reserved in the industrial park for separate ammonia tanks to support the market ramp-up from the outset.

“EnBW has been demonstrating for a long time how a smart conversion of the energy supply works. We are pleased that the Hanseatic Energy Hub will become a central energy import hub for EnBW in the future,” said Johann Killinger, Hanseatic Energy Hub´s managing director and co-shareholder. “Our modular system and commercial offer give us the necessary flexibility in Stade to make a significant contribution to security of supply and, in parallel, to accompany the hydrogen ramp-up in Germany.”

Both EnBW and HEH are focusing on ammonia as a carrier for hydrogen, since its handling, transport and storage have been proven over many years. Ammonia is one of the most widely produced chemicals in the world and has many different applications. After transport, it can be reconverted to hydrogen or used directly as a CO2-neutral fuel. Corresponding technologies are making rapid progress. Co-combustion of up to 20% ammonia has already been successfully implemented in smaller power plants and furnaces.

For more information visit www.hanseatic-energy-hub.de