EWE and VERBUND Join Forces on 500 MW Green Hydrogen Plant in Germany

EWE AG and VERBUND AG have established a joint venture to push forward the "CHC Elektrolyse JadeWeser" project in the Wesermarsch, a development the two energy companies position as one of Europe's leading integrated hydrogen hubs.

The undertaking is carried by a dedicated project company formed through EWE Hydrogen GmbH and VERBUND Green Hydrogen GmbH.

Strategic importance and market insights of the joint venture

The partners describe the venture as an important contribution to building an integrated European hydrogen economy, and the joint venture has been founded at a time when the hydrogen market is increasingly consolidating.

According to the companies, the first years of market ramp-up have shown that projects are most likely to succeed when technological competence is combined with robust infrastructure, secured sites, strong financing partners, and concrete marketing prospects.

Electrolyser sized at up to 500 megawatts with 50,000-tonne output target

At the heart of the project sits an electrolyser with a capacity of up to 500 megawatts, planned to produce around 50,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually.

The facility is to be connected to the future German hydrogen core network, and under current expectations it could begin supplying green hydrogen to industry, mobility, and the energy sector from 2032.

By combining generation, storage, and grid connection, the partners say the project carries high strategic significance for the hydrogen ramp-up in Germany and Europe.

Together, EWE and VERBUND already have hydrogen projects totalling around 400 megawatts, either under implementation or in operation, and they are bundling complementary competencies along the entire hydrogen value chain for the joint undertaking.

Stefan Dohler, Chairman of the Board of EWE AG, said the joint venture creates the foundation for implementing one of the most strategically important hydrogen projects in northern Germany.

He pointed out that successful market ramp-up continues to require regulatory adjustments, citing the EU's RFNBO requirements, and that strong partnerships are also needed.

According to Dohler, VERBUND and EWE have gathered extensive experience in large-scale hydrogen projects in recent years and are now combining it to support the project's implementation.

Site in southern Nordenham secured with grid, storage and water access

The partners view the project's special strength as lying in its site and infrastructure quality. Land in the southern part of Nordenham in the Wesermarsch has been secured on a long-term basis.

In the immediate vicinity is a powerful 380-kV grid connection point with expansion potential into the gigawatt range, as well as the future hydrogen core network.

Further advantages include secured water availability, existing industrial infrastructure, and proximity to important industrial, mobility, and import corridors such as the future A20 motorway.

A decisive factor, according to the partners, is access to hydrogen cavern storage facilities, or immediate proximity to corresponding storage infrastructure. This will allow hydrogen to be stored flexibly and delivered according to demand, strengthening supply security and creating the conditions for a market-oriented and competitive hydrogen supply.

Jost Ahrens, Managing Director of VERBUND Green Hydrogen GmbH, said that with the JadeWeser project, one of the best infrastructurally positioned hydrogen projects in Europe is emerging.

He described the site as symbolic of the energy-economic transformation in Europe, noting that an industrial hub for green hydrogen production is being created next to a former nuclear power plant, providing excellent conditions for an economic and secure hydrogen supply.

European orientation framed around supply security and energy autonomy

The Elektrolyse JadeWeser project is a central element of the joint hydrogen strategy of both companies and is deliberately oriented toward Europe.

Through its connection to the German hydrogen core network and prospective integration into future European hydrogen corridors, the project is intended to contribute to supply security, the integration of European energy markets, and the achievement of European climate goals.

At the same time, producing green hydrogen from domestically generated renewable energy is expected to strengthen European autonomy and, in the long term, reduce dependence on fossil energy imports.

The partners say the project thus supports the development of a resilient, sovereign, and competitive European energy system. Michael Strugl, CEO of VERBUND AG, said the energy transition needs powerful European partnerships.

He described the joint venture as combining the strengths of two established energy companies and creating the conditions for a secure and competitive supply of green hydrogen, calling JadeWeser an important building block of a future European hydrogen economy.

Framework conditions seen as decisive for large-scale realisation

Tobias Moldenhauer, Managing Director of EWE Hydrogen GmbH, said that with CHC Elektrolyse JadeWeser the company can contribute to building a powerful hydrogen economy and actively drive forward the development of a large-scale hydrogen project.

He noted that market ramp-up does not depend on technological progress alone: for projects with long development and investment cycles, reliable regulatory, economic and infrastructural framework conditions are decisive, including in particular the electricity procurement conditions the partners consider essential for realising such large-scale ventures.

By combining generation, storage and grid integration at a single secured location, the joint venture adopts an approach the partners say increases the project's probability of realisation and positions it among the most strategically significant hydrogen undertakings in northern Germany and, by extension, Europe.