On the day the Dutch minsiter of Economic affairs and Climate, Eric Wiebes met with his former Dutch minister colleague EU Commission vice president elect Frans Timmermans in Brussels on the EU Green Deal, the Dutch green deals, or covenants, took center stage at the Klimaattop in the Northern Netherlands on October 31, 2019. The second edition of this well attended event at an old Sugar factory in Groningen, gathered  large audiences, 1.300 participants, on Energy network capacities, compared battery powered mobility to the weight of gorilla’s and panda bears (TU Eindhoven) you would need to take with you in a battery truck.

One of the agreements that was cemented during the  Klimaattop Noord was the greening of  kerosine by using green Hydorgen signed by SkyNRG en Nouryon. In addition  Holland Malt, RWE Eemshaven en Groningen Seaports agreed to study the use of heat of  RWE power plant by  Holland Malt reducing the use of naturla gas. Last but not least the  province of Groningen together with public transport company  Arriva, ProRail, Alstom en Engie signed the start of a  trial of a hydrogen train.

A Hydrogen session, that the EHA joined as a panelist, focussed on strategies and concrete business cases for the big gas transition that the Netherlands is facing as of 2022 and for which the integration of hydrogen solutions to manage the influx of wind and solar power is seen as key. Groningen Seaports presented their highly innovative new plastic hydrogen tube that they developed inhouse and that can be rolled up to 300m. RWE confirmed its ambition to invest in eletrolyzers linked to their big renewable energie ambition (18GW and 15 bln investment by 2030) and referred to the need to connect eletrolyzers directly to eletricity networks. Hanza Green tours wants to build a hydrogen ferry to “bridge”  the 2 km stretch from Dutch seaport Delfzijl to German seaport Emden avoiding a one hour road trip. BioMCN pitched in their methanol solutions as a sustainable and efficient  hydrogen carrier. The EHA referred to a step change in communications on the role of hydrogen in global emission reduction. Better and broader communication that highlights the frontrunner position of regions, like the Northern Netherlands and the Rhine corridor,  that leverage local conditions and accelerate concrete and cooperative crossborder H2 projects.

Photo courtesy  Klimaattop, event parking of clean vehicles