The Chemnitz Region Hydrogen Alliance, which was founded last year, has achieved its first important goals. This was announced by the partners at a press conference today. In the first few months, they have already managed to form a strong network of companies and politicians in the field of hydrogen infrastructure. One of the plans for this year is to strengthen the political work in order to strengthen and further develop Chemnitz as a leading centre of innovation. An important component of this is the establishment of the HIC - Hydrogen Innovation Centre at the Chemnitz Technology Campus.
Mayor Sven Schulze: "Since its foundation, the alliance has taken decisive steps to demonstrate the potential of hydrogen as a key technology for our economic region and at the same time has been able to bring the regional partners into a dialogue. With a joint public image, intensive political communication and the analysis of industrial hydrogen requirements, we have been able to significantly increase awareness of our work. This year, we are also focussing on the further development of the Chemnitz Hydrogen Campus. Our aim is to expand the site and actively involve the region in the process."
Max Jankowsky, President of the Chemnitz Chamber of Industry and Commerce: "The Chemnitz region needs a connection to the hydrogen core network. This is illustrated by the analysis of 37 major industrial consumers in the region. One in three companies have plans to use hydrogen in their operating processes, which the Freiberg Institute of Gas Technology categorised as valid in the in-depth analysis. The companies analysed were already able to identify specific requirements of around 125 GWh per year from 2035. Various models for extrapolation to the entire region of south-west Saxony suggest a demand of up to 1,250 GWh/a from 2035.
For companies, the periods in which the hydrogen network will be set up may already affect the investment cycle for their systems after next. This makes it all the more important to think long-term and create as many options as possible for the region's economy, despite the current uncertainties regarding the future supply of hydrogen."
Roland Warner, Chairman of the eins Management Board: "The demand for hydrogen, especially in regional industry, is huge. We must now set the course with targeted and binding actions and agreements in order to equip the region for the future. We want to take this into account with our involvement in various projects."
Jörg Scheibe, Managing Director of inetz: "We are continuing to work intensively on converting the existing gas network with a view to the future. This conversion is a central component of our long-term planning in order to meet the challenges of the energy market. There can be no mental bans here - also with regard to hydrogen in heating applications. With the results from the municipal heating planning, we expect more certainty for corresponding investments."
Karl Lötsch, Managing Director of HZwo e. V.: "With the receipt of the funding decision of 84.4 million euros for the HIC - Hydrogen Innovation Centre a few weeks ago, a decisive milestone was reached - for us, for Chemnitz and for the entire German hydrogen economy. The decision confirms the confidence of the federal government and the Free State of Saxony in hydrogen technologies and Chemnitz as a leading location. Now we can start full steam ahead with implementation.
The next steps are already underway: in recent weeks, we have started to set up the project team and have launched the first support programmes for companies. In the summer, we will open the HIC Research and Transfer Centre at the Chemnitz Technology Campus and start work as a national innovation and technology centre for hydrogen. In the coming months, we will also create the structural conditions for the new centre and the hydrogen campus. In this way, we want to make a real contribution to the development of a competitive hydrogen economy, from which companies from Germany in particular can benefit."
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