GERMANY
Updated December 2020
FC Trucks
FC Bus
FC Forklifts
FC Cars
Refueling Station
Electrolyzer
Stationary FC
Current Status
2
162
79
951
68
>300MW
10255
Target by 2020
by 2025
by 2030
by 2035
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--
--
--
--
--
--
--
100
400
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--
5GW
10GW (Total)
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Hydrogen Strategy and Roadmaps
The National Hydrogen Strategy (June 2020)
NOW Event (English): Approach of the National Hydrogen Strategy Webinar Recording and Presentation Slides (02 June 2020)
Initiatives, Programs, and Policies
Decemer 2020
The German Federal Government passed the National Hydrogen Strategy in June 2020 as comprehensive and wholistic approach that has been developed by joined efforts of four ministries: the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI), the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
The National Hydrogen Strategy consists of 38 concrete measures both including existing programs such as the National Innovation Program Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology as well as setting up new initiatives such as the research initiative hydrogen 2030 that covers measures from R&D to procurement and the regulatory framework. The strategy has a budget of €7billion for national measures and €2billion for international measures up to 2024. In order to implement and monitor the progress of the strategy, a dedicated governance, e.g., on the way to achieve the target of 5GW electrolyser capacity until 2030, is being set up with a clear timeframe for a first evaluation in 2023.
The national strategic framework is related to the implementation of European directives, particular the recast renewable energy directive (RED II) where the ambitious national implementation is estimated to create the possibility of up to 2 GW electrolyser capacity.
Furthermore, a call for interest for the Important projects of common European interest (IPCEI) is underway and will be launched in December 2020. The IPCEIs strive to establish a complete European value chain by linking national projects across borders and thereby form an initial backbone of a European hydrogen economy.
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November 2019
2020 National Hydrogen Strategy
The Federal German Government presented a draft for the first Climate Action Law of Germany in October 2019. The law is one element in a package of climate legislation and policy programs to ensure Germany reaches their climate targets of 2030. The law includes different measures for climate protection like a phase-out of energy production from coal and the deployment of renewable energy production.
Research and Development
December 2020
The Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure continues to support strategic projects such as the pre-normative research on gas quality for refueling stations, the next generation of aviation powertrains for an airplane with up to 4 people (Go4Hy2) and the development of light duty applications (HYLIGHTCOM), several projects on the development of FC trucks (both within the national innovation program – NIP and the Mobility and Fuels Strategy). To complete these R&D efforts along the value chain with MANTYS the development of automated stack production processes for more than 100,000 stacks per year was started 2020.
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November 2019
The Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy presented the winners of the competition for large scale R&D projects within the 7th Energy Research Programme. With these projects, future-oriented energy technologies are being tested under real conditions and on an industrial scale. The central topic in the competition is the production, distribution and usage of low-carbon hydrogen among different sectors. A total of 20 projects have been selected of which 11 projects have a directly related to hydrogen production or usage. In total, a PtX capacity of around 330 MW is addressed with these 11 projects.
The Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure has selected 9 regions for the first (HyStarter) of three phases of the HyLand projects within the National Innovation Programme Hydrogen and Fuel Cells (NIP). These regions are Kiel, Rügen-Stralsund, Schaumburg, Lausitz, Weimar, Marburg, Neustadt an der Waldnaab, Reutlingen and Allgäu. Each of the regions or municipalities is advised on the organization and on the conception of the project for about one year. This includes forming a stakeholder landscape (e.g., political representations, municipal enterprises, industry, commerce, society), and jointly developing initial concept ideas on hydrogen and fuel cells, based on renewable energies in transport, but also in the areas of heat, electricity and storage.
The project ELEKTRA started in August funded by the NIP. The energy supply on the tugboat will be solely by gaseous hydrogen, fuel cells and batteries. Construction is scheduled to begin in October 2019, with completion by the shipyard scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2020. The ELEKTRA is to be used primarily in the transport of goods on the Berlin-Hamburg route and inner-city transport routes in Berlin.
Demonstration, Deployments, and Workforce Developments
December 2020
The NIP is funding market deployment of fuel cell technologies in the transportation sector. This includes passenger cars, busses, trains and other mobile applications with fuel cell technologies. By October, 951 fuel cell vehicles had been registered in Germany. For those FCEVs, 87 hydrogen refueling stations are available.
As of September of 2020, more than 4,045 fuel cell heating systems for domestic buildings up to 5 kW have been granted public funding. In total, 14,300 fuel cell systems for heating are in place in Germany. For backup power systems in addition to the installed more than 300 fuel cell systems and the previous 505 granted systems of the NIP procurement call, a third procurement call was launched in autumn of 2020. In autumn 2020 several dedicated procurement calls have been published that gained significant interest. Among them was a funding call for garbage trucks that was oversubscribed with applications for €130million representing more than 160 trucks, a funding call for critical infrastructure that received applications for €6million and more than 600 systems as well as procurement calls for electrolysis and intralogistics that where heavily oversubscribed.
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November 2019
The NIP is funding market deployment of fuel cell technologies in the transportation sector. This includes passenger cars, busses, trains and other mobile applications with fuel cell technologies. By October, 152 fuel cell vehicles had been registered in 2019 which sums up to 530 FCEVs in Germany. For those FCEVs, 76 hydrogen refuelling stations are available.
In the first half of 2019, more than 1,100 fuel cell heating systems for domestic buildings up to 5 kW have be granted for public funding. In total, 6,600 fuel cell systems for heating are in place in Germany.
Events and Solicitations
Nothing specific to report.
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November 2019
Investments and Funding
December 2020
The second phase of the National Innovation Program for Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technology, in place since 2016, relies on two funding mechanisms. One mechanism addresses R&D projects, directly linked to FCH topics. Several projects were approved with most providing support for market uptake by decreasing costs and increasing product lifetime. Single components as well as complete systems and production chains are considered within the approved projects. A brief overview of all projects of 2019 is given in the annual report of the NOW GmbH.
The other funding mechanism within the NIP is to support investment deploying FCH technologies. For example, the purchase of about 150 cars received funding support as mentioned above. Many of the fueling stations now in operation were funded by the NIP that also includes, in some cases, support for the production of hydrogen by water electrolysis.
In context of the National Hydrogen Strategy, a number of programs received substantial funds dedicated to hydrogen such as the program for decarbonization of energy intensive industries and synthetic fuels / Power-to-Liquids deployment both to be implemented nationally and internationally. However, the associated funding guidelines are being prepared and in the process of being notified by the European Commission.
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November 2019
The second phase of the National Innovation Programme for Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technology, in place since 2016, relies on two funding mechanisms. One mechanism addresses R&D projects, directly linked to FCH topics. Several projects were approved with most providing support for market uptake by decreasing costs and increasing product lifetime. Single components as well as complete systems and production chains are considered within the approved projects. A brief overview of all projects of 2018 is given in the annual report of the NOW GmbH.
The other funding mechanism within the NIP is to support investment deploying FCH technologies. For example, the purchase of about 150 cars received funding support as mentioned above. Many of the fuelling stations now in operation were funded by the NIP that also includes, in some cases, support for the production of hydrogen by water electrolysis.
Regulations, Codes & Standards, and Safety
December 2020
With approval of the Renewable Energy Directive at the European Level, discussions are now underway on its integration into the national framework. It will be important to generate incentives for integration of advanced fuels into the fuel mix including hydrogen as an advanced fuel in upstream processing. This might lead to large-scale deployments estimated to reach up to 2 GW electrolyser capacity in refineries. The current proposal is under discussion in the Federal Government and may be adapted to incentivize the use of green hydrogen in the transport sector.
Furthermore, there are efforts to exempt electricity used for the production of hydrogen from the EEG (Erneuerbare-Energien-Gesetz) levy as part of the revision of the German Renewable Energy Act that shall be adopted by the end of 2020. The EEG levy makes up a significant part of the price for electricity, an exemption can therefore decrease the costs for producing hydrogen from water electrolysis.
Data
Websites
Federal Ministries
Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy
Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development
Reports & Publications
NOW GmbH - Nationale Organisation Wasserstoff- und Brennstoffzellentechnologie: Annual Report 2018
Member Statements