Net-zero transition in German regions hinges on hydrogen and power grid buildout – report

In order to reach climate neutrality in the most affordable way, Germany must ensure it can transport energy across its regions by expanding its electricity and hydrogen grids, according to a report by research institute Fraunhofer ISE. The country also needs to make energy generation and consumption much more flexible, the authors wrote.

Expanding electricity and hydrogen infrastructure would be key to distributing energy between the north and the industry-heavy southern states, the report stated. Wind-rich northern Germany – the states of Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony and Mecklenburg-West Pomerania – are set to supply one third of Germany's primary energy by 2045, also by becoming domestic suppliers of hydrogen. Demand for electricity there would see huge growth through electrolysers. Battery storage is set to grow most in states with high photovoltaic capacity, according to the authors.

To calculate the most cost-effective transition paths, the researchers used a model to simulate the German energy system, including energy imports. "The resulting cost-optimised regional transformation paths can now provide orientation for decision-making processes at the state level," the report reads. In all scenarios, direct electrification was the most cost-effective option for achieving the country's climate targets and securing energy supply at all times. This means that, by 2045 (the year Germany is aiming to become climate neutral), heat pumps must be the dominant heating technology, most transport must be electric, and the share of electrification in industry has to increase to 70 percent. Hydrogen for industry, transport, and power plants would play a supplementary role, the researchers wrote.

Implementing the energy transition on a regional level, such as expanding and greening municipal heating, as well as electricity and hydrogen grids, is becoming increasingly important to reach climate neutrality.