Getech, the geoenergy and green hydrogen company, continues to build its hydrogen business following the acquisition of H2Green in 2021, with the appointment of Kathrin Schulz as the Group’s European Hydrogen Business Development Director.
Based in Berlin, Ms Schulz will be working to further support Getech’s ambition to establish over 500MW of new geoenergy and green hydrogen assets by 2030 and progress the Company’s growth in new areas of Europe.
Implementing the Company’s strategy for locating, developing and operating energy resources that accelerate the path to net zero, Getech is developing a network of green hydrogen hubs, co-located with wind and solar, to decarbonise transport and industrial sectors.
An update on Getech’s current hydrogen development activities will be included in the Company’s interim results released later in September.
Getech CEO, Dr Jonathan Copus, commented:
“This is an exciting time for Getech, as we expand our team with the focus to develop a more resilient energy system and accelerate the pathway to net zero. Green hydrogen can provide clean power for transportation and industrial sectors that are hard to electrify, as well as energy storage to overcome intermittency and balance supply with demand. Against a backdrop of heightened energy supply uncertainty and price volatility, hydrogen can also play a pivotal role in improving energy security.
Kathrin’s appointment adds to our increasing presence in continental Europe, which is a natural home for our hydrogen production strategy. Hydrogen is a key part of carbon-reduction plans across Europe – at regional, national and EU level. The EU hydrogen strategy (July 2020) set green hydrogen as a top priority – with an objective to install at least 40GW of renewable hydrogen electrolysers by 2030 with production of up to 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen in the EU. This focus was further strengthened in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with RePowerEU (May 2022) adding a target of 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen imports by 2030. In support of these initiatives the European Commission has to date approved EUR 5.4 billion of public support under its ‘Important Projects of Common European Interest’ scheme, and is working to develop hydrogen import corridors, via the Mediterranean and the North Sea, and promoting green hydrogen partnerships.
Within continental Europe, Germany is one of the most attractive areas to invest in hydrogen. As Europe’s largest energy consumer, with a thriving heavy industry and mobility sector, Germany considers hydrogen a significant lever to achieve its climate goals. Its ambitious national hydrogen strategy targets 10GW of hydrogen production capacity by 2030. To deliver this, Germany has launched a number of support programmes, and steps to accelerate planning and permitting for power and hydrogen grids. Germany also plans to import significant volumes of green hydrogen and has awarded a grant of EUR 900 million to H2Global, a public-private platform designed to support investments for the production of renewable hydrogen in countries outside the EU.
We welcome Kathrin to our team, and we look forward to leveraging her wealth of knowledge of European energy markets and specialist hydrogen expertise – skills that are fundamental to our ability to replicate, scale up and diversify our green hydrogen portfolio, both in the UK and internationally.”
Ms Schulz added:
“Green hydrogen has huge potential as the world looks to new clean energy sources to speed up decarbonisation of the industry and mobility sectors. Getech is making great strides in bringing forward innovative hydrogen developments that can be scaled at pace, so it’s an exciting time for me to join the business as energy needs continue to rapidly evolve.”
Kathrin Schulz biography:
Following a diploma in business administration, Ms Schulz worked for over a decade at Accenture’s Global Strategy Consulting & M&A practice. She then held senior positions in German energy companies such as ENGIE subsidiary Storengy and Marubeni Energie for more than 10 years, setting up the renewable energy businesses which included the development of hydrogen projects.
Read the most up to date Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Industry news at FuelCellsWorks
