With the Leipzig group, the HYPOS network gains an important partner for the further establishment of a green hydrogen economy in Central Germany.
With the new combined heat and power plant Leipzig South, the Leipzig Group is building the world’s lowest-emission gas turbine power plant. In the future, it will be possible to use high proportions of green hydrogen in addition to natural gas. Since 2013, the HYPOS network has been researching how the generation, storage, distribution and use of green hydrogen can be successfully achieved. HYPOS combines the expertise of 120 partners from science and industry. With the Leipzig Group, the network has gained an important regional partner for the design of CO2-free energy supply in Central Germany.
With the new combined heat and power plant (HKW) Süd, the Leipziger Group is building the world’s lowest-emission gas turbine power plant. In the future, in addition to natural gas, high proportions of green hydrogen can also be used there. The Hypos network has been researching since 2013 how the generation, storage, distribution and use of green hydrogen can succeed. To this end, it bundles the skills of 120 partners from science and business. “With the Leipzig Group, the network is gaining an important regional partner for the creation of a CO2-free energy supply in Central Germany,” says Dr. Joachim Wicke, CEO of Hypos eV Already with the announced withdrawal from the district heating supply by 2022 from the Lippendorf lignite power station, a change in the energy policy of the city of Leipzig has been announced.
In the future, the newly created HKW will also use larger proportions of green hydrogen to generate heat and electricity. “Green hydrogen is the key energy carrier of the future. It can be generated from renewable energies, transported and stored in the gas network and converted back into electricity and heat. Material recycling in mobility or the chemical industry is also possible, says Wicke. “As number 1 in the periodic table and the lightest element, hydrogen makes up 75% of the total mass or 93% of all atoms in the solar system. In order for the energy transition to succeed, the use of this element will become increasingly important. If existing technologies become more efficient and economical, hydrogen can not only be used for a clean energy supply, but also for a completely new mobility for us in the Leipzig group. In the Hypos network, all the key players in central Germany come together to make this topic a reality, says Karsten Rogall, Managing Director of the Leipziger Group and Leipziger Stadtwerke.
“The heart of our future concept for district heating is, along with many systems for renewable energy, the Leipzig Süd thermal power station. We are currently building what is currently the world’s cleanest gas-fired power plant, but that is not enough for us: It is H2-ready. Together with the partners of the Hypos network, we are now doing everything to ensure that this is not a dream of the future and that Leipzig is supplied with energy completely CO2-free and safely in the foreseeable future, ”says Thomas Brandenburg, head of the new generation department at Leipziger Stadtwerke. “The economical and energetically sensible use of hydrogen technology can only succeed together. Different industries have to work together to shape the energy supply of the future, ”says Thomas von der Heide, Hypos board member. By joining Hypos eV the Leipzig group gains access to a broad network of industry, SMEs and research. The Hypos members work on all parts of the green hydrogen value chain. The HYPOS eV welcomes the commitment of the Leipzig group and will support the company in the transition from the fossil to the renewable age.
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