Developers of planned 2,500km Nordic-Baltic hydrogen pipeline issue call for interest
Source：hydrogeninsight
The Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor (NBHC) initiative has issued a call for interest, seeking industry views to advance its planned hydrogen pipeline network, which would span approximately 2,500km if completed.
Led by six European gas transmission system operators — Gasgrid, Elering, Conexus Baltic Grid, Amber Grid, Gaz-System, and Ontras — the project was first formed in 2022 with the aim of transporting compressed H2 from Finland through Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland to Germany.
The NBHC is now inviting hydrogen producers, consumers, storage operators, distribution system operators and shippers to contribute information to “help shape development” of the project, which has won backing from the EU.
“This market intelligence will guide the development of technical and commercial solutions and may lead to further discussions with respondents to explore needs in more detail, with the aim of signing non‑binding Letters of Intent,” NBHC explained. “These letters will aggregate market signals to help strengthen the business case.”
The NBHC was granted “Project of Common Interest” status (which denotes the proposed pipeline as a key cross-border energy infrastructure) by the EU in 2023 and secured €6.8m ($8m) from the Connecting Europe Facility fund for the feasibility stage in February 2025.
A “pre-feasibility” study in September 2024 estimated that the project would be able to transport up to 2.7 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen annually and be “one of the first operational cross-border hydrogen pipelines in Europe,” according to Ontras.
The project is very much in its early stages, with feasibility studies beginning at the end of 2024, focusing on aspects such as pipeline routing, compressor stations planning, and safety permitting.
The latest announcement from the NHBC said “national and cross‑border studies are expected to conclude in early 2027”. Commissioning for the project is expected to begin around 2033, according to a July 2025 announcement from Gaz-System.
The call for interest is now open, and the NHBC will gather responses until 31 March.
Other international hydrogen pipeline projects are also in their nascent stages across Europe, including the 3,400km SunsHyne corridor from North Africa to Germany via Italy, Austria, Slovakia and Czechia, which is also expected to be operational in the 2030s.