OSLO (dpa-AFX) - RWE and the Norwegian energy company Equinor want to cooperate in the future on the import of hydrogen to Germany. RWE CEO Markus Krebber and Anders Opedal of Equinor concluded a strategic energy partnership for this purpose in the Norwegian capital Oslo on Thursday, RWE announced. According to the agreement, the project also includes major projects for European energy supply. In the long term, the power sector is to move away from fossil fuels.

The agreements between RWE and Equinor were reached with the assumption that a hydrogen pipeline will be built between Norway and Germany and that the necessary infrastructure for further transport will be created in Germany. "The cooperation has the potential to make Norway an important supplier of hydrogen to Germany and Europe," Opedal said, according to the statement. Hydrogen as an energy carrier is seen as a beacon of hope in the climate-friendly transformation of the economy.

German Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) is in Norway on Thursday and Friday for talks with government and business representatives, and one of the topics will be hydrogen.

Krebber emphasized, "In order to make progress in the conversion from fossil fuels to hydrogen, a rapid expansion of the hydrogen economy is urgently needed." Initially, he said, so-called blue hydrogen is to be imported in large quantities, using natural gas in its production. Later, this is to be replaced by "green hydrogen" produced using renewable energies. The company also plans to invest in gas-fired power plants capable of producing hydrogen. The plants, with a capacity of around 3 GW, are to be built by 2030 and run entirely on hydrogen by the mid-2030s.

By 2030, it should initially be possible to export 2 gigawatts (GW) of "blue hydrogen" from Norway to Germany, and up to 10 GW by 2038. The hydrogen pipeline needed to achieve this is currently being studied by Gassco, Equinor and third parties, the statement said. Equinor would transport the "blue hydrogen" via this pipeline, while RWE would purchase it and use it to produce electricity in hydrogen-capable gas-fired power plants.

In addition, RWE and Equinor plan to collaborate on projects to produce "green hydrogen." Both companies want to explore opportunities in Norway, Germany and countries adjacent to the planned hydrogen pipeline to produce "green hydrogen" there with the help of offshore wind power./hrz/DP/jha