The Ports of Bilbao and Amsterdam have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the development of a renewable hydrogen corridor along with several other partners.
Others party to this deal include the Energy Agency of the Basque Government (EVE), Petronor, SkyNRG, Evos Amsterdam, and Zenith Energy Terminals.
The establishment of a corridor between the ports of Bilbao and Amsterdam will connect two rapidly developing hydrogen valleys.
The King of the Netherlands, Willem-Alexander, the Dutch Minister, Rob Jetten, and the Spanish Minister, Teresa Ribera, attended the signing ceremony as official witnesses.
The MoU states the parties will team up to develop a renewable hydrogen supply chain, focusing on production in the Basque Country and export to the Netherlands and the European hinterland through the Port of Amsterdam.
According to a statement released by the Port of Amsterdam, this fits with the wider Basque Hydrogen Strategy, developed by EVE, which is aimed at both local usage and international markets, and the Dutch government’s stimulation of the production, import, and use of hydrogen.
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The Port of Bilbao is part of the Basque Hydrogen Corridor, a collaboration spearheaded by oil and gas company, Petronor, and energy company, Repsol, to decarbonise the energy, industrial, residential, and mobility sectors.
Petronor is committed to developing a broad range of renewable fuels and to creating a hub in Bilbao that will compose a synthetic fuels plant and an urban waste processing project.
Thus, Petronor and Repsol, together with EVE and other companies, are developing the construction of electrolysers to produce renewable hydrogen, with a total capacity of 113 Megawatts (MW), and a demonstration plant to produce hydrogen-based e-fuels, the first synthetic fuel plant in Spain.
The partners are developing another project focused on a municipal waste pyrolysis plant, which aligns with Repsol’s strategy of promoting the circular economy.
This will make use of modern technologies to decarbonise processes in Petronor.
The Port of Bilbao features multiple of these projects and will serve as a hub for the export of renewable hydrogen and its derivatives.
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The Dutch Minister for Climate and Energy Policy, Rob Jetten, stated: “International collaboration is essential to develop the hydrogen market and the associated infrastructure.
“Within the EU, Spain offers plenty of opportunities and is therefore one of our most important hydrogen partners,” Jetten added.
Carlos Alzaga, Managing Director of the Port of Bilbao Authority said: “The Port of Bilbao is fully committed to the production, transport, and use of renewable energies and supports and works together with those companies that are developing green sources of energies.”
“Green hydrogen is one of the most important paths for that goal,” Alzaga added.
Earlier this year, the Port Authority of Bilbao approved the call for tenders for the construction and operation of a container terminal on the central quay.
More recently, British shipping company Ellerman City Liners announced the launch of its weekly direct service between the Port of Bilbao and the US East Coast.
