Germany’s Stablegrid has partnered with ITM Power to deploy hydrogen-enabled microgrids. Together, they’re launching two world-leading projects to improve overall grid balancing and achieve a more stabilized power system. These initiatives will incorporate hydrogen storage facilities and are expected to significantly reduce redispatch costs, ultimately benefiting the German electricity grid and its consumers.
The initial project, dubbed ‘Netzbrücke 410’, will be located in Rüstringen, Germany. The larger aim is to decrease reliance on redispatch. This expensive intervention shifts powerplant production to avoid grid congestion. At present, negative redispatch costs German taxpayers €2 to €3 billion annually. This pilot project scales up that innovative approach with a ‘Netzbrücke’ or ‘grid bridge.’ Its goal is to use excess energy in a smarter way.
Stablegrid management board member Oliver Feller emphasized the importance of this collaboration, stating, “With ITM Power, we have a strong and experienced partner at our side who brings the technical expertise and excellence required to implement system-stabilising hydrogen projects of this magnitude reliably.” Together, this partnership is well-positioned to deliver real impact as Germany continues on its legacy-making energy transition.
Project Details and Capacity Expansion
Together, the two projects will add a combined 6300 MW of new capacity into Germany’s energy infrastructure. The initial project would use underground salt caverns to store hydrogen. At the same time, the second initiative will increase electrolyser capacity by a staggering 680 MW. This expansion is in concert with Germany’s larger effort to increase the share of energy generated from renewable sources and to decrease their dependence on fossil fuels.
ITM Power and Stablegrid will start pre-front-end engineering design work in January 2026. They hope to reach final investment decision (FID) for the first project in late 2019. In practice, the second project won’t see Final Investment Decision (FID) until 2028. This milestone will help to make the partnership’s long-term vision – a sustainable, stable and integrated energy environment – a reality.
Economic Implications and Future Outlook
The hybrid redispatch or predispatch approach these projects are advancing should yield significant savings. Further, the initiative has the potential to fully offset redispatch costs. This will enable excess energy to be utilized more effectively, driving Germany toward their renewable energy goals.
Dennis Schulz, CEO of ITM Power, highlighted the significance of this collaboration, asserting, “Partnering with Stablegrid on these landmark grid-balancing projects in Germany reinforces ITM’s position at the forefront of the energy transition in Europe’s largest economy.” Together, this partnership represents a major step forward for innovation in the energy economy. It further positions both companies as leaders in the burgeoning drive toward a more sustainable future.