EU Funds Three Finnish-Led Hydrogen Pipeline Projects

Finnish state-owned gas transmission system operator Gasgrid, and its partners have been granted over 51 million euros of EU funding for three planned hydrogen pipelines in the Baltic Sea region.
The funding was granted by the Connecting Europe Facility program -CEF—European Union program to boost the bloc's energy infrastructure following the EU Commission’s identification of the project as key to decarbonization and contributing to the bloc's climate and energy policy goals.
The largest amount of funding was 29.4 million euros for the Nordic Hydrogen Route, a planned 1,000-kilometer pipeline between Finland and Sweden along the Bothnian Bay.
"The decision underlines the strategic role of Finland and the Baltic Sea Region in developing the hydrogen economy," said Olli Kärki, CEO of Gasgrid, adding that the pipelines would attract investment and create new jobs in Finland while also supporting EU climate targets of covering at least 10% of its energy by renewable hydrogen by 2050.
The three schemes, which also include the NHR, have been labeled PCI status by the European Parliament and the Council of Europe.
Gas could start to flow through the NHR pipeline at the beginning of the 2030s, depending on a number of estimates.