Delta Rhine Corridor decision provides a foothold on the way to making industry more sustainable

The Delta Rhine Corridor energy infrastructure project will focus on building the infrastructure for hydrogen and CO₂. This was announced on 5 December 2024 by the Dutch Minister for Climate Policy and Green Growth Sophie Hermans in a letter to the Dutch House of Representatives. With this decision, the government is responding positively to the wish of the market and the House of Representatives to meet the demand for hydrogen and CO₂ infrastructure with greater urgency. Industry needs these pipelines to make it more sustainable in the short term.

Thanks to this adjustment, Gasunie expects to be able to commission the hydrogen pipeline in the Delta Rhine Corridor (DRC) between 2031 and 2032. In the case of CO₂ this will be 2033 at the latest. A joint approach that would include DC cables and a pipeline for ammonia had also been envisaged, but it emerged that this scenario would extend the timeline by many years.

According to Gasunie Executive Board member Hans Coenen, ‘This government decision means that we can construct our infrastructure for hydrogen and CO₂ more quickly. We are pleased about this decision given its importance for the sustainable future of Dutch and European industry. Time is of the essence, and we must press forward in providing adequate opportunities for industry in the Netherlands and abroad to become more sustainable. We will do everything in our power to realise this west-east connection as soon as possible, in good cooperation with the Ministry, local communities and other stakeholders.’

The Delta Rhine Corridor is a cluster of underground pipelines and cables in the pipeline corridor currently being developed and that will eventually run from Rotterdam via Moerdijk to the Dutch province of Limburg. Laying pipelines for hydrogen and CO₂ will help heavy industry in the Netherlands and Germany become more sustainable and will cut CO₂ emissions considerably. This way we can make a major contribution towards achieving the Netherlands’ climate and sustainability goals. Furthermore, the DRC strengthens the strategic and economic position of the industrial areas in north-western Europe, in particular in the Netherlands and Germany.

The hydrogen pipeline in the DRC will form an important west-east connection that will enable an integrated, end-to-end national hydrogen network in the Netherlands. Construction of the CO₂ pipeline also offers the possibility of developing an optimal CO₂ network, one that would facilitate connections with the Dutch provinces of Zeeland, North Brabant and Limburg, the northern region of the Netherlands, and Belgium and Germany. Such a network would facilitate transport of CO₂ from Germany and the Netherlands to storage facilities under the North Sea as well as to current and potential users.

Read the letter to the House of Representatives (in Dutch)