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Eesti Energia joined the European Clean Hydrogen Alliance to accelerate the delivery of innovative, clean and future-oriented energy solutions to Estonia as well as to the company's other home markets, thereby supporting the green revolution in the region.

The Clean Hydrogen Alliance aims to adopt hydrogen technologies in Europe by 2030 and to combine renewable energy and zero-emission hydrogen production with industry, transport and other sectors. The 2050 vision targets to support the achievement of climate neutrality in Europe and to become the global leader of the field.

According to Margus Vals, Member of the Management Board of Eesti Energia, hydrogen can be one of the key components in achieving long-term climate goals. As the largest producer of renewable energy in the region, the company has the potential to become the leading producer of green hydrogen in the Baltics, taking advantage of its existing wind farms.

"The vigorous reduction of carbon emissions in recent years and the increase of renewable energy production have enabled Eesti Energia to make a significant contribution to the fact that we are already meeting the 2030 climate goals. "In achieving long-term climate goals, the European Commission's hydrogen strategy sees hydrogen as one of the key components which should cover 60% of seasonal energy storage needs by 2050," Vals said. "By developing the capacity to produce hydrogen from renewable energy at industrial level, we can solve several burning issues: we will have the possibility to save the output of renewable energy that depends on the weather, support significant reductions in the emissions from the polluting transport sector that uses fossil fuels, and create new competence based on future technologies in Estonia. To achieve them, we need support and partners that we can get by being a member of the Alliance.”

In the coming years, Eesti Energia wishes to launch pilot projects for the production of green hydrogen near its wind farms, and in cooperation with other companies, deliver the production to end users, such as rail, city, or road transport, etc.

"Currently, hydrogen is produced mainly from natural gas, i.e a fossil fuel. Green hydrogen is green by being produced entirely from renewable energy. Belonging to the Green Hydrogen Alliance enables us to be at the forefront of developments in the field and to directly influence the green revolution in Estonia, in our home markets and in the whole of Europe,” Vals added. "I believe that Estonia has the potential to become as an important player in the development of hydrogen technology in the world as we have been in the information technology or oil shale sectors for decades."

No carbon emissions are generated during the production or use of hydrogen from renewable energy sources. It is therefore seen as a solution in reducing the environmental impact of those industrial processes and economic sectors where it is critical to reduce emissions but difficult to achieve it in other ways, such as through electrification.

The European Green Hydrogen Alliance was launched in March 2020 as part of the new European industrial strategy. It is part of Europe's plan to accelerate the reduction of carbon emissions in the industrial sector while maintaining the competitiveness of the field. Hydrogen is seen as a key component in achieving the goals of the European Green Deal, as it has a number of outputs, both inside and outside the energy sector, starting from energy storage and ending with heavy transport fuels and raw materials for energy-intensive industries.