“Conexus”: Market Participants See Significant Potential in the Development of the Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor
The international market testing survey for the Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor has been completed, with participation from Latvian market players. The results demonstrate strong interest in cross-border hydrogen transmission infrastructure, according to AS Conexus Baltic Grid (hereinafter – Conexus), the unified natural gas transmission and storage system operator.
The capacity requirements indicated by project developers and transporters as part of the market testing process confirm that the planned hydrogen transmission infrastructure is commercially viable and has the potential to become an important component of Europe’s future energy infrastructure.
In total, the survey received 93 responses from 81 companies representing 108 hydrogen production, consumption, storage, and transportation projects. Market participants’ projections indicate that demand for hydrogen transmission capacity could reach 79 TWh per year by 2040, representing approximately 87% of the corridor’s theoretical capacity of 91 TWh per year, as estimated in the pre-feasibility study.
“The applications received and the indicated hydrogen production and consumption volumes confirm that the market sees a clear need for this cross-border connection. The corridor is expected to provide the capacity required to connect hydrogen production potential in Finland and the Baltic States with major consumption markets in Poland and Germany. The next step will be to further refine capacity needs and assess market participants’ readiness to engage in the project’s further development,” says Uldis Bariss, Chairman of the Management Board of AS Conexus Baltic Grid.
The survey results highlight significant potential for hydrogen flows from Northern Europe to Central Europe. Finland is expected to experience substantial growth in hydrogen production, while the Baltic States could become both producers and consumers of hydrogen in the future. Hydrogen production in the Baltics is forecast to increase from 3.4 TWh in 2033 to 11.1 TWh in 2050, while consumption is projected to grow from 0.2 TWh to 4.5 TWh over the same period. Meanwhile, significant industrial demand is expected in Poland and Germany.
Information provided by transporters and traders indicates that cross-border transportation volumes could increase from 25.4 TWh in 2035 to 38.2 TWh in 2050. The final destination of part of the planned volumes has not yet been determined, suggesting the potential development of a flexible and interconnected European hydrogen market.
At the same time, the survey results confirm that the hydrogen market remains at an early stage of development. A stable regulatory environment and effective risk-mitigation mechanisms will be essential to support timely investment decisions and the continued advancement of the project.
The Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor project aims to establish a new cross-border hydrogen transportation corridor from Finland through the Baltic States and Poland to Germany. The corridor will enable the utilisation of the significant hydrogen production potential in the eastern Baltic Sea region and provide countries along the route with access to stable supplies of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen.
The project is currently in the feasibility assessment phase. Technical, commercial, regulatory, and environmental studies are expected to be completed by 2027. In Latvia, the planned section of the corridor could be approximately 270–300 kilometres long and developed alongside the existing natural gas transmission pipeline.
In total, the project envisages the development of approximately 2,500 kilometres of hydrogen transmission infrastructure connecting Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Germany. The project’s study phase has received €6.8 million in co-financing from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) to support detailed technical, economic, regulatory, and environmental assessments. According to current estimates, construction could begin around 2029, with commissioning of the infrastructure planned after 2033.
The Nordic-Baltic Hydrogen Corridor project is being implemented by five gas transmission system operators: Elering AS (Estonia), AS Conexus Baltic Grid (Latvia), Amber Grid AB (Lithuania), GAZ-SYSTEM (Poland), ONTRAS Gastransport (Germany), and Gasgrid Vetyverkot Oy, a subsidiary of Finland’s natural gas transmission system operator Gasgrid Finland Oy.
More information and the full market testing report are available here.
