Oldenburg, May 13, 2025. Another milestone in the "Clean Hydrogen Coastline" project has been reached: The energy service provider EWE has awarded the compressor technology for one of Germany's largest electrolysers in Emden to the company NEUMAN & ESSER. The hydrogen production plant with a capacity of 320 megawatts is to produce green hydrogen on an industrial scale from 2027. The three compressors now ordered are part of the essential periphery of the plant and ensure efficient further processing of the hydrogen produced.
"By commissioning the compressors, we are taking another concrete step towards industrial hydrogen production. Our goal is to produce hydrogen from renewable energies where it is beneficial to the system and makes economic sense. Emden offers the ideal conditions with its existing grid infrastructure and the high proportion of curtailed wind power. Together with strong partners such as NEUMAN & ESSER, we are driving forward the decarbonisation of the energy system," emphasises Stefan Dohler, CEO of EWE AG.
By awarding the contract to NEUMAN & ESSER, EWE is relying on its experienced industrial expertise. "We are very pleased about EWE's trust and the opportunity to participate in this forward-looking project. The development of a high-performance compressor solution for the electrolyser in Emden shows how important innovative technology is for the success of the hydrogen economy. Together, we are actively shaping the future of energy," says Jens Wulff, Managing Director of NEUMAN & ESSER Germany.
Electrolysis Emden – key project of the hydrogen strategy
The hydrogen production plant in Emden is the heart of the four-part large-scale "Clean Hydrogen Coastline" project. With a capacity of 320 megawatts, it will currently be the largest plant of its kind in Germany. With Clean Hydrogen Coastline, EWE is bringing together the production, storage, transport and use of green hydrogen, thus making a significant contribution to the development of a North German hydrogen economy. EWE received the funding notices for the large-scale project as part of the European IPCEI programme (Important Project of Common European Interest) in the summer of 2024. EWE is currently in the detailed planning stage. At the same time, the site is being prepared for development. The deep foundations are to begin next winter, after which the buildings will be erected, and the hydrogen production technology will be set up. From 2027, the plants are to produce green hydrogen on an industrial scale.
EWE had already awarded NEUMAN & ESSER the first compressor order as part of the hydrogen ramp-up in March 2025 – for the hydrogen storage project in Huntorf (Wesermarsch). The awarding of another compressor to the family-owned company from North Rhine-Westphalia is now a logical continuation of this development.
Challenges in the ramp-up of the hydrogen economy
Despite the technical advances, the industry is facing major challenges: The current legal framework – especially at EU level – makes it difficult to operate economically. For example, the requirements for the origin of electricity increase the price of green hydrogen by up to 88 percent. The result: around 50 percent higher production costs per kilogram of hydrogen – without any immediate ecological added value.
Stefan Dohler explains: "We could produce hydrogen much more cheaply if we were allowed to react flexibly to cheap green electricity offers on the spot market. Instead, current EU requirements force us to correlate with a specific wind farm in terms of time and geography – this makes production considerably more expensive and prevents a flexible, system-friendly mode of operation. Especially in regions like Emden, where around 500,000 megawatt hours of curtailed wind power is not only inefficient, but also economically questionable."
Future-proof infrastructure for the energy transition
With the project, EWE is pursuing a clear strategic approach: to bundle the production, storage, transport and use of green hydrogen in a region that has the necessary natural and infrastructural conditions. "With its salt caverns, wind power and water availability, northwestern Germany is predestined for a key role in the hydrogen ramp-up," says Stefan Dohler.
The use of green gases such as hydrogen is essential for a climate-neutral energy system. The electrolyser in Emden will not only serve as a raw material supplier for industry and transport, but will also contribute to stabilising the electricity market, reducing costs for compensating for bottlenecks in the power grid and improving the integration of renewable energies.
Contribution to the energy transition and regional development
With the "Clean Hydrogen Coastline" project and the 320-megawatt hydrogen production plant in Emden, EWE is strengthening the regional economy and securing the future viability of the energy supply. At the same time, the energy service provider is actively shaping the energy transition. "For us, hydrogen is one of the core building blocks of the energy transition. It makes fluctuating renewables available at all times, because hydrogen can be stored on a large scale.
Resolutely shaping the framework conditions now
In order for projects such as the electrolyser in Emden to be able to take full effect, political reliability is now needed. "Our clear expectation of the new federal government is to secure the ramp-up of the hydrogen economy with a long-term stable framework – through the rapid expansion of renewable energies, competitive funding mechanisms and pragmatic regulation that facilitates investment," emphasizes Stefan Dohler. It is particularly crucial that Germany is campaigning in Brussels for an adjustment of the EU electricity procurement criteria – because the previous requirements stipulate that electrolysers must obtain their electricity at exactly the same time and place as a new wind or solar farm, which makes production significantly more expensive and unnecessarily restricts it. "This is the only way we can create economic incentives instead of unnecessary hurdles - and enable green hydrogen to become the supporting pillar of an affordable and climate-neutral energy future."
The four-part project "Clean Hydrogen Coastline" to build a hydrogen economy in northwestern Germany is supported and funded by:
