Enagás Advances BarMar Hydrogen Pipeline Linking Spain and France
A major European hydrogen infrastructure project has reached a new milestone, bringing a cross-border energy corridor one step closer to connecting key industrial markets.
(P&GJ) — Spanish gas grid operator Enagás has launched the public participation process for the BarMar hydrogen pipeline, a proposed subsea link between Spain and France that forms part of the broader European H2med hydrogen corridor.
The company also provided an update on development of the Hydrogen Backbone Network in Catalonia, where approximately 275 kilometers of hydrogen pipeline infrastructure is planned across three sections connecting to Enagás' regasification terminal in Barcelona.
BarMar is designed to connect Barcelona and Marseille through a roughly 400-kilometer subsea hydrogen pipeline capable of transporting up to 2 million metric tons of hydrogen annually. The project is a key component of H2med, a European initiative intended to link hydrogen production and consumption centers across the Iberian Peninsula, France and Germany.
According to Enagás, the Catalonia hydrogen network will pass through 89 municipalities in the provinces of Barcelona and Tarragona and include one of three compressor stations planned for Spain's hydrogen backbone system. The infrastructure will connect renewable hydrogen production areas with industrial demand centers and export routes.
Enagás Chairman Antonio Llardén said hydrogen infrastructure will play an important role in helping industrial and transportation sectors reduce emissions while strengthening Europe's energy security.
"Green hydrogen and the infrastructure supporting it will be important for helping industry and transport decarbonize while remaining competitive," Llardén said.
The company said the BarMar public participation process will run through early July and include outreach activities across 42 coastal municipalities in Catalonia. Similar engagement efforts are being conducted in France through project partners NaTran and Teréga.
The Hydrogen Backbone Network is expected to form part of a larger Spanish hydrogen system totaling approximately 2,600 kilometers. Enagás said the network is being designed largely alongside existing natural gas corridors to reduce environmental impacts and simplify development.
Both the Spanish Hydrogen Backbone Network and H2med recently retained their status as Projects of Common Interest under European Union regulations, a designation intended to support strategic energy infrastructure projects across the bloc.