Ayesa Ingeniería has been selected by Enagás as one of the consulting firms to participate in the megaproject for Spain’s new backbone network for green H2, a project with an investment exceeding €3 billion. Specifically, Ayesa will be responsible for the basic and detailed engineering of several pipeline segments that will transport this gas, which is expected to transform the country’s energy landscape.
The engineering work is expected to take approximately two to three years, with construction of the entire H2 pipeline network anticipated to be well underway by 2030. The overall engineering effort will involve a total investment of €60 million, and Ayesa’s initial plan is to execute the bulk of the work from its industrial headquarters in Seville.
Despite green H2 being a relatively new energy source, Ayesa already has experience in this field. The company previously designed an electrolyzer and its associated facilities as part of the expansion of Repsol’s chemical plant in Sines, Portugal.
Additionally, Ayesa was involved in a H2 production and supply project for vehicles in northern England. This included the installation of two electrolyzers, compression equipment, storage tanks, and dispensing units for cars, buses, and trucks, as well as tanker systems to transport the gas to other consumers.
An international hub for green H2. Spain aims to become a major national and international hub for green H2, which is produced using electricity from renewable sources and positioned to replace natural gas. Achieving this goal requires the development of a robust domestic pipeline network to distribute green H2 throughout the country.
Through Enagás—currently the operator of Spain’s gas system and designated to manage the future H2 system—an initial phase will launch two major H2 corridors with a total of 2,600 kilometers of pipelines. The objective is to connect large-scale green H2 production plants with high-consumption industrial zones.
The development of Spain’s initial domestic H2 backbone involves approximately 2,600 kilometers of underground pipelines, both newly constructed and repurposed, grouped into 15 sections and five main corridors: the Vía de la Plata Corridor (about 875 km across four sections), the Cantabrian Coast Corridor (around 440 km across three sections), the Levante Corridor (approximately 505 km across four sections), the Transversal Castilla-La Mancha Corridor (about 235 km in one section), and the Ebro Valley Corridor (roughly 535 km across three sections). Over 80% of the new network will follow the route of existing natural gas infrastructure, and 21% of the pipelines will be repurposed from current gas ducts.