North Africa Hydrogen Backbone
Project Overview
The North Africa Hydrogen Backbone is a project promoted by SeaCorridor.
SeaCorridor is currently studying the development of an infrastructure for the dedicated transport of hydrogen, connecting production centres in North Africa to the Italian Hydrogen Backbone at Mazara del Vallo in Sicily, the entry point to the broader SoutH2 Corridor initiative.
The project includes an offshore section crossing the Sicily Strait between Italy and Tunisia, as well as an onshore section reaching the Algerian border at Oued Saf Saf following the path of the existing infrastructure along with an additional onshore section to southern Tunisia.
The project enables the transport of hydrogen volumes from Tunisia and Algeria where green hydrogen can be produced at low cost thanks to the abundance of wind and solar resources.
In 2024 both countries unveiled their National Hydrogen Strategies recognizing the role of hydrogen in economic and social development while establishing ambitious production targets.
Additionally, several local and international production consortia are advancing GW-scale projects in the region, aiming to deliver these hydrogen volumes to Europe via the North Africa Hydrogen Backbone.
Project Status/Relevance
In 2024 the North Africa Hydrogen Backbone was included as one of the projects in the Ten-Year Network Development Plan 2024 (TYNDP 2024) developed by the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG). On November 18th, it was candidate for inclusion in the second PCI and PMI selection process under the revised TEN-E regulation. If admitted, the inclusion could potentially grant the project several benefits.
The project has gained extensive support from its stakeholders, both at Government level and from industrial companies across the entire value chain, as demonstrated by the 25+ signed Letters of Support submitted to the European Commission in the context of SeaCorridor PMI application.
Project Expected Benefits
Decarbonization: By enabling the import of up to 147 TWh/year (4.4 Mtpa) of renewable hydrogen produced at low cost in North Africa, the project will contribute to achieving more than 40% of the RePowerEU import target, playing a pivotal role in the decarbonization of the EU energy system.
Human capital development: As further described in the Tunisia and Algeria National H2 Strategies, the hydrogen sector is expected to create thousands of new job opportunities and promote technology transfer and knowledge exchange between international partners, ultimately fostering innovation and skills development of North African workforce through education and training programs.
Competition: By creating a direct connection to production centres in southern Tunisia and enabling hydrogen volumes produced in Algeria, the project grants Italy and the EU access to cost-competitive hydrogen produced by several large-scale renewable hydrogen projects in North Africa, fostering market evolution and competition dynamics.
Market Integration: The project enhances market integration by connecting emerging hydrogen networks of different countries, thus contributing to the emergence of an interconnected network for the transport of hydrogen both in Europe and abroad.
Security of Supply: The project enhances the security of supply for Italy and Europe, providing flexibility in the event of disruptions to other import sources within the region.
Decarbonization
Human capital development
Competition
Market Integration and Security of Supply
The SoutH2 Corridor initiative
The North Africa Hydrogen Backbone connects to the Italian Hydrogen Backbone at Mazara del Vallo, the entry point to the broader SoutH2 Corridor initiative.
The SoutH2 Corridor is a 3,300 km hydrogen pipeline connecting North Africa, Italy, Austria, and Germany. It aims to supply European demand clusters with competitive renewable hydrogen produced in Tunisia and Algeria that are particularly favourable locations thanks to abundant wind and solar resources. It utilizes high proportion of repurposed pipelines (>65%) that will enable cost effective transportation, while new pipeline segments will be built where necessary.
The corridor has gained endorsement from institutions as well as the strong support from companies across the entire value chain and along the whole route from Italy via Austria to Germany.
For more information, please visit https://www.south2corridor.net/
The commercial subsidiaries of the SeaCorridor Group
Trans Tunisian Pipeline Company manages and markets the natural gas transmission capacity from Algeria from the border between Tunisia and Algeria to the Tunisian coast.
Transmed manages and markets the transmission capacity of the gas pipeline owned by Transmediterranean Pipeline Company Ltd.