FRANKFURT, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Nationalised German gas importer and trader SEFE on Tuesday said it was interested in clean hydrogen production under its remit to help spearhead the green energy transition.
"We will look closely at entering hydrogen production," said CEO Egbert Laege in response to questions at the Handelsblatt Gas 2023 conference. Hydrogen Generator
Separately, SEFE was looking into possibly raising its 50% stake in the Gascade pipelines operated by WIGA, a 50/50 joint holding company between Wintershall Dea (WINT.UL) and SEFE.
Since a global market mechanism for green hydrogen - derived from renewable power in electrolysers to make clean gases and replace fossil fuels - does not yet exist, SEFE might emulate earlier alliances between traders and producers which spurred the emergence of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
"It will be the right way for us to seek ties to cooperate with producers and take shares in (hydrogen) projects," he said.
Laege also cited privatisation reasons for the interest in hydrogen.
Overseen by the Economy Ministry, SEFE must eventually free itself of state participations under EU rules tied to the trusteeship arranged last year to bail out the company after Russian gas receipts dried up and its market positions faltered.
"When the state pulls out we will need a more solid asset base, which is another reason for looking at investments, and those would be made in future energy technologies...where hydrogen is the leading one," Laege said.
In that same vein, SEFE welcomes plans by Gascade, a subsidiary of WIGA, for green hydrogen pipelines, which made it interesting to consider a bigger engagement, he said.
"But having received state money, we would not be allowed to play out an unfair advantage there," he said.
Reporting by Vera Eckert, Editing by Marguerita Choy
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Ford reached a last-minute deal to avoid a walkout at its Canadian operations late on Tuesday, as the United Auto Workers union prepared for a potential expansion of its U.S. strikes against the Detroit Three automakers.
Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers.
Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology.
The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs.
The industry leader for online information for tax, accounting and finance professionals.
Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile.
Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts.
Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks.
Steam-Methane Reforming All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays.