Wunsiedel (dpa/lby) – Economics Minister Hubert Aiwanger would like to put more pressure on the federal government to enable the largest plant for green hydrogen in Bavaria to operate economically again. Aiwanger (Free Voters) announced on Friday after a meeting with the operators of the electrolysis plant in Wunsiedel that he would now turn to all Bavarian members of the Bundestag on this matter. The federal government has not yet recognized the problem.
Hydrogen production in Upper Franconia has been largely at a standstill for months. In the plant, water is broken down into its components, hydrogen and oxygen, using electricity. For this, the plant is dependent on large amounts of cheap electricity from wind and sun.
Due to the electricity price brake currently in force, however, electricity suppliers have to reckon with a revenue skimming, which is calculated on the basis of the high prices on the electricity exchange. So you cannot sell cheaply generated wind and solar power to the electrolysis plant. For this reason, according to the operators, hydrogen production is becoming unprofitable.
Aiwanger is therefore calling for exceptions to the electricity price brake for electrolysers. The federal government did not consider this special case, the minister said on Friday. That can happen, but then you have to react. A previously planned doubling of the capacity of the Wunsiedler plant was canceled because of this problem, said the minister. Aiwanger had previously sent a letter to Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens).
