Hannover Region advances
Hydrogen offensive continues
© ÜSTRA/Florian Arp Hydrogen is one of the key energy sources of the future. Science and industry agree on this. The Hannover Region Economic Development Agency has set itself the task of promoting the topic in the state capital and the surrounding area, which is why it launched the "Generation H2" network in 2022.
In order to raise awareness of the topic among the general public and at the same time attract potential new partners, six ÜSTRA and regiobus buses with the "Generation H2" design are now driving through the Hannover region.
Ulf-Birger Franz, Head of the Department of Economics and Transport, together with ÜSTRA board member and regiobus managing director Elke Maria van Zadel, officially presented two of the six buses for the first time on Thursday.
When presenting the motifs, Ulf-Birger Franz emphasized the outstanding importance of green hydrogen as an energy source:
"Green hydrogen is a central building block if we want to achieve an energy and transport transition. For us as the Hannover Region, it is important that we pool existing knowledge from various partners and facilitate new projects. Real-world laboratories are being set up at Leibniz University and Hanover University of Applied Sciences and Arts to test the conversion of drive systems and energy supply to hydrogen. In Herrenhausen, an electrolysis plant is being built as a green hydrogen source for the Hanover region at the Hanover municipal drainage system. Other partners are welcome to join the network."
Elke Maria van Zadel emphasizes:
"We are happy to make our buses available for this important topic. As a local transport company, we are part of the network ourselves and are extremely interested in the future use of green hydrogen. In the long term, hydrogen can be a key element in implementing the energy and transport transition."
Research work
The Hannover Region is contributing 600,000 euros to the establishment of an H2 research campus . The aim is to establish a central H2 cluster for the transfer of knowledge and technology between industry and science, including a student real-world laboratory to test hydrogen-powered multicopters, for example.
Educational work
Since summer 2022, the Hannover Region, together with the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture and the Oldenburg Energy Cluster (OLEC), has been funding a part-time course of study focusing on further training for specialists and managers in the field of hydrogen technology .
Networking
One focus of the hydrogen offensive is networking and the exchange between science and industry. The central element here is the Hydrogen Day .
It serves to promote networking and exchange between science and industry. On February 10, 2023, the initiative is hosting the second Hydrogen Day at the Mechanical Engineering Campus in Garbsen .
Local meet-ups are also held at regular intervals. The aim of these local meetings is to bring together local companies and businesses and identify examples of best practice. So far, there have been such local industry meetings in Sehnde, Lehrte and Langenhagen, with more to follow soon.
Traffic turnaround
A key area of application for hydrogen is the transport sector . Funding has currently been approved for three refuse collection vehicles that are powered by H2 fuel cells. One has already been delivered and two more are to be procured in the near future. Hydrogen buses are also a sensible vehicle for local public transport. Hydrogen is a good and flexible alternative, especially for longer regional bus routes. Further efforts will be made to obtain federal funding for this in the future.