Slovakia

Country: Slovakia

Document type: National Strategy

National Hydrogen Strategy: Ready for the Future

Released: June 2021

Summary Points:

A Visegrad Group communication indicated that the Slovak Government, on Wednesday 23 June 2021, approved the National Hydrogen Strategy.

The strategy notes that for Slovakia to achieve its decarbonisation goals, hydrogen is planned to be used as an energy carrier in its industry segments and public life in areas in which it is impossible or not cost-effective to directly engage electricity.

The strategy notes that Slovakia will support education and R&D of hydrogen use in the Slovak economy in order to stay competitive in the EU market.

The strategy discusses hydrogen usage in:

  • Chemical and Petrochemical industries, noting that at the time of strategy development, this sector consumed more than 200,000 tonnes of (grey) hydrogen per annum and was the largest producer and consumer of hydrogen.
  • Steel Industry and Metallurgic processes, noting that these industries are the largest contributors to carbon dioxide emissions in Slovakia.
  • Gas industry, noting the importance of reviewing options for technological modifications of the Slovak natural gas transmission network, including its expansion and connection to other European natural gas pipeline.
  • Heat management, noting that quantification of the efficient rate of replacing natural gas by hydrogen for use in heating requires further analysis of the ability of the electricity grid to cover the additional electricity consumption and of the gas network to accumulate and store the required hydrogen volumes for long periods of time.
  • Transportation, noting that for Slovakia to use hydrogen in mobility applications, it would build a network of refuelling stations based on transportation concentrations and the expected consumption of hydrogen in given regions.

Based on current hydrogen use, the strategy notes that Slovakia would consume 200,000 tonnes of hydrogen a year by 2030 and that, on the basis of intense usage of hydrogen, this could reach 400,000-600,000 tonnes by 2050 – of which 90% would be sourced from low-carbon sources.

The strategy notes that to support basic and applied research, the Centre for Research of Hydrogen Technologies (CRHT) of the Slovak Republic, located in Kosice, was founded. The strategy notes the Centre would be funded by public and private funding and EU funding.

Note: The Visegrad Group (also known as the “Visegrad Four” or simply “V4”) includes Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia and reflects the efforts of the countries of the Central European region to work together in a number of fields of common interest within the all-European integration.

 

Reviewed: January 2024