Environmental Impact Assessment to Be Conducted for the Nordic–Baltic Hydrogen Project
Within the framework of the international Nordic–Baltic Hydrogen Corridor development project, the unified gas transmission and storage system operator AS Conexus Baltic Grid (“Conexus”) plans to carry out an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). If the project is implemented, the hydrogen corridor in Latvia would be developed parallel to the existing natural gas transmission pipeline.
Currently, several alternative options for the development of hydrogen transmission infrastructure are being explored in the Northern European region, including one project that envisages Latvia’s participation and would cross Latvian territory. However, the current research phase represents only one of the initial steps toward the potential implementation of the project. As with other infrastructure projects, this initiative requires both an EIA and other tasks related to technical and economic feasibility studies.
The Nordic–Baltic Hydrogen Corridor is a cross-border energy infrastructure initiative aimed at establishing a regional hydrogen transmission backbone by directly connecting Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Germany.
The planned EIA is necessary to identify and assess the project’s potential environmental impacts at an early stage and to obtain fact-based information that will be used for further decision-making regarding the development of the corridor in Latvia.
“The study area covers ten municipalities in Latvia, and the information obtained during the assessment will be submitted to the State Environmental Service and the Nature Conservation Agency. These data will be important not only for the evaluation of this specific project, but will also provide a significant contribution to future spatial development planning and environmental management. Importantly, the planned hydrogen pipeline is intended to be constructed parallel to the existing natural gas transmission pipeline—such a technical solution allows for the maximum possible use of an already established infrastructure corridor,” says Uldis Bariss, Chairman of the Management Board of Conexus.
In Latvia, the EIA study area will cover ten municipalities—Valmiera, Smiltene, Valka, Cēsis, Sigulda, Saulkrasti, Ropaži, Salaspils, Ķekava, and Bauska. The planned length of the pipeline within Latvian territory is approximately 270 to 300 kilometres, depending on the selected route and the interconnection point with Estonia.
Importance of the Project for Strengthening Regional Energy Security
Project development began with a pre-feasibility phase in 2024, during which the technical, economic, and regulatory prerequisites for implementing the hydrogen corridor were analysed. The detailed study and planning phase is currently ongoing and is scheduled to continue until 2027.
The project is significant in the context of European energy development and has been granted the status of a Project of Common Interest (PCI) by the European Commission. The development of hydrogen infrastructure, the so-called hydrogen backbone, will ensure the gradual establishment of an integrated hydrogen network across Europe. Such a connection will help diversify energy supply sources, accelerate the integration of renewable energy, and strengthen regional energy security.
Five gas transmission system operators are involved in the implementation of the Nordic–Baltic Hydrogen Corridor project: Elering (Estonia), Conexus Baltic Grid (Latvia), Amber Grid AB (Lithuania), GAZ-SYSTEM (Poland), ONTRAS Gastransport (Germany), as well as Gasgrid vetyverkot Oy, a subsidiary of Finland’s gas transmission system operator Gasgrid Finland Oy.
Forecasts indicate that by 2040 the corridor could enable the transport of up to 2.7 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen per year. By 2050, its implementation could help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 37 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent annually, while simultaneously improving security of supply and promoting the development of sustainable energy in the region.
The project has received funding from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF)—a co-financing amount of EUR 6.8 million has been allocated for the study phase, intended for in-depth technical, economic, regulatory, and environmental analyses. According to current estimates, construction of the project could begin around 2029, with commissioning of the infrastructure planned for 2033.
