Royal Decree-Law 8/2023 of 27 December -published today in the Official State Gazette-, which adopts measures to address the economic and social consequences of the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as to alleviate the effects of the drought, provides that Enagás, as manager of the natural gas transmission network (in accordance with the provisions of article 63 bis of Law 34/1998, of 7 October, on the hydrocarbons sector), may operate as provisional manager of the hydrogen backbone.
The Royal Decree-Law states that the managers of the natural gas transmission network “may submit to the Directorate General for Energy Policy and Mines, within four months of the entry into force of this Royal Decree-Law, a non-binding proposal for the development of the hydrogen backbone infrastructure, with a ten-year horizon”. They may also “act as representatives in the European Network of Network Operators for Hydrogen”.
Likewise, and pursuant to Royal Decree-Law 8/2023, “provisionally, by agreement of the Council of Ministers and through horizontally separated legal entities, they may exercise the functions of developing the hydrogen backbone in the field of projects of common European interest”.
The Royal Decree-Law states that “this provisional regime will apply until the definitive designation of the Hydrogen Network Operators in accordance with the conditions established in the applicable European regulations”.
According to Enagás, “this is a necessary measure to meet the European objectives of decarbonisation and energy independence, and is in line with what other European countries such as Germany and the Netherlands are already doing”.
