National Commission of Markets and Competition. Friends, we have reached the end of a day that I believe has been exceptionally interesting once again, followed not only from the room but also by many other people via streaming. We have had more than 1,000 people connected to this broadcast, which is extraordinary. We first had a magnificent institutional opening. We first had a video from the Executive Vice President of the European Commission, Teresa Rivera. We have all seen it, but it is worth recalling some of the statements Vice President Rivera made in that video. She told us that green hydrogen is more than a clean energy source; it is key to the European strategy for energy autonomy and competitiveness. Green hydrogen is a cornerstone of Europe's vision for a sustainable, secure, flexible, and competitive energy system. She told us that ahead of the upcoming publication of the European Union's Industrial Clean Deal, hydrogen will be a key enabler. Referring to H2Med and infrastructure in particular, Teresa Rivera told us that H2Med has strategic importance for connecting European hydrogen networks as a key piece of the European Hydrogen Backbone, and that H2Med will contribute to creating a cohesive and efficient hydrogen ecosystem across the continent, connecting producers and consumers. Then we had the honor of having the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, who referred to Spain's role in relation to hydrogen. He said, 'Spain is the world epicenter of the most promising green hydrogen. Green hydrogen will help us drive something fundamental for the Government of Spain: reindustrialization with territorial cohesion.' Referring to H2Med, recalling that he himself participated in the Euro-Mediterranean summit in December 2022 at the launch of the project, he said, 'We had to fight for it, we achieved it, and now we continue working with our European partners to make H2Med a reality as soon as possible, and with that Iberian vision of the Iberian Peninsula between Portugal and Spain.' And our President of the Government ended with that slogan that Elena reminded us of and that I think will go down in the annals: 'Green Baby Green.' I think that's very good. Then I myself had an introduction from our president, Antonio Yardén.
Then I myself gave an update on how the infrastructure is progressing in Spain, especially in the European Union, and I announced two important milestones for today. First, we have submitted the second list of candidates for PCI projects, four sections that expand the Spanish Hydrogen Backbone, which is the result of the call for interest we launched a year ago. These four sections, do you remember, are Guitiriz-Amora, Huelva-Algeciras, a transversal section crossing the northern plateau from Zamora to La Rioja, and another on the southern plateau connecting Puertollano with Madrid and Levante. All peninsular autonomous communities are now connected to this network. And second, we announced that today we launched the conceptual plan for public participation of the Spanish Hydrogen Backbone, which I will refer to later because Natalia la Torre and Jesús Gil presented it to us.
Next we had a panel with five, including myself six, CEOs of leading TSOs in Europe. The effort to build a European hydrogen network is a joint effort of European institutions, member states, their governments, their regulators, with the TSOs, which to a large extent are us, taking a comprehensive vision and joint effort. This panel brought together the CEOs of SNAM, Fluxys, DESFA, REN, Terega, and myself. I think a series of messages emerged that I would highlight. Some of the great challenges before us are consolidating the creation of demand, the emergence of demand, continuing to advance in cost reduction. This is a concept that came up in the following panels. Completing a robust regulation for the hydrogen market across Europe, which has as its first challenge the rapid and aligned transposition of the decarbonized gas and hydrogen package in all states. Continuing to advance in the development of new uses for hydrogen. Let's not think only of industrial demand. Industrial demand is very important to get started, but for example we have seen in this last panel and I will refer to it later, the importance of hydrogen in the mobility sector, that we establish homogeneous rules for aid mechanisms, support mechanisms in the different member states, and that we achieve a robust cost-benefit analysis for the most efficient solutions in each possible application of hydrogen across the European scenario. I summarized it in a very simple formulation. I think it was Stefano: make it fast, make it simple, make it consistent.
Well, I think it has become clear in that panel together with the one that followed that the European TSOs are rolling up our sleeves, we are moving forward at great speed and with very solid collaboration mechanisms among us. And I refer to the other panel because in it the CEOs of OGE and GRTgaz presented the state of infrastructure in France and Germany and in particular gave us the first impressions of the call for interest process we developed for H2Med, the five TSOs involved at the end of last year. The results have been very positive. They reveal that the Iberian Peninsula will have a very important role in hydrogen production and also reveal that there is very strong demand for green hydrogen along the corridor in France and especially in Germany. 528 projects from 168 companies were submitted to this call for interest exercise. With this role that TSOs must play of combining infrastructure planning and execution with market consultations. The detailed results of this call for interest will be announced in a webinar already scheduled for February 10, just around the corner.
Then we had a panel on industry decarbonization. We had major players currently in gray hydrogen. We had BASF, we had Moeve, we also had technology solution companies, or those with both roles, industrial consumer and solution provider, such as ThyssenKrupp. We had a large electrolyzer manufacturer, Cummins. We had Joan Batalla representing the transport and distribution sector in Spain. Some key messages. This has resonated throughout the day. Electrification is very important for decarbonization, but not everything can be electrified. Where electrification is not possible and we need to manage the decarbonization of molecules, hydrogen comes into play as a protagonist. And the adoption of hydrogen in these uses will always be the result of resolving the pending barriers in terms of hydrogen costs and the existence of infrastructure that makes it accessible. Cost and infrastructure as necessary instruments for adoption. And this at a time when the competitiveness of European industry is under pressure, these major actors have told us very clearly, and therefore we need to embrace the vectors of decarbonization and energy transition, but with a very important focus on efficiency and competitiveness. I think we have heard an enormous declaration of support for hydrogen. I was particularly struck, for example, by how Marten Betellar announced that they will start taking FIDs on their large projects before this summer. That is already imminent. This message has resonated throughout the day. Hydrogen is happening, decisions are being made at an accelerated pace. He said that if we hear around us that some projects are failing and that hydrogen is losing momentum, it must be because the projects that have been proposed in the wrong place are failing, but without a doubt where there is potential for competitive renewable hydrogen generation, as in Spain, those projects will undoubtedly go ahead. And he urged us to bring a sense of urgency. There is haste, we have no time to lose. Nadia Hanson from ThyssenKrupp reminded us that for large consumers, it is key to have timely certainty that infrastructure will be available. For a large industrial that has to decide to convert its processes, for example, steelmaking to direct reduction with hydrogen, it must have certainty that it will have hydrogen supply on time. And therefore, the role of governments, European institutions, and regulators is key for this. In this panel and in a later one, the role that blue hydrogen can have in some parts of Europe as a transition solution was discussed. Blue hydrogen can be available quickly in some parts of Europe where green hydrogen may take longer to arrive. I think that is a message that has also resonated and we must take into account.
Then we had a panel on the challenges of decarbonization in Europe. I think it was very useful to update the state of play of Brussels' priorities in this new stage that begins. We heard the great messages from Teresa Rivera, but today we had people who are on the teams developing the initiatives. We had Carlos Álvarez from the Commission, who placed extraordinary emphasis on giving us confidence that we will have the development instruments. He gave reassurances that hydrogen development will be a priority for the Commission, and he called us, as Vice President Rivera also did, to the Clean Industrial Deal, which will be presented within a month to see the direction of these new initiatives to be adopted by the Commission. For example, he highlighted that President von der Leyen in Davos announced the creation of a Global Energy Transition Forum that will be formed with third countries beyond the European Union and that will have hydrogen as one of its priorities. Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, the CEO of Hydrogen Europe, in that same panel reminded us that in the intervention of the Commission President in Davos last week or two weeks ago, of the five action priorities of the European Commission for this new stage, one of the five priorities is hydrogen. That is also a very powerful message. He launched an idea that will surely have traction, which is under discussion with the Commission, that to ensure that sectors with shorter-term hydrogen commitments can find a more expeditious, faster, more agile mechanism to process their projects, he referred to a lead markets initiative that could be applied to the refining sector, green steel, fertilizers, and data centers. And he launched the idea that on this matter there may be special advances soon in the Commission's initiatives. María Alfayate from CINEA reaffirmed CINEA's commitment, of course, with the Innovation Fund that is financing many of our projects today and is the star of the moment because it finances the European Hydrogen Bank, we have the second auction underway, and she reminded us that probably today we will learn about the PCI projects that will receive CEF funds for the study and engineering phase. I had anticipated that perhaps this afternoon I could give you some news on this. I think not yet, but well, we believe the results are surely positive, but well, María emphasized that CEF Energy is stepping into hydrogen, which is also very good news.
And this morning we had what several have called the new kid on the block, which is ENNOH. We had Abel Enríquez, the director of ENNOH, as you know, and he will be a driving force for hydrogen deployment. Without a doubt, he asked for an accelerated transposition of the directive and a transposition as aligned as possible among member states so that we do not have each member state at a different stage of creating its regulatory framework. Next task for ENNOH: when it can finally get started, to create the network codes that will allow us to manage all the same technical criteria for the design and operation of networks. We had a presentation from Susana de Pablo of the Hydrogen Technology Observatory that we launched from Enagás a little less than a year ago. It is an initiative that seeks to create space to share ideas, developments, technical knowledge. We already have more than 40 leaders from their segments of the value chain adhered to this observatory, and I invite others who are not yet part of it to join this effort to advance technical and technological knowledge around hydrogen, because it will also allow us to focus on things that often receive less attention, such as the issue of talent, having the talent available for the hydrogen sector, and working on social acceptance.
We had a magnificent panel on Germany's hydrogen import needs and plans. Many thanks to the help of the German embassy, which allowed us to organize this panel. Germany is being very active in developing activities to ensure that hydrogen corridors in Europe work. Recently, at the German embassy, the alliance to support the southwestern hydrogen corridor, as it is called in Germany, the Iberian corridor or H2Med, was launched. But the key message is that there is broad consensus in Germany that between 50% and 70% of Germany's hydrogen needs will have to be imported. For this, different corridors are considered, all of them are being supported by the German government, but among them, Gunter Hatz told us that the Iberian corridor, the Southwestern Corridor, is probably the most promising. Germany has taken a first step towards building a large hydrogen backbone, what in Germany is called the Core Net or the Kern Next Net. It has already been decided that 9,000 km will be built, €19 billion, but that network will have to be filled and we must ensure that the mechanisms and policies are strengthened to allow it, I think Matías Deutulaba said that all this can happen if energy policy instruments are strengthened in the right direction. We had the vision of the German Gas and Hydrogen Association with Tim Keller, the TSO Association with Barbara Fisser. All messages point in the same direction. We must continue working on the physical availability of hydrogen and price competitiveness. And for this, there is a factor that still needs to be finalized, which are the tenders, the auctions for electricity generation plants compatible with hydrogen. This is one of the next developments that will complete the picture in Germany and will allow Germany to be the core of a large European hydrogen network. There was a brief exchange of views on what can be expected from the new government in Germany after the February 23 elections, and there was broad consensus that the bet on hydrogen is not in question. Raúl Yunta from MIBGAS presented the IVIX index, the new hydrogen price index in Spain. Raúl, I don't know if you are here. Thank you very much. A year ago you committed to bringing a solid proposal shared with the value chain actors. I think it is putting Spain at the forefront of this matter. Now what we need is to see that €5.86 per kilogram come down as efficiency and other cost elements improve. Thanks to Claudio Escarpenter from BIP, who reminded us of that study commissioned by the European Commission that shows that Spain and Portugal have enormous potential to supply up to 7 million tonnes of hydrogen volume for export in 2050. We have seen how it can therefore be a key supplier for the needs not only of Germany and the Benelux, which is already in deficit in hydrogen by 2030, but also for example for France, which although it may be in surplus in 2030, by 2040 and 2050 it becomes a clear net importer of hydrogen. Natalia and Jesús, you presented the conceptual plan for public information splendidly, I must say. Congratulations. You gave us a very clear idea of the great challenge this entails: 2,600 km, 550 km of repurposed gas pipelines, three compression stations, 13 autonomous communities, 55 municipalities, 25 provinces, more than 1,000 stakeholders.
Well, we are going to start that process and you are all invited to be part of it, and we had a final panel on mobility, which I have already referred to a couple of times. Mobility is the great area of demand that is being systematically overlooked. But then the first auction of the European Hydrogen Bank arrives and 30% of the projects submitted are for mobility. And when we see that the regulations in air transport with ReFuelEU Aviation or maritime transport with FuelEU Maritime are already in force and have challenges for which hydrogen is essential and which begin to accumulate from this year, then without a doubt we see that mobility must be one of our great priorities for the coming years. Thank you very much, Eugenia, for moderating this panel. Miguel Carsi gave us a very accurate vision of how major automobile, truck, and bus manufacturers like Toyota are accelerating the market launch of new models. We need that to happen quickly because transport, mobility is where perhaps in the shortest term we can narrow that competitiveness gap of hydrogen as a fuel. Thanks to Margarita de Gregorio, who reminded us of these great objectives of the aviation sector. 2035, 5% RFNBOs already in the SAF that aviation must consume. It is just around the corner and it is a very ambitious challenge, just as Javier Errador reminded us of similar challenges in the maritime sector, and Juan Jesús Sánchez, heavy road transport is a formidable opportunity and challenge for decarbonization. The other day I read in a report that between Europe and the United States there are 6 million heavy trucks. If 1% of trucks convert to hydrogen, 60,000 trucks consume 1 million tonnes of hydrogen per year. So this is a sector we need to focus on a lot. But Juan Jesús, as you rightly said, the sector is waiting for hydrogen. Hydrogen has to arrive. We need more vehicles, more competitive ones, aid schemes better tailored to the needs of land transport, and we need more clarity in the application of the new regulatory requirements. We have therefore reached the end, a moment of thanks before giving the floor to close the event to the President of the National Commission of Markets and Competition. Thank you, Elena, for conducting this event as always wonderfully, with rigor and also with a sense of humor. Thanks to the teams that helped us organize this event, especially the Enagás teams, to Felisa Martín's team, who have raised this to a level of excellence that I think is unsurpassable. Thanks to those who have accompanied us, who have been with us throughout the process, representatives of embassies, state administration, autonomous communities, local entities, colleagues from other TSOs who have accompanied us today in a very prominent way. I would like to thank the support of the Board of Directors of Enagás, which has been with us all day and has been supporting us on this path. And finally, and to conclude, this morning we had the Executive Vice President of the Commission by video, the President of the Government of Spain, and we have the privilege, the honor, once again for this institutional closing, to have the President of the National Commission of Markets and Competition, Cani Fernández, convey the regulator's vision. Cani, the stage is yours. Thank you.
