Leipzig / Copenhagen, September 30, 2026 – The Danish government and the parties behind the political agreement on Denmark's hydrogen infrastructure have entered into a supplementary agreement that changes key conditions of Energinet's capacity sale for Danish Hydrogen Backbone 1 (DHB1). The capacity sale, which runs on the PRISMA platform, is extended by almost a year, and bookings submitted by 1 December 2026 will no longer be binding.

Why the conditions are changing

Hydrogen producers had pointed out that the original framework made it difficult to book capacity in DHB1 while maturing their own projects. Under the previous rules, they had to take on significant financial commitments before Energinet had made a final investment decision on the infrastructure – a particular risk for projects about to sign support contracts with the EU and the German state. The revised conditions are intended to give producers more room to reserve capacity and finalise these agreements.

What changes for market participants

• The booking requirement of 0.5 GW remains in place as of 1 December 2026. Market participants still submit their desired capacity by this date, but these bookings are no longer binding.
• The deadline for final capacity bookings moves from 1 December 2026 to 1 November 2027, and the option period is extended until 31 December 2027.
• For the pipeline to be realised, a booking guarantee of at least 0.1 GW must be provided by 31 December 2027.
• Producers can terminate their capacity contract until 31 December 2027. This change is pending final approval by the Danish Utility Regulator, expected in early October.
• The conditions regarding Energinet's positive investment decision and a construction agreement with Gasunie Deutschland are removed from the capacity contracts.

Additional state support

The state's operating support for the hydrogen pipeline increases by DKK 5.6 billion to a total of DKK 16.5 billion. In addition, the state's coverage of Energinet's potentially stranded costs rises from DKK 417.4 million to DKK 2.1 billion until 1 January 2028, so that project work can continue while final bookings are made later than originally planned. Energinet continues to target commissioning of DHB1 at the end of 2030.

Booking via PRISMA

Registration and capacity requests for DHB1 continue to run via the PRISMA platform. Energinet is holding a webinar for market participants on 1 October 2026 to present the revised terms in detail.

Read Energinet's Full Update