Herbert Smith Freehills Paris advises VERBUND in its partnership with TE H2 for a large green hydrogen project in Tunisia

Leading international law firm Herbert Smith Freehills has advised VERBUND, Austria's leading electricity company, on its partnership with TE H2, a joint venture between TotalEnergies and EREN Group, for the development of the H2 Notos project, a large green hydrogen project in Tunisia that will export green hydrogen to Central Europe through pipelines.

H2 Notos plans to generate green hydrogen using electrolysers powered by large onshore wind and solar projects and supplied with desalinated sea water. The project aims to produce 200,000 tons of green hydrogen annually during its initial phase, with the potential to scale up production to one million tons per year in South Tunisia. The project will have access to the European market through the SoutH2 Corridor, a hydrogen pipeline project connecting North Africa to Italy, Austria, and Germany.

TE H2, together with VERBUND, will lead the development, financing, construction, and operation of the integrated project from the production of green electricity to the production of green hydrogen. In addition, VERBUND will coordinate the transport of the produced green hydrogen to Central Europe. VERBUND and TE H2 have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Republic of Tunisia to study the implementation of the H2 Notos project.

The Herbert Smith Freehills team was led from Paris by managing partner of the firm's EMEA offices Nina Bowyer and of counsel Thomas Herman in the Energy and Infrastructure practice. The wider team included associates Caterina Molinari, Annabelle Woerth, Anna Zoumenou and Marie Badr in the Energy and Infrastructure practice.