The Swiss cantons of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft have presented their first joint hydrogen strategy, aiming to support a broader scale-up of the hydrogen economy in the region and beyond. The strategy focuses on production, storage and utilisation of green hydrogen, fostering regional clusters and energy hubs to strengthen local and national energy ecosystems.  

Green hydrogen plays a key role in the global Power-to-X (PtX) landscape, where electrical energy from renewable sources is converted into chemical energy carriers like hydrogen or synthetic fuels. This process helps link electricity supply from wind, solar and hydro with hard-to-decarbonise industries and mobility sectors.  

Why Basel Matters in Switzerland’s Hydrogen Transition

The Basel region is well positioned to become a central energy hub due to its trimodal transport infrastructure, strategic Rhine ports and large fuel storage facilities. These assets offer fertile ground for scaling up hydrogen production, storage, and distribution — not just locally but across Switzerland and adjacent European markets.  

The new joint hydrogen strategy emphasises the exclusive use of green hydrogen — produced from renewable energy sources such as hydropower — and outlines its anticipated demand in sectors like industry, heavy transport, and shipping. Initial studies indicate that hydrogen requirements could reach between 0.4 % and 3.4 % of the Basel cantons’ total energy demand by 2025.  

Regional plans also include large-scale electrolysis projects, such as the planned 15 MW plant in the Birsfelden harbour, which would use hydropower electricity to generate green hydrogen to supply nearby industries.  

Power-to-X and the Future of Energy

Power-to-X technologies are key to achieving climate neutrality by enabling renewable power to be stored, transported and reused across sectors that cannot rely solely on direct electrification. For Switzerland, this aligns with national goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and integrate renewable energies across the economy. 

Integrated hydrogen clusters and energy hubs, like those proposed in Basel, strengthen local value chains, create new economic opportunities, and support Switzerland’s transition towards a defossilised and flexible energy system.  

📍 Source: “Both Basel Cantons Want to Support Hydrogen Scale-Up,” punkt4.info, 11 February 2026.  

The technology is ready, one process even celebrated its 100th anniversary last year (Fischer-Tropsch-Synthesis) but counterproductive regulations are putting the energy transition at risk.