Delegation Trip
Green Hydrogen & Mobility
A Belgian and French delegation
visiting Central Hessen
17 October - 20 October 2022
Registrations
Register online as a member of the Belgian or French delegation on their trip to Germany!
Join the conference & B2B-event
(18.10.2022 in Gießen)
as a German participant!
Join the Belgian and French investor delegation
to Germany
As part of the ISW programme of Germany Trade and Invest, a business delegation from Belgium and France will travel to Central Hessen from 17 October to 20 October 2022 to find out about the market potential in the field of Green Hydrogen and Mobility. The aim of the trip is to introduce the economic potential of the region of Central Hessen to Belgian and French companies and stakeholders and to connect the German industry with them.
The information trip is being organised by the Berlin-based consultancy energiewaechter GmbH in cooperation with Regionalmanagement Mittelhessen (the economic development agency), the German-Belgian Chamber of Industry & Commerce (AHK debelux) and the German-French Chamber of Industry & Commerce (AHK France).
The region of Central Hessen
The region of Central Hessen (German: Mittelhessen) is located at the natural centre of Germany and therefor provides excellent transport connections. There are 5 counties (Landkreise) in Central Hessen (Landkreis Gießen, Lahn-Dill-Kreis, Landkreis Limburg-Weilburg, Landkreis Marburg-Biedenkopf, Vogelsbergkreis) which combine a population of over 1 mio people (surface area of 5381 km²). The biggest cities are Gießen (83 tsd.), Marburg (75 tsd.) and Wetzlar (53 tsd.). Furthermore, around 15.8 million people live in the regional catchment area thanks to the central location and good connections to the German road and rail networks. Within the region, it takes an average of less than 15 minutes to reach the nearest motorway junction. One in four of Germany’s major companies can be reached within two hours.
Travel distances from Gießen
- Paris: 643 km
- Brussels: 371 km
- Cologne: 159 km
- Frankfurt: 66 km
Economic situation
Mittelhessen is the leading industrial region in the federal state of Hessen, with tradition-rich universities and a thriving trade industry. It comprises innovative middle-sized companies (the famous German "Mittelstand"), applied research at universities and external research institutions, and existing cooperation structures within industry clusters. Over 80 thousand employees work in the manufacturing sector. That sector includes 380 companies with over 50 employees, an export ratio of 49% also testifies to the international orientation of the regional companies. The region of Central Hessen has improved its competitiveness in recent years according to the EU Regional Competitiveness Index, scoring above average in comparison to the rest of Germany in the areas of „innovation“ and „higher education and lifelong learning“.
Renewable energies
With partially wide landscapes, rolling hills and a low population density in the rural areas, the region of Central Hessen is thriving towards energy independence. The five counties total a renewable capacity of 936 MW wind energy and 639 MW solar energy. While the solar energy plants are located all over the region, the hot-spot for wind energy is in the Vogelsberg county, which allone stands for 460 MW wind energy capacity.
To use the regional surplus in renewable energies, energy providers, companies and cities increase the number of electrical charging stations in various projects. A local energy trading company is currently constructing a charging station for renewable hydrogen in Gießen (3MW capacity equals 1.290 kg H² per day). Also, a service operator of the regional public transport company is setting up a open workshop space for regional transport companies to get in contact with H²-technologies in public busses and transports.
Education & science
The region’s successes are the result of excellent ongoing cooperation between business, science and administration. The Mittelhessen region has the highest concentration of students in Germany. This is one of the unique advantages that this location offers companies, especially those working with cutting-edge technology. More than 71,000 students study at the region’s three universities, who are available to companies as highly-qualified specialists upon graduating. There are also a whole host of renowned research institutions, such as the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, German Paediatric Heart Transplant Centre at Gießen/Marburg University Hospital, and “Optodynamics” Research Centre.
Participation opportunities
Besides the official site visits and appointments in the region, there will also be a half-day networking & matchmaking event on 18 October 2022 in Gießen. The delegates from Belgium and France will be given the opportunity to get in contact with German partners from industry, research and politics. The aim is to find potential business and project opportunities.
Site Visits in
Central Hessen
Half-Day Conference
B2B-
Matchmaking
Belgian-French-German Cooperation
Background to the programme
The Federal Republic of Germany promotes the settlement of foreign companies in Germany through Germany Trade and Invest. As part of the ISW programme, international delegations are invited to Germany to learn about the potential of certain sectors in selected regions. The trip includes visits to top research & industry institutions and introduces selected innovation projects in the regions.
