5.4 billion euros for hydrogen development. The EU Commission makes a move
The money is expected to fund 35 companies for 41 research, development and deployment projects on a wide range of hydrogen technologies, including electrolysers, fuels cells and storage. The funding is expected to unlock €8.8 billion of private investments.
The EU Commission granted 5.4 billion euros for hydrogen technology within the so-called Hy2Tech, the first Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) in support of hydrogen development in the European Union. The money is expected to fund 35 companies for 41 research, development and deployment projects on a wide range of hydrogen technologies, including electrolysers, fuels cells and storage. The funding is expected to unlock €8.8 billion of private investments.
The EU Commission fo hydrogen development: the comments from Hydrogen Europe
Hydrogen Europe, quite an important organization in the hydrogen sector, welcomes the positive decision of the European Commission and the engagement of Members States and of industry in the building process of this IPCEI wave. “This very much awaited funding decision is a milestone in the acceleration of hydrogen technologies deployment at large scale. Hydrogen Europe underlines the importance of IPCEIs in the roll out of the hydrogen economy and encourages Member States to notify as soon as possible the IPCEI waves under preparation. The next waves will focus on industry decarbonisation, infrastructure, and mobility respectively and are crucial to support Europe’s technological leadership in meeting the 2030 target of 20 Mt of renewable hydrogen”.
Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, CEO of Hydrogen Europe, commented: “We are delighted to see the first wave of IPCEI projects being finally approved after an intense 2-year process. The sector has been working hard to develop and finetune the concepts, business cases and right partnerships for projects that will deliver real CO2 emission reductions at the lowest costs for taxpayers. These projects also come at the right moment to help reduce dependency from fossil fuels- in the context of the current energy crisis. Given the vast range of applications that depend on renewable hydrogen for decarbonising, we very much welcome the €5.4bn allocated by the European Commission to support these projects’’.
