The European Union’s Clean Hydrogen Partnership, a public-private partnership, has announced its first call for proposals on 41 hydrogen-related research subjects. A significant portion of the funding will be used to develop and store hydrogen.
As the EU pledges to phasing out fossil fuels, hydrogen is viewed as a handy option to convert wind and solar energy into storable energy by electrolyzing water to separate hydrogen and oxygen molecules.
Hydrogen can be used as a feedstock, a fuel, an energy carrier and storage, and has a wide range of potential applications in industries such as manufacturing, transportation, energy, and buildings, all of which are considered difficult to decarbonize, the European Commission stated in its 2020 hydrogen strategy.
By 2050, the Commission believes that clean hydrogen may meet 24% of world energy consumption. Estimates for the EU range between 9% and 14%.
The EU’s Clean Hydrogen Partnership launched its first call for proposals on 1 March. The appeal is part of a comprehensive research agenda comprising 41 research themes ranging from renewable hydrogen production through storage, distribution, and transportation.
“This historic investment is critical for the development of a vibrant hydrogen economy across the EU comprised of various innovators, manufacturers, producers, and end consumers,” said Bart Biebuyck, executive director of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, a public-private partnership.
The partnership’s new research agenda, announced on 25 February, calls for the mobilization of €600 million for a variety of research initiatives, the costs of which will be shared equally between the EU budget and private sector players.
“This call for proposals represents €300 million of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership’s €1 billion available in public money,” noted René Schutte, director of HyNorth, a subsidiary of the Dutch gas giant Gasunie. “The call will be matched by at least the same amount of private funds, totaling at least €600 million,” Schutte, a member of the partnership’s governing board, explained.
The funds will be used to advance the research partnership’s pre-defined aims for building up Europe’s fledgling hydrogen economy.
Ten awards will support hydrogen production research, including efforts to increase the efficiency of solar thermochemical water splitting and to build “low temperature water electrolysers for highly pressurized hydrogen generation.”
The emphasis on increasing the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of hydrogen production is a relatively unusual element of the EU’s research cooperation, Schutte explained.
“The Clean Hydrogen Partnership is the only partnership focused exclusively on hydrogen production, which is why a large portion of its budget is devoted to such activities,” the Dutchman explained to EURACTIV.
The partnership’s emphasis on renewable hydrogen generation arises from the reality that “the majority of hydrogen generated in the EU and globally today is produced using fossil fuels.”
Agenda for strategic research and innovation
Likewise, delivering hydrogen from producers to consumers is a pipe dream at the moment. Eleven subjects will be funded to address issues related to hydrogen storage and transportation, such as enhanced leak detection in future hydrogen networks.
“There is still much work to be done in terms of injecting hydrogen into the gas grid, liquefaction, and protocols for hydrogen refueling solutions,” Schutte added.
The remainder of the research funding will be allocated to hydrogen use in transportation, heat and power, cross-cutting projects, and hydrogen “valleys” in which industrial consumers of hydrogen collaborate with hydrogen production and distribution infrastructure to cover the entire hydrogen value chain in a given region.
When it comes to transportation, much of the emphasis is on heavy-duty vehicles rather than individual vehicles. The EU has began road testing hydrogen trucks in order to decarbonize road transport because it anticipates hydrogen vehicles will have a sizable market share beyond 2030.
“Specifically, in Call 2022, we launched a demonstration topic asking the deployment of 150 trucks. This has never been done before, and it is a critical first step toward a widespread deployment by 2030,” Schutte added.
However, there is funding available for research into hydrogen use in aviation, a particularly difficult sector to decarbonize. “We are also sponsoring research and development initiatives for liquified hydrogen, fuel cells, and storage systems for inland transport and aircraft,” Schutte added.
Valleys of hydrogen
Additionally, the research alliance is putting its weight towards hydrogen valleys, which some believe will be critical in reviving the hydrogen economy.
“We believe valleys are a critical tool for demonstrating the benefits of our hydrogen environment, and as such, we are really supportive,” Schutte told EURACTIV. “Through the Clean Hydrogen Partnership Program, we intend to establish at least five creative valleys. We have hundreds of stakeholders who are willing to assist.”
One large-scale research award worth €25 million and one small-scale grant worth €8 million have been made available for advancing hydrogen troughs in this initial tranche of initiatives.
“Valleys receive more than 10% of total EU financing, and we anticipate significant co-funding.” To illustrate, we expect that €25 million in public finance might result in up to €75 million in investments by valley partners,” Schutte continues.
