According to a recent announcement from the European Commission (EC), Repsol and Molgas will receive more than 14 million euros in funding (via the Instrument for Alternative Fuel Infrastructures) to build eight hydrogen facilities around Spain to support sustainable transportation.
The European Union (EU) has accelerated plans to help finance the installation of these new technologies, whose power the institutions have decided to accelerate European companies with a view to making “hydrogen” available for every 100 kilometres of motorway by the year 2030. This is due to the electrification of the economies promoted by the EU as well as the “green” plans established in the European Green Pact.
In particular, the “HY2MOVE” initiative by the oil corporation envisions the deployment of six hydrogen refuelling stations and an electrolyzer to service both heavy and light cars on the trans-European transport network’s road network as it goes through Spain. These new facilities will get 42.8 million euros from the energy firm, of which 12.8 will come from the EU.
Repsol defends that hydrogen might be a substitute for heavy transport beyond 2030, even though it believes that combustion engines will still be a part of mobility solutions due to the development of liquid fuels with a low carbon footprint. Set a target of constructing 12 hydrogen plants minimum by 2025.
The company claims that liquid fuels are still the most cost-effective and efficient option for shipping and aviation. Consider, however, that as hydrogen fuel cell technologies advance, electrification is still the most cost-effective choice for autos.
By 2030, Repsol plans to have installed capacity in this area of 1.9 gigawatts (GW), for which it will put electrolyser plants near its industrial complexes. Repsol estimates investing 2,549 million euros in the full green hydrogen value chain. With a 2.5 megawatt (MW) capacity, the first one has already begun operating at its Petronor refinery in Bilbao, enabling it to supply the refinery as well as some of the facilities of the Technology Park on the Left Bank of the Bilbao Estuary.
The petrol distributor Molgas received these European funding as well after submitting a plan to build two hydrogen facilities in the city of Madrid. The company’s goal is to keep growing its footprint in Spain and throughout Europe while promoting the usage of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and providing fresh options like biomethane and green hydrogen.
The Commission also selected the Italian Enel X Way, which last year acquired 51% of Endesa’s electric mobility business, after it presented a project related to the electrification of roads, though it did not disclose its plans. concrete. It will receive 21.4 million euros in European funding to build a network of 902 150 kW-capable charging stations for electric vehicles along the major highways in Spain, Italy, and Romania.
