Several countries, including France, have announced plans to spend €5 billion ($5.7 billion) in “direct aid” for the deployment of decarbonisation solutions for heavy industry, with €4 billion of that amount to be spent on “innovative technologies” such as hydrogen and carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS).
Following that, according to a government statement, “the remaining will be committed to mature technology.”
During a visit to ArcelorMittal’s steel mill in Dunkirk, northern France, French Prime Minister Jean-Claude Castex announced a €30 billion ($35 billion) financial package that would be included in President Emmanuel Macron’s France 2030 green investment plan for the years 2022-2027.
Earlier this year, Macron said that his government will invest €1.9 billion in the country’s hydrogen industry by 2027, but he provided no further information.
By 2030, the world’s second-largest steelmaker plans to replace two of its three coal-fired blast furnaces with direct-reduced iron units driven by hydrogen, according to a statement released the same day. While ArcelorMittal has stated that it will spend a total of €1.7 billion on the units and a new electric arc furnace at its factory in the southern French city of Fos-sur-Mer, it was not immediately obvious how much of that money would come from the French government.
Le Maire also declared on Monday that France and Germany will collaborate on “shared industrial initiatives,” such as hydrogen, batteries, and power grids, according to the Financial Times.
