A new university-industry joint research platform has been established to study and develop hydrogen, an energy vector capable of playing a critical role in achieving global climate goals.
The Hydrogen Joint Research Platform (Hydrogen JRP) was established by Fondazione Politecnico di Milano, Politecnico di Milano, and three founding companies, Edison S.p.A., Eni S.p.A., and Snam S.p.A., in collaboration with Politecnico di Milano and three founding companies, Edison S.p.A., Eni S.p.A., and Snam S.p.A.
The Hydrogen JRP will support innovative studies and research in several areas, including the production of clean hydrogen, such as green hydrogen and low-carbon hydrogen; associated transportation solutions and advanced storage systems; innovative electrochemical and thermal applications for domestic and industrial use, as well as in transportation systems; and the development of best practices in the design and construction of hydrogen transport and storage infrastructure.
The goal is to encourage the development of a hydrogen value chain in Italy, as well as company competitiveness and new high-tech company growth. The Hydrogen JRP is open to any company interested in participating in research and development for hydrogen-related products and services, with the support of Italy’s first technical university and its laboratories.
Hydrogen JRP will establish a strategic advisory body to increase its impact, which will include all of the major institutional stakeholders, including at the global level, in order to attract interest and investment. Hydrogen JRP plans to take on the hydrogen challenge and create an innovation ecosystem. We will confirm JRP membership for companies interested in developing a hydrogen value chain in the coming months. The platform allows members to propose vertical research topics that promote the advancement of expertise and know-how within Italy’s energy industry, depending on their membership level.
Hydrogen has the potential to play a key role in meeting the current demand for progressive decarbonization in a variety of industries. One of Italy’s goals in pursuing this prospect and promoting hydrogen production and use is to support hydrogen research and development, as well as to complete all necessary reforms and regulations for its use, transportation, and distribution. Green hydrogen’s share of Europe’s energy mix is expected to rise to 13-14 percent by 2050, according to Europe’s hydrogen strategy.
Ferruccio Resta, Rector of Politecnico di Milano, explained: “Energy transition is one of the major challenges of our times. We must persevere with two key concepts, firstly, to pursue a more forceful political path, aligning ourselves with European guidelines, based upon a phase of providing support to the industrial system, and secondly, to forge ahead in the area of research and training in order to become a global reference point for this technology. To be successful, we chart a common project where universities are operating at the side of companies. This is why we are today announcing our Hydrogen Joint Research Platform, which owes its launch to three great companies in this sector, their participation, capacity to listen and ability to ‘do’ innovation, and why this platform must be able to expand as far as possible within Italy’s productive tissue”.
Andrea Sianesi, President of Fondazione Politecnico di Milano, added: “Hydrogen will play a crucial role in Europe’s green revolution, it is a flexible energy vector and potentially with zero environmental impact. The Italian Government has given hydrogen a primary role in the country’s National Plan for Recovery and Resilience, specifically to respond to the needs of progressive decarbonisation in various sectors. We, as Fondazione Politecnico di Milano and in line with our mission of acting as a bridge between academia and the productive system, believe that it makes strategic sense to create a joint research centre to help establish an industrial value chain linked to hydrogen development, a centre that, with the backing of Italy’s first technical university and several leading energy companies, can drive innovation, while also targeting research of excellence and effective and impactful energy transfer for the development of Italy’s entire economic system”.
Giovanni Brianza, Executive Vice President for the Energy & Environmental Services Market at Edison, noted: “Hydrogen is an energy vector critical in achieving our decarbonisation objectives in transport and “hard-to-abate” sectors of industry. The biggest challenge today is to accelerate its development, so that it becomes economically sustainable, and also to give life to a new industrial chain, injecting impetus into the Italian economy, and confirming the value of our skills and expertise on the international stage. We are working with the Hydrogen JRP platform, Politecnico di Milano, Eni and Snam to place the foundations for such an invaluable common enterprise. We can also confirm that Edison is playing a fundamental role in the hydrogen sector and is resolute in supporting research and development in this field”.
Francesca Zarri, Research Director Technology, R&D and Digital at Eni, stated: “Research and development is one of the pillars underpinning Eni’s strategy of totally abolishing emissions for industrial processes and products, as well as being the key for a fair and successful energy transition. This project is inserted within the network of collaborations with primary universities and research centres, nationally and internationally, that Eni is developing to accelerate the industrialisation of innovative technology in the field of decarbonatisation and renewables”.
Cosma Panzacchi, Executive Vice President for Hydrogen at Snam, noted: “Snam has joined Hydrogen JRP with the firm intention of contributing to the growth of the R&D system, in order to strengthen Italy’s hydrogen chain and thereby accelerate its diffusion, while leveraging existing infrastructure, and giving impetus to the energy transition. This initiative is in line with Snam’s commitment to back the most promising technologies in the hydrogen ecosystem through projects like the Hydrogen Innovation Center, launched in collaboration with some of Italy’s primary universities, including Politecnico di Milano, and HyAccelerator, the first corporate global-scale acceleration programme for hydrogen startups”.
