The European Commission has selected 15 green hydrogen projects for the second European Hydrogen Bank auction. The tender received 61 bids, with a total request of €4.8bn, which represents four times the available budget for the round (€1.2bn). The selected projects will be funded by the Innovation Fund, sourced from the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS).
Once operational, the green hydrogen projects are expected to produce nearly 2.2 Mt of renewable hydrogen over 10 years. The projects are in Spain (eight projects, with a capacity of 787 kt or 890 MW), Norway (three maritime projects, with a capacity of 145 kt or 108 MW), Germany (two projects, with a capacity of 592 kt or 577 MW), Finland (258 kt or 200 MW) and the Netherlands (411 kt or 560 MW). These projects must reach financial close within 2.5 years and start production within 5 years of signing their grant agreements. They will only be awarded their fixed premium subsidy for up to 10 years upon certification and verification of renewable hydrogen production.
The EU’s Innovation Fund (€40bn) creates financial incentives for companies and public authorities to invest in cutting-edge net-zero technologies and support Europe's transition to climate neutrality. In its first auction in 2023, the Innovation Fund awarded nearly €700m in grants to support 6 projects.
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