EC approves EUR 1.4bn state aid for hydrogen transport IPCEI

The European Commission (EC) today approved up to EUR 1.4 billion (USD 1.52bn) of state aid for the fourth Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) in the hydrogen value chain, called IPCEI Hy2Move.

Hy2Move is focused on addressing the challenges for hydrogen technology in mobility and transport applications. It involves 13 projects proposed by 11 companies, including large players, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises and start-ups. These are Air Products, Airbus, BMW, Evolution synergetique, Hydrogen de France, Skeleton, Tomark, Michelin, UFI, Gen-Hy Cube and Neumann & Esser.

Do you know we have a daily hydrogen newsletter? Subscribe here for free!

The up to EUR 1.4 billion in public funding will be provided by seven participating states - Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Spain. This state aid is expected to unlock an additional EUR 3.3 billion in private investments. Germany, Slovakia and Spain have included their participation in the IPCEI Hy2Move in their Recovery and Resilience Plans, allowing them to partly fund their projects through the Recovery and Resilience Facility.

Hy2Move follows the previous three IPCEIs on the hydrogen value chain -- Hy2Tech, H2Use and Hy2Infra. Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President in charge of competition policy, explained that the Hy2Move projects will use the hydrogen infrastructure that is being set up by H2Infra, which was approved by the Commission in February.

“Hydrogen can support us to move around and transport goods with zero emissions. But investing into hydrogen powered mobility and transport technologies can be risky for one Member State or one company alone. This is where State aid rules for IPCEI have a role to play,” she commented in the EC’s statement.

IPCEI Hy2Move encompasses four workstreams. One targets the development of mobility and transport applications to integrate hydrogen technologies in transport means, including, for example, fuel cell vehicle platforms for use in buses and trucks. The second is focused on the development of high-performance fuel cell technologies for ships or locomotives. The third workstream aims to develop on-board storage solutions for hydrogen, such as lightweight, yet robust hydrogen tanks for use in aircraft, and the fourth is focused on the development of technologies to produce hydrogen for mobility and transport applications.

The completion of the overall IPCEI is expected by 2031.

(EUR 1 = USD 1.084)