2023-04-11 06:30:55
The major project of common European interest devoted to hydrogen will enable Europe to deploy hydrogen production and storage technologies in some of these Member States.
This tool, validated by the European Commission, will see some 5.4 billion euros supporting nearly 41 projects relating to the hydrogen molecule. To this windfall will be added nearly 9 billion in investments from the private sector.
Fifteen Member States are involved: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Czechia.
The 41 projects selected cover the entire hydrogen technology value chain: production, fuel cell, storage, transport, distribution, and end-use applications, in particular for the mobility sector. This hydrogen offensive will create jobs (we are talking regarding 100,000 jobs by 2030 across the entire sector at European level), and allow EU member countries to accelerate their transition energy, by replacing, where possible, the consumption of fossil fuels with that of hydrogen. This is particularly true for a sector such as the automobile and transport in general, which alone generates almost a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions at European level.
Concretely, what is the purpose of this PIIEC on hydrogen? First of all, its dimension: by formalizing massive investments around hydrogen at European level, continental players are better able to bring the various projects into line, and beyond that to avoid distortions of competition.
On the French side, the 10 projects selected, and financed to the tune of 2.1 billion euros, constitute the tricolor springboard towards a carbon-free hydrogen economy. This is how seven gigafactories are to see the light of day, spread over French territory, creating 5,200 direct jobs in the process. These gigafactories will ensure the production of electrolysers, fuel cells, hydrogen tanks, but also vehicles (trains and automobiles) and materials.
The largest French companies are involved in the PIIEC: Air Liquide, McPhy, Alstom, Renault, Faurecia, and other flagships of French industry are thus involved in the 10 projects taking place in the territory. The other European projects are also carried out by large industrial groups, accompanied by a few young shoots.
For Europe, betting on hydrogen is risky and extremely ambitious. Indeed, according to estimates, hydrogen might represent up to 20% of the European electricity mix by 2050. From there, hydrogen might cover 2 to 50% of energy demand in transport, and between 5 and 20% of energy demand for industry.
To achieve these objectives, the major constraint consists in producing carbon-free hydrogen, known as green, or even yellow in the case of the electrolysis of water powered by nuclear electricity. The PIIEC and European investments aim to produce carbon-free hydrogen, the only hydrogen that can effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Second constraint, potential hydrogen leaks, linked to the massive deployment of the molecule. The simulations show that the indirect effects of an increase in the rate of atmospheric hydrogen on the other greenhouse gases can make the overall balance of hydrogen technologies negative in terms of overall GHG balance.
The high objectives of France and Europe on hydrogen will, by 2030, revolutionize the continental energy mix, provided that the two technological locks are lifted, namely the carbon-free production of hydrogen, and the limitation potential leaks into the atmosphere.
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