The EC has approved, under European Union (EU) state aid rules, a fourth Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) to support research, innovation and the first industrial deployment in the bloc’s hydrogen value chain.

The IPCEI Hy2Move project is focused on mobility and transport applications and is backed by seven member states: Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Spain. The project seeks to develop hydrogen fuel cell technology, hydrogen storage and hydrogen production, and integrate hydrogen into road, rail and air transport. The countries are to provide some €1.4bn of public funding which, in turn, is expected to unlock an additional €3.3bn in private investments.

The project will contribute to the EU’s target of a 90% reduction of emissions from the mobility and transport sectors, in order for the bloc to become climate-neutral by 2050. By fostering the use of hydrogen as a fuel, it will also help achieve the objectives of the European Green Deal, the EU Hydrogen Strategy and the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, says the EC.

IPCEI Hy2Move complements the first three IPCEIs in the hydrogen value chain: Hy2Tech, which focuses on the development of hydrogen technologies for end users; Hy2Use, which focuses on hydrogen applications in the industrial sector; and Hy2Infra, which concerns infrastructure investments that are not covered by the first two IPCEIs.

Green hydrogen export plan
In other news, the UK’s Net Zero Technology Centre (NZTC) and German-based Cruh21 have unveiled a green hydrogen collaboration between Scotland and Germany.

The report analyses potential Scottish hydrogen production and German demand, with matching scenarios for hydrogen export and consumption, exploring multi-sector end use, the technologies, infrastructure and regulatory frameworks required to enable a safe and effective distribution of hydrogen.

Commissioned by the Scottish government, the report suggests that prospective Scottish hydrogen exports could potentially satisfy anything between a fifth and 100% of Germany’s hydrogen import volume by 2045.

Two critical developmental stages are identified in the report. The first stage looks at the short term up to 2030, and encompasses early production and end-use activities preceding the installation of hydrogen pipelines to export 35 TWh of hydrogen. The second stage looks at a period of 2030–2045 and involves the commissioning and ramp-up of pipeline infrastructure to facilitate enhanced distribution at a low cost to export 94 TWh of hydrogen.

The report, which focuses on the off-taker potential and cross-border distribution of hydrogen, complements NZTC’s Hydrogen Backbone Link report which evaluates transport infrastructure and specifically the reuse versus new-build of a dedicated hydrogen pipeline (a topic also explored recently in an Energy Institute report).

Tunisian hydrogen export plans
Sticking with the export theme, TE H2, an 80:20 joint-venture between TotalEnergies and Eren Groupe, together with Verbund, an Austrian electricity company, have signed a memorandum of understanding with the Republic of Tunisia to study the potential implementation of a project to export green hydrogen via pipeline to Central Europe.

The H₂ Notos project aims to produce 200,000 t/y of green hydrogen in south Tunisia initially, using electrolysers powered by large onshore wind and solar projects and supplied with desalinated sea water. It is hoped to scale up production to 1mn t/y.

The project will have access to the European market through the SoutH2 Corridor, a hydrogen pipeline project connecting North Africa to Italy, Austria and Germany, which is expected to be commissioned around 2030.

UK peaking plant being made hydrogen-ready 
Meanwhile, construction work is currently underway to double capacity at Centrica’s Brigg energy park in Lincolnshire, UK, as part of a plan to make it hydrogen-ready to take part in a trial due to start in late 2024. The trial will see hydrogen blended into the plant’s gas, ramping up from a 3% blend to 20%, with a long-term vision to move towards 100% hydrogen and to deploy similar technology across all peaking plants.

Four engines are being installed at the former combined cycle gas power station, which was decommissioned in 2020, helping to create nearly 100 MW of fast-response assets capable of meeting demand when renewable generation is low.

Centrica is redeveloping the Brigg energy park which, once complete, will be home to a 50 MW battery, commercial-scale hydrogen production using HiiROC technology (in which Centrica has a 5% stake) and the 100 MW gas peaking plant.