During the first community hydrogen auction, Spain and Portugal emerged as dominant players in the race for funding. Projects from these countries received a significant portion of the 720 million euros in aid awarded by Brussels through the European Hydrogen Bank. In addition to projects from Spain and Portugal, those from Norway and Finland also secured funding, highlighting strong participation from Iberian and Nordic countries.
The funds for the auction come from revenues generated by the CO₂ emissions trading scheme. The seven winning projects will receive a bonus to bridge the price gap between their production costs and the revenue they will generate from selling hydrogen. This energy vector is expected to play a crucial role in decarbonizing hard-to-electrify sectors like air and maritime transport, as well as the chemical and steel industries, as part of the transition to a cleaner energy system.
In Spain, Catalina is poised to receive over 230 million euros over the next decade after being selected as one of three Spanish projects in the auction. The project will include a 500-megawatt electrolyzer powered by wind and solar plants, producing 84,000 tons of hydrogen annually. The other two Spanish projects selected for funding are Hysencia in Huesca and El Alamillo in Córdoba, showcasing diversity in renewable hydrogen initiatives across Spain.
Projects selected in this call have up to five years to start producing renewable hydrogen after signing their subsidy agreements. The European Commission has indicated plans for a second call similar to this one at the end of the year, reflecting growing interest and potential for renewable hydrogen production across Europe. The European Hydrogen Bank aims to attract private and third-country investments to address challenges and fill funding gaps for future projects.
Despite promising developments in the hydrogen sector, concerns remain about project implementation and operationalization
