Energy innovation group EIT InnoEnergy has launched a new initiative aimed at stimulating the development of a green hydrogen economy in Europe that could be worth up to €100 billion a year by 2025.
The European Green Hydrogen Acceleration Center (EGHAC), launched today, is supported by Microsoft founder Bill Gates’ energy tech group Breakthrough Energy, and is to support the advancement of green hydrogen production.
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The initiative will have a number of workstreams, including the promotion and co-creation of industrial projects throughout the value chain, establishing greater connections with other industrial and energy sectors, help accelerate technology development, stimulate growth of the market and address potential skill gaps in the industry.
Jacob Ruiter, member of EIT InnoEnergy’s executive board, said the commercialisation of green hydrogen is “absolutely vital” to Europe’s net zero ambitions.
“Quite simply, there is no better way of decarbonising heavy industry and heavy transport, and it can also play a significant role in supporting grid flexibility through storage,” he said.
Solar and other renewables’ role in Europe’s burgeoning green hydrogen sector is now well established, with the European Commission’s green hydrogen strategy having suggested that up to 120GW of additional renewable generation capacity would be needed by 2030 to meet the bloc’s ambitious targets.
EIT InnoEnergy is supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, and has been established with the aim of supporting and investing in various energy technology-related start-ups. It has led the industrial stream of the European Battery Alliance for the past three years, and intends to replicate its successes in the green hydrogen sector through the launch of the EGHAC.
“We are delighted to be spearheading this initiative with the support of Breakthrough Energy and look forward to working in earnest to reduce the cost of green hydrogen, stimulate market uptake and build a strong European green hydrogen value chain, as quickly as possible. Speed is of the essence,” Ruiter said.