The second European Hydrogen Bank (EHB) auction has attracted 61 bids from projects spanning 11 European countries, with total grant requests reaching €4.8bn ($5.2bn) – four times the €1.2bn ($1.3bn) budget available from the Innovation Fund.
Representing 6.3GW of proposed electrolyser capacity, the projects aim to produce over 7.3 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen over 10 years, which would cover 7% of the EU’s REPowerEU ambition.
Under the auction framework, projects will have two and a half years to reach financial close, five years to begin hydrogen production, and up to 10 years of subsidies, contingent on verified production.
In particular, €200m has been specifically allocated for green hydrogen and its derivatives intended for use in the maritime sector, which resulted in eight maritime-related projects submitting bids.
