Renewable

May 10 (Renewables Now) - European electrolyser makers have pledged to increase their annual manufacturing capacity tenfold to 17.5 GW by 2025 to support the EU’s increased renewable hydrogen ambitions as the bloc seeks to speed up the energy transition and replace Russian gas.

The commitment was made in a joint declaration signed last week by the EU Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton and 20 chief executives of European electrolyser manufacturers. The commissioner and the industry met in Brussels to discuss expanding electrolyser manufacturing capacities, which is needed to produce more clean hydrogen.

As part of its RepowerEU Communication in March, the European Commission aims to double the previous EU renewable hydrogen production target to 10 million tonnes a year by 2030 plus an additional 10 million tonnes of imports. This scale of production is estimated to require an installed electrolyser capacity of about 90 GW-100 GW.

“Clean hydrogen is indispensable to reduce industrial carbon emissions and contribute to our energy independence from Russia,” said Commissioner Breton.

“Today, industry agreed to a tenfold increase in electrolyser manufacturing capacities in Europe. The Commission will support this important industrial upscaling for an industrial leadership in the clean energy technologies of the future,” he added.

The declaration outlines steps to set up a supportive regulatory framework, improve access to finance and promote efficient supply chains. For instance, the actions include assessing state aid notification for hydrogen projects as a matter of priority and working with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to facilitate the financing of electrolyser manufacturing and deployment projects.

The joint declaration can be viewed here -- https://ec.europa.eu/docsroom/documents/50014

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