Winning projects in the second round of the EU Hydrogen Bank auction have been announced. Requesting production subsidies similar to first round winners, fifteen renewable hydrogen projects will be funded over ten years, including two ammonia projects led by IGNIS in Spain. A third auction round is set to launch later this year.
The European Hydrogen Bank has awarded nearly €720 million to seven renewable hydrogen and ammonia projects. The funding will act to bridge the price gap between the cost of hydrogen production and the price buyers are willing to pay. Recipients will receive €0.37 - €0.48 in subsidies per kilogram of renewable hydrogen, and will collectively produce 1.58 million tons of renewable hydrogen over ten years. In conducting a transparent auction process, the European Commission has also provided vital insights into trends in demand for renewable hydrogen and ammonia.
In vessel news this week:
Hy2gen and Plug Power’s renewable ammonia project will be part of a total 2.2 GW deployment across Finland, aiming to strategically utilise the country’s fast decarbonising grid and policy support at both national and EU level. Also in Finland, Flexens’ 300 MW hydrogen and ammonia project is expected to become operational in 2027, increasing the fraction of Europe’s ammonia and hydrogen needs produced locally.
We explore the GreenBalticCruising project, investigating the potential of a cruise ship route across the Baltic Sea, powered by ammonia fuel.
Green NortH2 Energy, Meriaura and Wärtsilä will develop a cargo vessel capable of running on ammonia fuel. Propelled by Wärtsilä multi-fuel engines, the vessel will be owned and operated by Meriaura, with Green NortH2 Energy to supply renewable ammonia fuel from its to-be-built production plant in Naantali, southwest Finland.
