EU electrolyser industry reiterates commitment to ambitious production targets

Today, 30 CEOs representing the European electrolyser manufacturing sector met with Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton in Brussels during the 2nd European Electrolyser Summit to discuss the objectives set out in the May 2022 European Electrolyser Summit joint declaration.

The industry remains committed to achieving the goals set out in the REPowerEU communication – to achieve 10 million tonnes (Mt) of domestic hydrogen production and 10Mt of imported hydrogen by 2030 – and is planning to ramp up electrolyser production in the EU by a factor of seven in just 3 years, moving from our current 3 GW production capacity to approximately 21 GW by 2025.

This comes with great industrial and financial challenges, as unprecedented amounts of capital will need to be raised in record time, calling for ambitious industrial policy measures that can support the sector and provide long-term signal to investors. European Policy makers are currently discussing the Net Zero Industry Act where renewable hydrogen and electrolysers are identified as strategic technology. The Act, if well designed and accompanied by strong funding measures, could become a fantastic opportunity to maintain Europe’s manufacturing leadership in the global Hydrogen sector.

Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, CEO of Hydrogen Europe, commented: “Today’s Summit shows how committed the electrolyser industry is in making Europe a global manufacturing hub. And while the market and its regulatory framework is a lot clearer than one year ago, there is fierce competition for the manufacturing of electrolysers in USA and China. This is why strong market support mechanisms such as the Hydrogen Bank should be complemented by strong economic support to clean tech manufacturing. This should become an integral part of the Net Zero industry Act”.

Today’s meeting was jointly organised by the European Commission and Hydrogen Europe under the Electrolyser Partnership, which brings together 44 companies active in the European electrolyser supply chain. The partnership was formalized and launched in September 2022, following the 1st electrolyser summit where 20 industry leaders and Commissioner Breton signed the Joint Declaration committing to advance both the regulatory framework and the industrial footprint in the EU.

In a document published today, the members of the partnership and the EC provide an update on the state-of-play one year after the signature of the Joint Declaration. The document shows how industry is continuing to build its European footprint while the regulatory framework moves closer to completion (e.g., Renewable energy directive, Delegated acts on additionality, Hydrogen Bank, etc.).
For more information:

• Commission press corner: Hydrogen: Commissioner Breton takes part in Electrolyser Summit and Clean Hydrogen Alliance Forum