Spain’s commitment to becoming the world’s leading producer of green hydrogen has gotten a massive boost as the EU endorses massive state aid to assist with the green project. The EU has set a long-term goal to transition from fossil fuels and focus on green and renewable energy. Spain’s commitment to producing a large amount of green hydrogen is a massive project in the right direction, and the substantial aid from the EU means the dream is fast becoming a reality.

The European Commission Competition Officials have approved the sum of $1.2 Billion in government support and aid for Spain’s dream of becoming the critical producer of green hydrogen. This goal is in line with the European Union’s ambition to achieve certain environmental goals by the year 2050, as stated in the European Green Deal (EDG).

Spain has now received a huge boost from the European Union’s support. Green hydrogen utilizes renewable electricity and solar and wind power. Interestingly, the process will help to split water into two primary components: Oxygen and Hydrogen. Therefore, the hydrogen derivative can be useful as an energy carrier or as a feedstock to produce synthetic liquid fuels with an almost zero carbon footprint.

The major target of the project, based on Spain’s draft of its national energy and climate plan for 2030, is to generate eleven gigawatts of green hydrogen electrolyzer capacity. This makes Spain the biggest in Europe, with Germany coming second with 10 gigawatts. Consequently, the project is viewed as a big step towards reaching the European Union’s goal of producing ten million tons of green hydrogen by the year 2030. Some experts have warned against the target not being realistic. However, this significant support for the green hydrogen project might just mean the EU goal is back to life.

What Will Happen with the State Aid Fund for the Green Hydrogen Project?

There are a lot of questions about where the EU would get the funds after the previous declaration of prohibition of national support for domestic industry. However, this case is slightly different because it aligns with the EU’s goal of transitioning to a net-zero carbon economy without distorting the single market.

The state aid fund is expected to be disbursed by 2025 through a competitive bidding system. The commission vice-president in charge of competition policy, Margrethe Vestager, confirmed that the Spanish project would fast-track the build-up of green hydrogen production facilities in line with EU strategic goals of eliminating the huge dependence on fossil fuel.

Conclusion

The EU’s commitment to promoting green and renewable energy in Europe is once again evident as they weigh in support of Spain’s green hydrogen scheme, a major deviation from the EU’s initial prohibition for support of state industry. However, the project promises to help the EU achieve one of its primary goals of focusing on green energy while eliminating the overreliance on fossil fuels.