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European Commission Approves German State Aid to Renewable Hydrogen Producers

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The European Commission has approved Germany's plans to grant 1.3 billion euros ($1.51 billion) in state aid to support production of renewable hydrogen, it said on Wednesday.

Germany provided the funds through the European Hydrogen Bank's "Auctions-as-a-Service" tool for an auction that closed in 2026, a Commission statement said.

The funds will support construction of up to 1 gigawatt of installed electrolyser capacity and the production up to 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen.

That production could avoid up to 55 million tonnes of CO2, the statement said.

The European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency will supervise the awarding of the state aid which will occur through a competitive bidding process.

Eligible bidders are those constructing electrolysers feeding hydrogen into the Danish Hydrogen Backbone 1 pipeline, designated a Project of Common Interest, and to deliver the hydrogen to buyers via the German Hydrogen Core Network.

The project thereby supports not only renewable hydrogen production but also cross-border infrastructure.

The aid will be in the form of a grant per kilogram of renewable hydrogen produced and it will be granted for a maximum of 10 years, the statement said.

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