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UNIFHY Project
TYPE OF PROJECT: Interreg Europe Programme (ID 02C0503)
PROJECT DURATION: April 2024 - June 2028
PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES: Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Czech Republic, Ireland and Poland.
PROJECT BUDGET: The total budget approved is 1,395,028.00 €, cofinanced by the European Union.
PROJECT WEBSITE: https://www.interregeurope.eu/unifhy
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
CONTEXT: The EU and its Member States have committed to cut carbon emissions to zero by 2050 under the EU Green Deal. While renewables and electrification combined with EE will highly contribute, there are sectors that will need a different approach such as transport or industry; one of the most promising solutions is the use of green hydrogen due to its high energy density and potential to be a clean energy carrier. Hydrogen can be stored and transported, balancing out intermittent renewables and enabling grid flexibility to contribute to full system sustainability. Considering the power price variations, the opportunity is to produce green hydrogen with excess renewable energy, instead of using the former 24/7 approach.
Among the barriers for its development are availability and cost of renewable electricity, low end-users demand and limited infrastructure for its distribution and storage. While the first can be overcome, the second two require political intervention and measures at all levels.
OBJECTIVES: UNIFHY contributes to the EU strategy to strengthen economic, social and territorial cohesion in EU regions. The partnership will ensure the transfer of knowledge between more and less advanced regions in the green transition, and will propose improvements in the policies that regulate hydrogen production throughout its entire value chain.
Currently, renewable and low carbon gases such as green hydrogen may not be cost-competitive. Nevertheless, the EU is well positioned to benefit from its development, and investments in this technology will promote sustainable growth and jobs creation. To achieve this, it is important that all actors involved, public and private, and at different levels, work together to build a hydrogen ecosystem.
