On Monday 1 December, the European Commission published its second list of Projects of Common and Mutual Interest (PCI/PMI) eligible for funding from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).
Of the 235 cross-border projects submitted, 113 are devoted to electricity, 100 to hydrogen and electrolysers, 17 to carbon transport infrastructures, three to “smart” gas networks, and two to linking Malta and Cyprus to the continental European gas network.
For the European Commission, these projects will not only improve the continent’s energy connectivity, but will also play “a strategic role in increasing the EU’s competitiveness and decarbonisation”, as a spokesperson pointed out.
Criticism of the number of hydrogen infrastructure projects. However, a number of analysts, members of civil society and scientists regretted the large number of hydrogen infrastructure projects on this list, citing technical constraints and disproportionate costs, particularly for repurposing gas infrastructure.
The total investment for the proposed hydrogen projects “exceeds €80 billion, not including the substantial subsidies that will be required to create demand for hydrogen”, wrote around thirty organisations, including Food & Water Action Europe (https://aeur.eu/f/js3 ).
The Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) has also previously expressed concern that “hydrogen network development plans are primarily focused on future demand ambitions rather than specific market needs”.
For David Cebon, Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Cambridge and co-founder of the Hydrogen Science Coalition, the EU should focus instead on priority uses, with local hydrogen production in industrial clusters and a minimum of long-distance transport infrastructure.
He told Agence Europe that giving preferential treatment to a multitude of hydrogen pipelines represents “an extraordinary waste of money when we when we have a desperate need to build out renewable infrastructure to build out electricity grids and interconnection between countries”.
On the other hand, Daniel Fraile, Policy and Market Director at Hydrogen Europe, welcomed the fact that the new list demonstrated “Europe’s commitment” to developing a “pan-European” hydrogen infrastructure.
The list will be submitted in the form of a delegated act to the TEN-E Regulation, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU, which have two months to accept or reject it.
To consult the list, visit https://aeur.eu/f/js4 (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)