The North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley project, jointly developed in Slovenia, Croatia and the Italian region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, has been awarded 25 million euros in grants following a tender by the EU’s Horizon Europe. The funding is part of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership Joint Undertaking, a public-private partnership for the research and development of hydrogen technologies in Europe.
The North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley is the first European transnational project with the aim to establish a dedicated hydrogen valley. The three-country partnership, with the Slovenian state-owned power company Holding Slovenske Elektrarne (HSE) as the leading partner, comprises 34 organisations and covers the entire chain, from production to storage and distribution to the end use of hydrogen in various sectors such as industry and transport.
“We are proud that Holding Slovenske Elektrarne (HSE), the main producer of electricity from renewable sources in Slovenia, is the leading partner in the North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley project. It is an excellent example of international and multidisciplinary cooperation, which will enable a faster green transition to an emission-neutral society by using hydrogen technologies and tapping into opportunities in the field of energy storage,” said Tomaž Štokelj, the Director General of HSE.
“This is also consistent with the mission and vision of HSE, which is to remain the largest producer of renewable electricity in the country and to establish itself as one of the main promoters of green transformation in Slovenia and the region through knowledge, experience and examples of good practice,” he added.
Key industrial stakeholders from all three countries will develop pilot projects for the production of more than 5,000 tonnes of green hydrogen per year from renewable energy sources and its storage, distribution and use. The final goal of the project is to decarbonise major industrial sectors such as steel and cement production, as well as sustainable transport solutions related to reducing the carbon footprint.
The project will run for 72 months. It is expected to start this year, immediately after a date is coordinated with the European Commission, which will most likely take place in the second half of 2023, HSE said.
