Austria offers subsidy program to support renewable hydrogen production

Recently, Austria plans to provide a 400 million euro ($432 million) subsidy program with the support of the European Hydrogen Bank (EHB) to support its domestic renewable hydrogen producers.

It is reported that the Austrian Ministry of Climate Protection (BMK) and the Ministry of Finance (BMF) intend to launch a round of renewable hydrogen auctions under the European Hydrogen Bank’s “auction-as-a-service” program, providing a fixed premium per kilogram of hydrogen to subsidize production. At the same time, the Austrian Ministry of Climate Protection is also reviewing a corresponding draft law - the "Hydrogen Promotion Act".

In recent years, Europe has been trying to expand the production and import of renewable hydrogen. Renewable hydrogen is a fuel made using renewable electricity, and countries are betting on reducing the use of fossil fuels in industrial processes such as steelmaking. Ministers from Austria, Germany and Italy have previously written to the European Commission to give political support to a small number of hydrogen projects seeking EU Project of Common Interest (PCI) status, which would enable them to obtain certain EU funds and fast-track licenses.

Europe is racing to support renewable energy to replace natural gas supplies from powerhouses in the wake of geopolitical conflicts. The EU wants to produce 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen by 2030 and import a further 10 million tonnes, while Austria aims to build 1GW of electrolysis capacity by 2030 to replace "most" of the hydrogen produced from fossil fuels.