The schemes will contribute to the objectives of the Clean Industrial Deal to accelerate the decarbonisation of EU industry while strengthening its competitiveness, of the REPowerEU Plan to reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels and accelerate the green transition, as well as the EU Hydrogen Strategy.

Austria and Lithuania notified the Commission of their intention to introduce schemes to support the production of renewable hydrogen through the “Auctions-as-a-Service” tool within the European Hydrogen Bank. The approved schemes will support the production of up to 112,000 tonnes of renewable hydrogen in Austria, and 13,000 tonnes of renewable hydrogen in Lithuania, resulting in the avoidance of the equivalent of up to 536,000 tonnes and 61,000 tonnes of CO2 respectively. This will help the Member States achieve their national hydrogen objectives, as well as the targets for the share of renewable fuels of non-biological origin (RFNBOs) consumed in transport and in industry that are set in the Renewable Energy Directive.

The aid will be awarded through a competitive bidding process to be concluded in the first quarter of 2025. The bidding process will be supervised by the European Climate, Infrastructure, and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) which will receive, assess, and rank bids for projects in all Member States. The support provided under the schemes will be open to companies planning to construct new electrolysers in Austria and Lithuania.

Under the schemes, the aid will take the form of a direct grant per kilogram of renewable hydrogen produced. The aid will be granted for a maximum duration of ten years. Beneficiaries will have to prove compliance with EU criteria for the production of renewable fuels of non-biological origin (RFNBOs). This includes contributing to the deployment or financing of the additional renewable electricity which is needed to produce the hydrogen supported under the scheme.