Dear Friends,

November has passed by and with it the biggest event on hydrogen in 2023, the Hydrogen Week. It has been a real pleasure to meet many of you there, at the General Assembly, our Pavilion, and several side events.

The attendance of European authorities has been of the highest level with the video message of Ursula Von Der Leyen which was inspiring, and it confirmed support for the sector’s growth for 2024 from the European Commission, particularly through the announcement of the additional 2,2 B€ for auctions of the European Hydrogen Bank. It will be interesting to see the results of the first one, which opened on November 23. Some further important news was related to mandatory national hydrogen strategic plans for all Member States - news which was probably largely underestimated in its impact.

The Vice president of the EC, Maroš Šefčovič, also attended the entire opening session together with other important representatives of the Institutions of Brazil and South Africa, conveying important messages to enlarge the collaboration with Europe through large-scale initiatives at the giga-level.

What about research? We had the opportunity to give a short introductive speech at the Welcome Session, but mainly we contributed to Session 9, on November 22, dedicated to the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. I underlined the circular approach to support the research, with a continuous effort that is necessary until a hydrogen market exists, to keep Europe at the forefront of competitiveness at the global scale and give a chance to our industrial sector to do business. It is even more important to keep scientific excellence inside our Universities and Research Centers. The excellence we have today is in large part the result of the dedicated support of several hydrogen programmes. The strong EU industry is a result of the ecosystem that has been created through the same JU.

Looking to the future, we must continue to support the JU in Europe at a time when research investments are spreading alongside China, the US, Japan, and other countries. Our model today is an inspiration for the programmes of other countries. Why should we lose it at the most critical time? There are several motivations to continue the JU, such as improving the available technologies and developing the next generation ones, and they are related to finding an answer to several open challenges: firstly, critical raw materials and advanced materials will be required at all levels of the hydrogen value chain, as they will make the difference in terms of competitiveness. Secondly, there is an absolute need for pre-normative research: we need data and data again. Finally, we need new production pathways, recycling and circularity, storage and infrastructures, end uses, education, and training of the workforce for the next decade.

It's a long and complex analysis that we are performing thanks to our members’ reply to the recent questionnaire on the future role of the JU.

Coming back to the Hydrogen Week, it was emotional for me to present the HER Young Scientist Award. It was my first time in my role as President to recognize our young researchers. You can see all the details in the section below.

We also supported other sessions with a focus on research, specifically session 12 on skills, session 13 on global research trends, moderated by Julie Mougin, and session 14 on hydrogen technologies, moderated by Viviana Cigolotti. All the sessions had a very good attendance.

We will try to increase our role in next year's Hydrogen Week (18-22 November 2024). Thank you again for your participation!

HYDROGEN EUROPE RESEARCH NEWS AND ACTIVITIES

European Hydrogen Week, 20-24 November, Brussels, Belgium

The European Hydrogen Week took place from 20-24 November! The 5-day event in Brussels was participated by more than 8000 people; more than 200 exhibitors, including representatives of international partners Brazil and South Africa, populated the exhibition floor with their innovative products, projects, and plans. More than 200 speakers were involved in bringing lively and fascinating discussions across 27 sessions between the High-Level Policy Conference and the B2B forum.

Hydrogen Europe Research actively participated in the activities of the week.

We were a proud exhibitor!

Our Pavilion at booth C10 in Hall 11 welcomed hundreds of visitors per day. 10 Hydrogen Europe Research members had their booth in the Pavilion, and were showcasing their research activities in the field of hydrogen and their interesting projects. We wish to thank our members below for their participation:

• Central European Research Infrastructure Consortium (CERIC-ERIC)
• Cetim, the French Technical Center For Mechanical Industries
• Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)
• European Research Institute for Gas and Energy Innovation (ERIG)
• Fondazione Bruno Kessler – FBK
• German Aerospace Center - Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V.(DLR)
• HyCenta
• Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST)
• University of Oulu
• Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM)

We held our General Assembly!

On November 21, from 14:00 to 18:00, we held our General Assembly in a hybrid format, both online and in person. A joint business lunch with the HIGGS project took place at 13:00; the General Assembly was then participated by more than 136 member organisations across Europe and beyond.

Our next General Assembly will be held in Budapest in June 2024. Our members are welcome to join us for another successful meeting!

Session 9: “A partnership driving forward EU research and innovation in hydrogen technologies”

Our President, Luigi Crema, was a speaker at Session 9 of the High-Level Policy Conference, where stakeholders from industry, research and policy discussed the objectives and the outlook of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. During the session, Luigi Crema described the Clean Hydrogen Partnership as a “journey of relationships”, an ecosystem where all the players like to work in synergy. He also underlined how the research sector has evolved in recent years, becoming an important point of reference for the industry sector, someone to whom the industry wants to listen.

Young Scientist Award 2023 - Winners announced!

Five young researchers belonging to Hydrogen Europe Research’s member organisations have been awarded on November 22 during the European Hydrogen Week!

The Young Scientist Award is an annual competition organised by Hydrogen Europe Research, to give visibility to the work of students, PhDs, postdocs and young researchers, and encourage their involvement in Clean Hydrogen Partnership projects. Another goal is to attract young talents to work in the field of #hydrogen and fuel cells.

Same as last year, the competition revolved around four pillars, reflecting the structure of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. One young scientist was awarded in each pillar, and one was elected “Best Researcher of the Year”:

• Hydrogen production: Drialys Cardenas Morcoso (Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST)
• Hydrogen storage and distribution: Tom Depover (Ghent University)
• Hydrogen usages: Elena Crespi (Fondazione Bruno Kessler - FBK)
• Cross-Cutting activities: Sergii Kashkarov (Ulster University)
• Best researcher of the year: Giovanni Di Ilio (University of Naples ‘Parthenope’)

Congratulations to the winners and thank you to all young researchers who applied for our award! We look forward to next year's competition!

Check out our new promotional video!

Together with Impact Media, we developed a short promotional video highlighting our latest achievements and the benefits of joining our membership. We also wanted to celebrate 15 years of hard work in the hydrogen sector: founded in 2008, Hydrogen Europe Research is now the biggest research association in Europe in the field of hydrogen.

Hydrogen Europe Research is looking for a part-time Administrative Assistant!

Apply now and become part of our team! Find more information about our vacancy and discover how to apply here.

CLEAN HYDROGEN PARTNERSHIP UPDATES

The European Research Days took place on the 15 and 16 November. This event aims to give an overview of the progress of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership-funded projects, presenting the progress of the portfolio of hydrogen-relevant projects and their predecessors, as well as other EU research programmes, identifying key achievements but also potential areas to be addressed or reinforced in subsequent years. Recording and presentations will be made available in due course.

The Programme Review Report 2023 of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership is out! This document looks at the activities and results of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership and how they align with the strategy and objectives set out in its founding Regulation, the Single Basic Act, and further elaborated in the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda.

This Programme Review covers 81 projects active between January 2022 - March 2023, assigned to seven thematic pillars: Hydrogen Production, Hydrogen Storage and Distribution, Hydrogen End Uses – Transport, Hydrogen End Uses – Clean Heat & Power, Cross-Cutting Issues, Hydrogen Valleys and Hydrogen Supply Chains.

The report highlights numerous achievements of these projects in all areas of the hydrogen value chain, addressing the importance to efficiently combine the output coming from intermittent renewable energy sources with the fluctuating demand.

The Report can be found here, and more info can be found here.

MEMBERS’ NEWS

WELCOME TO HYDROGEN EUROPE RESEARCH NEW MEMBERS!

We welcome new members interested in joining the European research and innovation ecosystem focused on hydrogen! If you are not part of the Hydrogen Europe Research membership, and you would like to have more information on how to join us, contact us at secretariat@hydrogeneuroperesearch.eu!

Energieinstitut an der Johannes Kepler Universität Linz

Their three departments cover Energy Economics, Energy Law and Energy Technologies. This combination of core disciplines allows comprehensive analyses and accounts for all aspects of future-oriented renewable energy and product topics. In addition to techno-economic and ecological analyses of the various Power-to-X pathways, the Energieinstitut an der JKU Linz also analyzes the socio-technical as well as legal and regulatory challenges for the production, storage, distribution, and use of Power-to- X products.

MEMBERS' INITIATIVES

Berlin Electrolyser Conference, 6-7 December 2023

The Berlin Electrolyser Conference (BEC) was founded in 2020 and launched as “Next Generation Electrolysers” virtual event in December 2020 and again 2021. Their mission is to bring together electrolyser specialists, engineering experts, scientific researchers and other stakeholders along the electrolyser value chain to discuss the development, manufacturing, deployment and integration of the next generation of industrial electrolysers.

Click here to learn more about this international technical summit focusing on the development, manufacturing, deployment and industrial integration of next-generation electrolysers.

Fuel Cell Modeling: Understanding Charge, Mass, and Heat Transfer in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells - CAMELOT Project Workshop, 6-7 December 2023

As part of this work, a free and open source Fuel Cell Performance Model has been developed and extended to describe the transport and kinetic processes in ultra-thin, low-loaded membrane electrode assemblies.

The workshop will provide attendees with an understanding of the general theory behind the model and highlight the improvements made within the project, as well as a hands-on implementation of the model through tutorial sessions supported by the FAST Simulations team.

Click here to learn more about the event.

World Fuel Cell Conference 2023, 11-13 December 2023, Imperial College London, UK

The 2023 World Fuel Cell Conference (WFCC) is a multi-disciplinary conference that covers the latest developments and advancements in fuel cells, from fundamentals, to advanced materials, design, engineering, products, and applications.

Click here to learn more about the conference and its programme!

EVENTS ATTENDEND BY HYDROGEN EUROPE RESEARCH

#ReskillEU - new jobs for energy and transport in Europe, 8 November 2023, 9AM - 6PM | Room JDE62 | EESC, Rue Belliard 99, Brussels, Belgium

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and DG Research & Innovation (DG RTD, European Commission) organised a one-day conference, in Brussels on 8 November 2023, to discuss the need for new skills in the areas of clean energy and transport focusing on skills development through R&I activities.

The conference brought together relevant stakeholders, notably civil society organisations, education networks, academia, industry, research organisations and European institutions to discuss the contribution of research and innovation activities to the skills agenda for Europe. Our President, Luigi Crema, was a speaker at the event.

WIVA P&G annual event, 27 November 2023, Linz, Austria

At the WIVA P&G annual event, our President Luigi Crema outlined the role of research in developing a European hydrogen value chain.

DON'T MISS THE NEXT EVENTS!

European Hydrogen Energy Conference (EHEC) 2024, 6-8 March 2024, Bilbao, Spain

As part of the relationship of collaboration and cooperation with the Spanish Hydrogen Association, we are pleased to inform you that the new edition of the European Hydrogen Energy Conference (EHEC 2024), organized by the AeH2, will be held in Bilbao on March 6,7 & 8 2024.

EHEC has established itself as a leading conference in the hydrogen sector, taking place every two years for almost two decades. The previous edition, held in Madrid in 2022, attracted over 1100 attendees from 40 countries. With more than 200 speakers, 36 parallel sessions, and over 50 exhibitors throughout three days, it provided a comprehensive platform for knowledge and business exchange.

We believe that EHEC 2024 will offer a unique opportunity to stay up-to-date on the rapid changes within the sector, both in terms of R&D and industrial and regulatory advances.

Follow the event on Linkedin!

Hydrogen Days 2024: "Hydrogen – Implementation Lost in Regulation?", 20-22 March 2024, Prague, Czech Republic

Hydrogen Days 2024, now in its 14th edition, continues to be a leading event within the hydrogen community. This conference serves as a significant platform for the exchange of information and experiences across European regions at various stages of implementing hydrogen technologies into everyday life.

The primary focus this year will be the progress of hydrogen implementation, a key aspect in advancing technology maturity and broad public adoption while addressing unforeseen challenges.

The conference will take place on March 20-22 as a physical event. Click here to discover more about the conference!

Spring Summer School JESS 2024: Pre-Announcement 2024

In 2023, the Joint European Summer School JESS 2023 was held near the beautiful city of Athens on the coast of the Aegean Sea. Once again, the summer school provided condensed high-level courses on selected topics. The topical content is tailored to the needs of a diverse audience: newcomers to the field of hydrogen, experienced students, and young professionals working at the forefront of fuel cell, electrolyser, and battery applications.

As the Low-Temperature Fuel Cell and Electrolyser module has attracted incredible interest (as last year), and they had to reject a large number of registrations, they have decided to re-run this module in May 2024. The Spring Summer School JESS 2024 will take place from 5 to 11 May 2024 somewhere in Greece.

More details will follow via the website as it becomes available.

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