In June 2018, Nicolas Hulot, then minister, presented the launch of an ambitious plan hydrogen. With a budget of 100 million euros per year (over a period of 5 years), this program aims to promote the deployment of hydrogen in the industry, mobility and energy sectors.
Recognizing the benefits of this burgeoning energy resource worldwide, the government plans to make hydrogen one of the pillars of the French energy model.
Better yet, the hydrogen plan also aims to support and reinforce the performance of the French sector, because of the ecological but also economic potential of hydrogen.
It is in this context, and as announced in the hydrogen plan, that the government has just formalized the launch of the first call for hydrogen projects for French industrial players.
Hydrogen, an important resource for our energy transition
Hydrogen, one of the most abundant chemical elements in the universe, is an energy resource commonly used in the industry sector in gaseous or liquid form.
It is used as a raw material for the refining of petroleum products as well as for the production of electronic components, glass, fertilizers, ammonia as well as for the heat treatment of mechanical parts.
These uses represent significant amounts of energy for our territory. In fact, more than 900,000 tonnes are consumed each year in France. Unfortunately, these energy volumes are far from virtuous because they are mostly produced from polluting fossil fuels.
This is the reason why the government wants to promote the production of carbon-free hydrogen, that is to say, resulting from modes of production that do not use fossil fuels and whose transport is ensured with solutions of virtuous routing.
As part of its hydrogen plan, France aims to produce at least 10% of its hydrogen from renewable resources by 2023.
Promote the production of carbon-free hydrogen
The Minister of Ecological and Solidarity Transition, François de Rugy, and the President of the Agency for the Environment and Energy Management (Ademe), announced on February 26 the launch of the call for projects ” Production and supply of carbon-free hydrogen for industrial consumers “.
This call for projects, carried out within the framework of the High Ambitious Demonstrators and Innovation Territories campaign of the Investments for the Future Program, aims to make the development of hydrogen one of the priorities of our energy transition.
It is also for the government to promote the competitiveness of the sector by supporting the activity of industrial tricolor concerned about their carbon footprint.
Indeed, this invitation to tender is aimed at companies wishing to invest in low-carbon hydrogen production equipment to green their industrial processes (chemistry, electronics, glass, food industry …).
The call for projects, accessible on the ADEME website at this address , is open until 18 June. The government has announced the mobilization of an envelope of 50,000 euros for the financial support of selected projects.
Hydrogen, a solution for transportation
In addition to promoting the deployment of renewable energies and storage of their production, hydrogen also appears as a new solution to promote the democratization of electromobility.
Vehicles equipped with a fuel cell can indeed be propelled by electricity produced from hydrogen and oxygen. A technology that is relatively respectful of the environment because it is not responsible for greenhouse gas emissions.
This technology has been of interest for several years to transport stakeholders eager to reduce their carbon footprint. This is particularly the case for Air Liquide, Idex, STEP and Toyota, which announced on February 21 the creation of HysetCo, a joint venture that aims to democratize hydrogen taxis in France, notably through the introduction of a real ecosystem around hydrogen mobility.
The goal of HysetCo is simple: to reach a fleet of 600 hydrogen taxis in Île-de-France by 2020.
The idea of the four new partners is to reinforce the fleet of Hype !, a hydrogen taxi company that has been operating in Paris and its region since 2015. It is no less than 500 Toyota Mirai that should be put in place. circulation in the next two years.
Air Liquide, Idex, STEP and Toyota also plan to improve the hydrogen distribution system by installing new charging stations.
And so prove that hydrogen mobility is an economically viable model for intensive transport of people.
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