The Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU) of the European Commission have selected the project Green Hysland in the Balearic Islands to start negotiations for an EU grant agreement valued at EUR10 million (US$11.82 million) that would constitute the second-largest grant by this European Commission body to a green hydrogen project and the largest grant ever offered to a Mediterranean country.
In line with the new EU Hydrogen Strategy, Green Hysland will be the first Southern European Flagship project and it will create a ‘green hydrogen ecosystem’ in the Balearic Islands. Green Hysland will generate, distribute, and use at least 300 tonnes of renewable hydrogen locally per year, produced from solar energy on the island of Mallorca. The project is also part of the "Hydrogen Road Map: a commitment to renewable hydrogen" recently approved by the Spanish Government, which will boost Spain as a technological benchmark in the production and use of renewable hydrogen, with a production capacity of 4 GW by 2030 and an estimated total investment of EUR8.9 billion (US$10.52 billion).
Mallorca is ideally positioned to develop the first hydrogen hub in Southern Europe, while becoming Europe’s first example of an integrated island economy based on green hydrogen. The project will also include the development of business models for replicating the project to other EU islands and beyond.
The project includes green hydrogen injection into the island's gas pipeline network, through a Guarantee of Origin System, to decarbonize the gas supply. The initiative requires a total investment of around EUR50 million (US$59.1 million), including renewable electricity generation and equipment for green hydrogen end uses.
The project is coordinated by Enagás and promoted together with Acciona, CEMEX, and Redexis, as part of a CEMEX reindustrialization land in Lloseta (Mallorca). Its development is based on a green hydrogen generation plant promoted by Acciona and Enagás. The project is supported by the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism, the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, through the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDAE) and the Balearic Government. The consortium is made up of a total of 30 partners from 11 different countries (9 of them from the European Union, plus Chile and Morocco), from industry, academia, and the public sector.
The estimated duration for the Green Hysland project will be from 2021 to 2025 and will aim to reduce the CO2 emissions of Mallorca up to 20,700 tons per year by the end of the project.
Green Hysland is a partnership between the following organizations:
- Acciona
- Ameland Municipality
- AMHYD
- Aragon Hydrogen Foundation
- AREAM Madeira
- Spanish Hydrogen Association (AeH2)
- Balearia
- CEA
- National Centre for Hydrogen (CNH2)
- Cotenaval
- DAFNI
- EMEC
- EMT Palma
- Enagás
- Energy Co-Operatives Ireland
- Enercy
- Fedarene
- Gasnam
- H2 Chile
- HyCologne
- HyEnergy Transstore
- Instituto Balears de Energía
- Lloseta Municipality
- New Energy Coalition
- NUI Galway
- Ports de Balears
- Redexis
- Universitat Balears
- Universidad de La Laguna Tenerife
