EU backs Germany’s €900mn hydrogen import scheme

H2Global aims to secure imports by supporting non-EU projects with state-backed offtake contracts

Germany’s €900mn ($1bn) H2Global support scheme for green hydrogen projects outside the EU is in line with EU state-aid rules and can go ahead, the European Commission says. H2Global is designed to help secure EU green hydrogen imports to meet demand as it rises over the next decade. Germany is expected to rely on imports for about half of its clean hydrogen needs, despite the buildout of domestic production. H2Global was originally proposed by the previous German government but the country’s recently installed coalition of the Social Democratic Party, the Free Democratic Party and the Greens has also pledged to back the scheme as part of its hydrogen strategy. “The design of the schem