Europe's Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Technology Initiative Launches €140M Call for Research Proposals

July 3, 2009 // Published as a news service by IHS

Around €140 million have been allocated to this second call, with €71.3 million by the European Commission (EC) matched by in-kind contributions of the JTI's industrial partners. The JTI's total budget calls for around €1 billion to be invested by 2014.

The 29 project topics in this second call aim to put fuel cell and hydrogen energy technologies on the market two to five years sooner than what is estimated would be possible without the support the JTI offers.

Selected teams of researchers will investigate bottlenecks in the whole range of applications for these energy technologies, from cars to large-scale power plants, as well as the whole supply chain from hydrogen production to demonstration of the market-readiness of applications.

Breakthrough research should foster the use of hydrogen-fueled buses and fuel cell vehicles. It will help develop hydrogen storage and improve fuel cells' durability, performance and the cost-efficiency to make green applications, such as power stations or laptops, ready for the market.

Welcoming the launch, EC commissioner for science and research, Janez Potočnik, said, "The new step taken today by the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen JTI highlights the continued commitment of the European Commission and the European industry to develop breakthrough technologies to put Europe at the forefront of green technologies. Precious partnership in this area and others that are to follow in the framework of SET Plan will help the EU to meet its ambitious energy and environmental goals faster and cheaper. Such investments today are a guarantee for EU competitiveness and growth tomorrow."

The application deadline for the call is Oct. 15, 2009, and projects selected for contract negotiations will be announced in March 2010.

Targeting Obstacles to Market Introduction
Fuel cells, as an efficient conversion technology, and hydrogen, as a clean energy carrier, can be applied in a variety of end uses, from cars and other vehicles to stationary power generation in power stations and homes, to portable applications such as laptops.

The 29 topics of the call address key issues that need to be tackled to achieve market breakthroughs. They are divided into five application areas:

• Transportation and refueling infrastructure.
• Hydrogen production and distribution.
• Stationary power generation.
• Early markets, such as portable applications or small utility vehicles.
• Cross-cutting issues that support the research necessary for market creation, such as developing a life cycle assessment framework and training regulators or supporting small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Complementarities exist among these areas, so the research results will, in many cases, be useful for several types of applications.

Background
The Fuel Cells and Hydrogen JTI, launched on Oct. 14, 2008, aims to speed up the development of fuel cell and hydrogen technologies in Europe to enable their commercialization between 2010 and 2020. Current membership includes the EC and 64 companies, from multinationals to SMEs, represented by the European Industry Grouping for the JTI (NEW IG), as well as 54 universities and research institutes, represented by the Research Grouping N.ERGHY, engaging more than 2,000 researchers in the field of fuel cells and hydrogen.

For more information, see the web site for the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen JTI and the July 2 call for proposals. See also IP/08/1498 - Developing new energy for the future: Europe launches a 1 billion euro project to get into pole position for the fuel cells and hydrogen race and the web site for the EU's Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET Plan).

Source: European Commission (EC).