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EurOil POLICY EurOil

One of the projects will
take place in the port
of Sines.

Portugal’s government shortlists

hydrogen projects

PORTUGAL PORTUGAL’S government has shortlisted over plans to get them listed as important projects of
30 multi-billion euro projects for the production common European interest (IPCEIs). This will
Portugal approved of green hydrogen, it said on July 28. make them eligible for EU funding and regula-
a national hydrogen Plans are taking shape across Europe for tory support.
strategy earlier this year. developing hydrogen as a means of cutting emis- In a statement on July 27, Portugal’s environ-
sions alongside renewable energy sources. ment ministry said it had received 74 expressions
Portugal approved a national hydrogen of interest (EoIs) for projects, but only 37 had
strategy earlier this year, but like Germany, it been cleared to the next phase of the selection
only favours the use of green hydrogen, pro- process. Those that passed are worth a combined
duced from water using electrolysis, powered by €9bn ($10.6bn).
renewables. Critics say the government should Bidders will be asked to provide further infor-
be open to other types of hydrogen including mation and then a final round will take place,
the blue kind, produced from gas using steam during which the list will be shortened further.
reforming and involving the use of carbon-cap- Portuguese utility EDP and oil firm Galp con-
ture technology. firmed they were in a consortium behind one of
A group of economists and energy experts the projects. They want to produce green hydro-
even signed a manifesto last week, urging the gen at a site near Sines, south of Lisbon.
government to drop the strategy altogether. “The project has an important international
Hydrogen will cost double or triple what it cur- dimension, both for its export component and
rently costs to produce energy using gas, they for the mobilisation of partners with extensive
argued. experience in the hydrogen value chain,” the
Portugal is preparing to submit its hydrogen consortium said. ™

P18 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 30 30•July•2020