On 30 January 2024, the Commission approved a EUR 550 million investment scheme from Italy supporting the replacement of fossil fuels and methane with renewable hydrogen in industrial processes.
The scheme at issue supports investments enabling the switch from methane and other fossil fuels to renewable hydrogen, to accelerate the transition to a net-zero economy. Under this measure, which will be funded through resources allocated to the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), the aid will take the form of direct grants. The scheme will be open to companies relying on the use of fossil fuels as energy source for their production processes in Italy.
The Commission concluded that the Italian scheme is in line with EU State aid rules and in particular with the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, as amended on 20 November 2023. In particular, the aid (i) will not exceed EUR 200 million per beneficiary; (ii) will not exceed the aid intensities set out in the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework; and (iii) will be granted no later than 31 December 2025.
Furthermore, the public support will come subject to conditions to ensure actual emissions savings and a switch to hydrogen use. In all hydrogen related investments, in order to ensure that the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of 40% is achieved, hydrogen use must represent at least 40% of the total energy inputs from the start of the operational phase of the projects, at least 75% of the total energy inputs by 2032, and 100% of the total energy inputs by 2036. In addition, beneficiaries will not be able to increase their production capacity beyond 2%.
For more information, see the Commission’s press release: EUR 550 million Italian State aid scheme (europa.eu)