It has been announced that HDF Energy will be receiving an estimated $183m, which is being given to the company in order to support the development and industrialization of hydrogen fuel cells. These fuel cells are currently under development at the company’s Blanquefort plant, based in France.

The plan for this site is for it to include a high-power fuel cell test platform, which will be a large benefit to the company’s industrial partners and also to European research centres.

HDF launched its fuel cell manufacturing plant in May of 2024 and so far, it has seen excellent progress, as it has now displayed the capability to develop 1MW+ fuel cells. The expectation of the facility is for it to complete its industrial process this year and on top of this, around 80% of the PEM fuel cell tech, is due to be exported from the facility.

HDF and the facility were chosen to receive this grant after the European Commission approved French financial support. This support will be provided to the project, as it falls within the framework of the Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI).

The approval around the funding and the project will now become part of the Commission’s Hy2Move initiative and this will make sure that HDF will become able to industrialise multi-megawatt fuel cells, which have been dedicated to heavy maritime and rail mobility. This guarantee will also cover electricity production for public power grids.

It has been made clear that the project was selected under the Hy2Move funding, as it displayed significant potential to advance hydrogen technology within the mobility sector.

Deputy CEO and Vice-President Industry at HDF, Hanane El Hamraoui, commented, “This announcement is a decisive step in our mission to decarbonise heavy maritime and rail mobility with hydrogen. It also marks the public authorities’ recognition of the expertise of HDF Energy’s teams, as well as our status as a major player in the hydrogen industry.”