Proposals should cover the following aspects:

• Full-scale demonstration of one or more renewable hydrogen production technologies [As defined in the SRIA of the Clean Hydrogen JU, clean hydrogen refers to renewable hydrogen],[Renewable hydrogen is hydrogen produced using renewable energy (Renewable Energy Directive 2018/2001/EU)] ;
• A supply of clean hydrogen (from technologies that will have been integrated within the scope of this topic and in line with relevant regulations’ thresholds) in the range of at minimum 100 kg/h, over a minimum of 2 years of operations or 5000 cumulative working hours; Operational KPIs like availability and quantity of hydrogen integrated into the process should be included in the proposal;
• Implementation of comprehensive energy management system covering inputs, processes, and outputs;
• The development and validation of a comprehensive Energy Management System (including electrical energy and substances) as an optimisation tool capable of blending industry demand-side management with the maximisation of economic benefit and lifespan of hydrogen production technology, utilising advanced control methodologies like predictive approaches and real-time optimisation; related KPIs like optimization of renewable energy usage, reduction of H2 production cost by optimized energy management, reduction of CO2 footprint of H2/O2 and following products could be added;
• In addition to the hydrogen produced, transformation of at least one by-product into a feedstock and/or integration of at least one by-product from hydrogen production;
• Demonstration of the enhancements achieved in the hydrogen production and in the total process efficiency through techno-economic and life-cycle assessment, underlining the socio-economic and environmental benefits of the proposed circular approach, with attention to water management.
• Analyse and incorporate best practices on holistic sustainability from other sectors

Proposals should demonstrate how the circularity approach (e.g. use of by-products, transformation of a waste into a feedstock) is tackled, together with sustainability aspects such as, but not limited to, water management. The use of artificial intelligence and any other digital tools aiming at increasing safety and optimisation of operations is encouraged. Performance should be measured mainly against energy savings and GHG emission avoidance.

Costs for the development and integration of clean hydrogen technologies allowing supply of hydrogen/oxygen/by-products/ etc to the industries targeted are in the scope of the topic and may be funded. Any upstream (such as renewable energy technologies) or downstream processes (such as production of e-fuels, ammonia, chemicals) are in the scope of the topic within the circularity approach but will not be funded.

Proposals should provide a preliminary draft on ‘hydrogen safety planning and management’ at the project level, which will be further updated during project implementation.

This topic is expected to contribute to EU competitiveness and industrial leadership by supporting a European value chain for hydrogen and fuel cell systems and components.

This applies to the demonstration of innovative hydrogen production for energy intensive industries and the chemical sectors, demonstration of innovative technologies for the distribution of hydrogen including multi-purpose hydrogen refueling infrastructure, demonstration of hydrogen-powered inland shipping or short sea shipping solutions.