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Madrid – Spain has a total of 29 projects awarded from the EU Innovation Fund, linked to a volume of aid of 1.286 billion euros, positioning itself as the country with the most beneficiary projects.
The projects, widely distributed geographically, will be developed in very diverse sectors, such as photovoltaic module and wind turbine manufacturing, photovoltaic solar power production over water channels, plastic and textile recycling, green ammonia production, low-emission construction and glass materials production, or carbon capture and geological storage.
Specifically, this figure has been reached after eight new projects were awarded in the latest 2023 call, out of a total of 85 selected, as reported by the Spanish Ministry of Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge.
The Directorate-General for Climate Action of the European Commission has published the results of the latest call for the selection of projects within the framework of the Innovation Fund. This resolution is the seventh published by the fund for project selection, and it is endowed with more than 4 billion for projects focused on the fabrication of clean technologies and large, medium, and small-scale pilot projects.
Thus, Spain has captured 29 projects in the fund’s seven calls, to which two others with locations in several EU countries – one in Germany and another in France and the Czech Republic – with Spanish participation are added. Additionally, also under the fund, two Spanish initiatives have been awarded 238 million in the first Hydrogen Bank auction.
Among the most notable projects that have been awarded funds in all these calls, is ‘Catalina’ in Andorra, (Teruel) led by CIP for renewable hydrogen production – with 230.46 million euros; and ‘Green Meiga’ in Lugo, by Iberdrola for green methanol production from renewable hydrogen and CO2 captured from air and burning of plant residues – with 122.91 million euros.
Other projects include Repsol’s such as the Ecoplanta in Morell (Tarragona) for using non-recyclable municipal waste to generate methanol – 106.37 million euros – or ‘T-Hynet’ also in Tarragona for green hydrogen production at the Tarragona refinery for local consumption – 62 million euros, among others.
Among the latest eight projects awarded in the 2023 call are the ‘TarraCO2-Storage’ projects from Repsol, in Tarragona; ‘Gaia’, in Avilés, from Fertiberia; ‘Modus’ in Valencia from Intecsa (Cobra-Vincci group); ‘CT Quarry’ in Cantoria (Almería) from Cosentino Industrial; ‘PVOrellana’, in Canal de Orellana (Cáceres), from Acciona; or ‘MOD4PV’, in Extremadura, from Trina Solar and Iberdrola, among others.
The EU Innovation Fund is a specific funding program for the deployment of innovative low-carbon technologies, processes, and products managed by the European Commission, aimed at introducing solutions into the market that contribute to meeting the EU’s decarbonization commitments. It is financed with emission allowance auctions and has an estimated budget of 40 billion for the period 2020-2030.
This fund boosts strategic technologies, fulfilling objectives not only climate-related but also those outlined in the Law on Net Zero Emissions Industry or the Renewable Energy Directive. (December 27)