“With France 2030, we will add 1.9 billion euros” additional credit to promote the development of a hydrogen production sector in France, announced Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday, November 16 during a visit to the Genevia site, in Béziers, in Hérault.
LIVE | In Béziers, the President @EmmanuelMacron meets the employees of the company Genvia. # France2030 https://t.co/JX6PH4yBY5
– Elysee (@Elysee) November 16, 2021
This company, created by the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) and the Schlumberger group, the world’s leading supplier of technology to the energy industry, will manufacture carbon neutral hydrogen from a model of electrolyser developed by CEA. Ultimately, this activity will create 500 jobs on an industrial site until now dedicated to the processing of petroleum products.
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The additional 1.9 billion euros announced by the Head of State will be more specifically devoted to the development of carbon-free hydrogen manufacturing technologies. They come in addition to the seven billion euros plan put in place to help the sector to develop through the financing of projects. According to the Elysee, 77 files have already been filed to access this funding.
The executive aims to make France one of the European leaders in hydrogen manufacturing with a dual objective by 2030: to avoid the emission of 6 megatonnes of CO2, or the equivalent of the emissions of the city of Paris, and to achieve a hydrogen production capacity corresponding to 6.5 megawatts, or the power of 5 to 6 nuclear reactors. The Elysée hopes to create 50,000 to 100,000 jobs, provided the activity is sustainable. 5 production factories, called “gigafactories”, are to emerge from the ground in France.
The hydrogen produced will be used to decarbonize heavy industry, in particular steel and cement works, where it will replace the use of fossil fuels. It can also be used as fuel for public transport, trucks, air and sea transport as well as some trains. By 2050, hydrogen is seen as the second source of energy that does not emit carbon after electricity.