€140M second call for fuel cells and hydrogen Joint Technology Initiative

Funding opportunity

The Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Technology Initiative (JTI) has launched its second call for proposals, looking to fund projects with a value of €140 million. These will be based on 29 topics, with the aim of bringing fuel cell and hydrogen energy technologies to market two to five years early.

The Chairman of the Governing Board of the Joint Undertaking, Gijs van Breda Vriesman, welcomed the launch of the second call, saying, “It is important to join forces to overcome the technical and economic hurdles to the introduction of these technologies, which have the potential to address problems of climate change and dependence on imported energy.”

“We have a well-prepared research agenda, and we are receiving a good response from the industry and the research community. We are just in time to grasp the chance to make Europe a leader in these technologies.”

The 29 topics of the call address key issues that need to be tackled to push the technology through to market. They are divided in 5 application areas: transport and refuelling infrastructure; hydrogen production and distribution; stationary power generation; and early markets, such as portable applications or small utility vehicles. The fifth area supports research necessary for market creation, such as developing a life cycle assessment framework, training regulators and supporting SMEs.

The application deadline for the call is 15 October 2009 and projects selected for contract negotiations will be announced in March 2010.

For more information, see the initiative website: http://ec.europa.eu/research/fch/index_en.cfm