The ORLEN project “Clean Cities – Hydrogen Mobility in Poland” has received a non-repayable subsidy of 62 million euros. The European Union’s support is for the construction of 16 publicly accessible hydrogen refueling stations across various regions of Poland, as well as for the development of facilities to produce green renewable hydrogen based on water electrolysis powered by renewable energy sources.
The European Commission published the results of the latest call under the CEF Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Facility, announced by the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA). A total of 42 projects received grants amounting to 424 million euros. Projects involving the construction of hydrogen refueling infrastructure received over 120 million euros, half of which was funding for the project carried out by ORLEN. This support is the largest grant in the history of the Connecting Europe Facility in the hydrogen sector.
“One of the key elements of the energy transition is the development of alternative fuels, including hydrogen. We see that in the coming years, it will play a significant role, especially in industry, heavy and public transport. Zero-emission urban transport is particularly important in large cities, which can obtain funding for this purpose from NFOŚiGW (the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management) and European programs. Thus, there is a growing interest in hydrogen-powered vehicles. Therefore, together with local governments throughout Poland, we are developing this type of transport. The financing we have received shows that this is the right direction, aligned with that set by the EU institutions,” says Grzegorz Jóźwiak, Director of the Office of Hydrogen Technology and Synthetic Fuels.
European funding has been allocated for the implementation of the third phase of the Clean Cities – Hydrogen Mobility in Poland project. In the first two phases, ORLEN is carrying out the construction of 8 hydrogen refueling stations across the country and an automotive-grade hydrogen production facility in Włocławek. These investments had previously received 70 million PLN in funding from the European “Connecting Europe” fund. Under these funds, ORLEN has initiated, among other things, hydrogen fuel deliveries for public transport vehicles in Poznań and is conducting tests of hydrogen refueling stations in Katowice. More stations will be launched in Piła, Warsaw, Gorzów Wielkopolski, Kraków, Bielsko-Biała, and Włocławek. The hydrogen refueling stations will be publicly accessible, designed to power city buses, personal cars, and heavy-duty vehicles.
With the newly granted funds, ORLEN plans to build an additional 16 publicly accessible hydrogen refueling stations, spread across the TEN-T (Trans-European Transport Network) in different parts of the country. Additionally, in Szczecin, the company will construct an automotive-grade hydrogen production facility, based on water electrolysis powered by renewable energy sources.
The development of infrastructure related to hydrogen fuels is part of the ORLEN Group’s Hydrogen Strategy. This is the company’s response to the challenges of energy transformation and the search for green, ecological solutions. Hydrogen as an alternative to conventional fuels is currently one of the key elements in the decarbonization of the transport sector.
By 2030, the ORLEN Group plans to build a network of over 100 hydrogen refueling stations for individual, public, and cargo transport, both road and rail, in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Hydrogen will be supplied to these stations thanks to the construction of a European network of hydrogen hubs powered by renewable energy sources and innovative facilities that convert municipal waste into zero- and low-emission hydrogen. The total planned power of electrolyzers in the ORLEN Group by 2030 will be about 1 GW, which combined with waste-to-hydrogen projects will enable the production of over 130,000 tons of renewable hydrogen annually by the end of this decade.
