BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 11. Air Liquide has received a 110 million euro grant from the European Innovation Fund for its ENHANCE project, aimed at producing and distributing low-carbon and renewable hydrogen derived from ammonia, Trend reports.
Located in the port of Antwerp-Bruges, Belgium, the project will feature a large-scale renewable ammonia cracking plant and a hydrogen liquefier, marking the first industrial-scale initiative in Europe to produce hydrogen using ammonia as a feedstock.
The project will retrofit an existing hydrogen production unit in the port, replacing natural gas with renewable ammonia. This change is expected to cut CO₂ emissions by over 300,000 tonnes annually. The new facility will support the creation of a low-carbon hydrogen supply chain in Europe, benefiting industries such as refineries, chemicals, and transport sectors like heavy-duty road, maritime, and aviation.
Ammonia, which can be produced with a low-carbon footprint, serves as a promising feedstock due to its existing global infrastructure for production, transport, and use across various industries. The grant from the European Innovation Fund is a key step in finalizing the investment decision and launching the project.