e-WallonHY
Via the e-WallonHY initiative, industrial actors are regularly contacted and integrated into Wallonia's hydrogen activities so that these important players can interact via the action plan and direct common projects towards the major objective of the development of the hydrogen value chain and green hydrogen in particular.
e-WallonHY: Green Hydrogen
Via the e-WallonHY initiative, industrial actors are regularly contacted and integrated into Wallonia's hydrogen activities so that these important players can interact via the action plan and direct common projects towards the major objective of the development of the hydrogen value chain and green hydrogen in particular.
e-WallonHy's main work areas include:
The Initiatives of Innovation Strategy (Initiatives d’Innovation Stratégiques, 'IIS') e-WallonHY aims to develop a green hydrogen economy in Wallonia that incorporates the different components of the value chain, from the production of green hydrogen (power-to-H2) to its storage and transport and up to its use for the most promising applications for this high purity hydrogen, namely mobility (H2-to-Mobility), buildings (H2-to-building) and specific industrial processes (H2-to-Industry; excluding e-fuels).
Green hydrogen is the basis of a new economic and environmental paradigm, built upon local production and consumption as well as large exchanges linked to water and renewable energy resources.
Hydrogen is becoming one of the major energy vectors and will enable local and strategic energy storage. The impact of these decarbonized technologies on the economy will depend on technological advances and costs related to their implementation. To achieve stated goals, the reductions of the costs of each component of the value chain, from production to use, are key. The technological solutions developed to meet these challenges will be designed with a minimal or even negative environmental footprint. Providing flexible options to support the decentralisation of solutions is essential.
The IIS action plan includes the development of a "Made in WallonHY" label for the decentralized production of green hydrogen and its local use. Next to the large production units, multiplying small production capacities in connection with targeted applications is also a way to reduce investment costs per project and to facilitate and accelerate the deployment of hydrogen in Wallonia which is necessary to reach the ambitious objectives set by Europe, Belgium, and Wallonia.
The proposed action plan aims to respond to these challenges by relying on the current state of the art for each of the technologies. The science of materials and processes, in which
Wallonia's smart specialisation strategy
Wallonia stands out will provide the expected innovative responses. The multidisciplinary character of the consortium is essential to implement the action plan on the entire chain of production including transport, storage, and use of hydrogen, integrating all relevant needs and technologies.
The deployment of the IIS will be monitored by a steering committee with representatives of research partners, industrial developers, and the public sector. The steering committee will lead the action plan with a view to proposing concrete projects in which the partners can participate according to their fields of activity and thus integrate all the skills available to reach a critical mass of actors and means.
Thanks to the actors and the convergence of the actors in an action plan, the IIS will become the reflection of the ecosystem and value chain of green hydrogen, which has become a major energy vector.
The animation of the IIS will enable the creation of cross-cutting projects in the following areas with actors that can guarantee the capacity to leverage effects in terms of financing and economic growth in this sector of activity.
For the energy transition:
Agile and safe design and production methods
Sustainable energy systems and habitats.
Read more about e-WallonHY here.
Strategic Areas: Energy Storage and Hydrogen Economy
Contact:
Lead Partner: CRMGroup
Catherine Archambeau (catherine.archambeau@crmgroup.be; +32 476 63 99 12)
Xavier Vanden Eynde (Xavier.vandeneynde@crmgroup.be; +32 487 44 25 80)
Maïwenn Larnicol (Maiwenn.larnicol@crmgroup.be; +32 474 24 52 12)
Joris Proost (joris.proost@uclouvain.be; + 32 10 47 93 42)
Cédric Brüll (cbrull@clustertweed.be)
Renaud Dachouffe (rdachouffe@clustertweed.be; + 32 494 37 08 88)
e-WallonHY falls into the Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3).
What is S3?
The concept of Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3) was introduced by the European Commission as part of its growth and jobs agenda, with the aim of providing European regions with a new generation of regional research and innovation strategies. It is a strategic approach to economic development, allowing each region to identify and develop its own competitive advantages.
The European Commission asks that all European regions adopt an "S3" strategic framework for their innovation policies, asking:
What objectives are being pursued in the region?
What are the region's preferred areas of specialization?
What support and funding mechanisms are available for projects?
How does this strategy impact its selection and evaluation processes?
The stakes are high: the S3 is an "enabling" condition for access to funding from the Regional Development Fund (ERDF); the Commission has also strengthened the criteria related to this condition for the 2021-2027 programming.
Beyond that, the S3 constitutes a strategic framework for Wallonia's research and innovation policy and industrial policy.
In addition, the principles of the S3 require the involvement of actors from the "quadruple helix", i.e. regional and local authorities, research and innovation actors, the business community, and civil society, in order to define priorities and work on the implementation of long-term growth strategies
In line with the S3, Wallonia has launched the process of renewing its S3 Strategy, both in terms of content and governance. An S3 working group, set up in July 2019, steers the process. This Working Group is composed of the SPW-Economy Employment Research (Directorate of Economic Policy and Directorate of Research Programs), Sowalfin, the Digital Agency and the Cabinet of the Minister of Research and Innovation, and is supported by the SPW-DCFS (Department of Coordination of Structural Funds), reinforcing links to the ERDF programming.
Read more about S3 here.
MIT REAP Team Wallonia
Part of the S3 strategy, MIT REAP Team Wallonia includes stakeholders from Wallonia-Brussels International (WBI), Wallonia Trade & Investment(AWEX), Administration of the Regional Government of Wallonia (SPW), University of Mons, La SMALA, AMB Ecosteryl, AGC Glass, Brussels South Charleroi BioPark, AGORIA, I-Care, LeanSquare, The Faktory Fund, and Société Régionale d’Investissement de Wallonie.
More on MIT REAP here.
Wallonia
The Region of Wallonia sits in the Southern part of Belgium and is primarily French-speaking. The Region is dedicated to fast-tracking its post-Covid-19 Recovery Plan labeled “Get Up Wallonia”. Acting as an overarching compass, the European Smart Specialisation Strategy (S3) guides Wallonia’s strategic policy framework and aims at catalyzing long-lasting prosperity.
