Horizon Europe Clean Hydrogen Grant up to €1.5M: Business Models for Renewable Electrolysis in Industry

How can innovative business models accelerate the integration of renewable electrolysis into industry? The Clean Hydrogen Joint Undertaking has launched a Coordination and Support Action (CSA) with an indicative budget of €1.5 million to fund a single project addressing precisely this question. Specifically, the project must develop and validate new business approaches for integrating renewable electrolysis — including Power-to-X applications — in at least one real industrial context.

This topic is part of the broader Clean Hydrogen JU call for 2026, which allocates €105 million across 21 topics under Horizon Europe. Topic HORIZON-JU-CLEANH2-2026-01-04 falls within the Renewable Hydrogen Production cluster and has been open for applications since 10 February 2026. Furthermore, all proposals must be submitted exclusively through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. For a broader overview of related opportunities, see our Green and Cleantech Grants Roundup for April 2026.

Purpose and Policy Context

Renewable electrolysis is a cornerstone technology for industrial decarbonisation. However, despite growing technical maturity, its large-scale integration into industrial processes remains constrained — not only by technical barriers, but crucially by economic and organisational ones. Specifically, the business models that would make electrolyser integration financially attractive and scalable across industry are still underdeveloped.

Consequently, this topic deliberately moves beyond purely technological calls within the Clean Hydrogen JU portfolio. As a Coordination and Support Action (CSA), its primary focus is business model innovation rather than hardware research or demonstration. The project must not only develop new approaches but also validate their real-world feasibility in at least one industrial case study.

The topic is implemented under the Clean Hydrogen Partnership — an institutionalised Horizon Europe partnership between the European Commission, Hydrogen Europe and Hydrogen Europe Research. The partnership pursues the objectives of the EU Hydrogen Strategy and the broader climate-neutrality target for 2050. Moreover, all grants under the 2026 call use the lump sum format, simplifying financial reporting for beneficiaries.

What the Topic Funds

Proposals must centre on business model innovation as the primary driver of renewable electrolysis integration in industry. In particular, the following areas of activity are within scope:

Who Can Apply

The call is open to consortia of at least 3 independent legal entities from different countries: a minimum of 1 entity from an EU member state and at least 2 more from EU member states or Horizon Europe Associated Countries (including the UK). Notably, Ukraine is a Horizon Europe Associated Country, which means Ukrainian organisations participate on equal terms with EU entities.

Specifically, eligible consortium members include organisations actively working in hydrogen technology, industrial decarbonisation, energy transition or related sectors:

Importantly, for CSA topics there is no requirement for consortium members to be members of Hydrogen Europe or Hydrogen Europe Research — the call is open to all. However, membership in these organisations can strengthen the credibility of the proposal. Furthermore, for guidance on finding partners and structuring a consortium, we recommend our article “How to Find International Partners for a Grant Consortium”.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted exclusively in electronic form via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal by 15 April 2026, 17:00 CEST. The submission system opened at the end of February 2026. Notably, this is a single-stage call — there is no preliminary outline application step.

The CSA application form template (Part B) and the official FAQ are available directly on the Clean Hydrogen Partnership website. Additionally, before building your project budget, we recommend our guide “Grant Budgeting Made Simple: A Financial Guide for 2026”.