Steel (31%) and refining (54%) together account for more than 80% of planned clean hydrogen end-use demand from electrolysis projects currently under construction in Europe. This is according to the Clean Hydrogen Monitor 2026 report, just published by trade body Hydrogen Europe.

Germany and Sweden lead Europe in electrolyser projects under construction, with 1.3 GW_el and 0.8 GW_el of capacity respectively, representing more than half of the 3.7 GW_el pipeline currently under construction. Spain, the Netherlands, and France are the other nations which lead in terms of projects under construction.

In an article related to the new publication, Gasworld reports that RWE’s 300MW GET H2 Nukleus development in Lingen, Germany, is among the largest projects progressing. The first hydrogen was delivered to an industrial customer in August, with 200MW due for commissioning by the end of 2026.

In Sweden, Stegra installed the final electrolyser module at its 700MW Boden green steel plant in April. The plant is designed to produce up to 5 million tonnes/year of green steel by 2030. Air Liquide is constructing its 200MW Normand’Hy facility in France to supply industrial customers including TotalEnergies’ Gonfreville refinery.

While 1.6 GW_el of water electrolysis is still announced to come online in 2026, with many projects in the commissioning phase, the report states that the 3.7 GW_el  under construction remains well below the deployment levels required in terms of the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive III which targets 25-30 GW_el hydrogen capacity by 2030.

The estimated cost just in electrolysis plants of reaching this target is €60bn ($66.7bn). Such investments could reduce the EU’s natural gas imports by 14 bn Nm³ annually, generating savings of around €10.5 billion, while avoiding more than 30 Mt of CO₂ emissions per year.

The Innovation Fund (IF) is the largest contributor of EU-funding for the sector. The report states that although there has been progressively less budget awarded since its 2023 peak, the IF allocation to hydrogen remains high (37% of total budget between 2020-2024, including grants and auction.

Writing in the foreword to the report, Daniel Fraile, Hydrogen Europe Chief Market & Regulation Officer, says: “The closure of the Strait of Hormuz in February has sent gas, oil, and other fuel prices through the roof and is exposing, once again, Europe’s dependence on imported energy. Resilience and security of supply are back at the top of Europe’s political agenda. Domestically produced hydrogen and its derivatives are resilience assets: they reduce exposure to imported fossil fuels, make use of renewable power that would otherwise be curtailed, and keep strategic industrial value chains in Europe. They can be complemented with imports of low-cost clean hydrogen and derivatives, helping industrial competitiveness and diversification thanks to strategic partners. Quantifying and rewarding hydrogen’s resilience value is a job policymakers will need to work on.”

Click here to access the full report.

Also read IEA commentary: What explains the cost advantage of Chinese electrolysers?