Spain to launch new $2.5 billion plan to support green hydrogen, renewable industry

MADRID - Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday announced a new plan worth 2.3 billion euros ($2.5 billion) to boost the country's transition to clean energy, including subsidies for green energy industries and hydrogen made from renewable power.

The plan will also include measures to help agriculture, infrastructure and villages transition to green energy, Sanchez said in an address to the lower house.

He did not provide more details of the new plan.

Spain has positioned itself as a renewable energy leader in Europe, taking advantage of its abundant sunshine and strong winds to produce energy.

With renewables breaking records, the country is now vying to be one of the major producers in the region of green hydrogen produced from renewable electricity.

Earlier this month, Madrid approved a 794 million euro package of subsidies for large green hydrogen projects in the country with a potential overall electrolysis capacity of 652 megawatts.

Subsidies are vital for green hydrogen projects due to high costs and are not competitive without public support.

Spain's draft climate strategy a 2030 target of 11 gigawatts (GW) for electrolysers, up from a previous 4 GW.

($1 = 0.9167 euros)

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo and Pietro Lombardi, editing by Inti Landauro and Arun Koyyur)