Over three days, the European Hydrogen Week 2026 brought together 7 500 participants at Brussels Expo. Leading policymakers and companies gathered under the theme “Scaling hydrogen, strengthening resilience” for panel sessions, networking events and lunch discussions.
Dan Jørgensen, European Commissioner for Energy and Housing, commented during the opening session of the High-Level Policy Conference: “This year’s theme, ‘scaling hydrogen, strengthening resilience’, captures exactly why hydrogen matters for Europe’s future. If we are to make Europe’s energy more secure and affordable, we need to accelerate the clean transition. Renewable and low-carbon hydrogen can play an important role in this transition, and that is why we are driving development forward.”
As the EU agency managing several funding programmes that support clean energy and decarbonisation, CINEA plays a key role in advancing innovative hydrogen projects across Europe. Through EU funding programmes such as the Innovation Fund, the Connecting Europe Facility and the Horizon Europe research programme, CINEA helps turn EU climate ambitions into concrete action.
CINEA had a strong presence throughout the event, representing the Agency at the European Commission booth, speaking at the Innovation Forum, and showcasing the active participation of hydrogen projects managed by the Agency.
The world’s first hydrogen-powered cruise ship
On Tuesday, the Horizon Europe funded project sHYpS unveiled its new official video, offering a first look at tests of the prototype liquid hydrogen tank and its Tank Connection Space.
CINEA Project Adviser Gerd Muysewinkel congratulated all partners on their progress: “Innovation is not only about ambition; it is also about rigour, learning, resilience and teamwork. sHYpS shows the value of that collaborative European approach.”
Innovation pathways: connecting EU, national and regional support for impact
During the session held on Wednesday at the Innovation Forum, Richard Ferrer, Head of Sector at CINEA, presented the funding opportunities available for hydrogen projects managed by CINEA, from research to deployment, market uptake and infrastructure. The discussions also explored synergies between different funding mechanisms at EU, national, regional and private level, with a view to better supporting the full innovation journey.
Site visit to Port of Antwerp-Bruges
On Friday, to close the week, the European Hydrogen Week left Brussels on a business excursion hosted by Port of Antwerp-Bruges to see the sector in action. The site visit took the participants to key Belgian projects and European hydrogen hubs, including Amplifhy Antwerp an EU Project of Common Interest backed by CEF Energy aims to deliver 140 000 tonnes of hydrogen a year from ammonia, which will be used directly for fertiliser and nylon or cracked into hydrogen.
CINEA’s hydrogen project portfolio
Ahead of the event, CINEA updated its thematic publication on hydrogen, highlighting the impact of hydrogen projects across its portfolio. The document illustrates how EU-supported hydrogen initiatives promote innovation, strengthen competitiveness and contribute to the EU’s energy transition goals.
Looking ahead
As discussions in Brussels demonstrated, accelerating Europe’s hydrogen industry requires not only innovative technologies, but also strong cooperation among all actors involved, as well as continued policy support.
Source: cinea.ec.europa.eu
