Official launch of Interreg North-West Europe (NWE) project ValHyCon, coordinated by WaterstofNet
Great two days of collaboration and inspiration during the official launch of the Interreg North-West Europe (NWE) project ValHyCon, that WaterstofNet coordinates in Zeebrugge, Belgium (March 16–17)!
ValHyCon brings together a unique consortium of eight key players from across Northwest Europe, each actively developing a Hydrogen Valley- local ecosystems that integrate hydrogen production, transport, storage, and end-use. These valleys act as growth hubs for scaling up hydrogen deployment, contributing to Europe’s ambition of establishing 100 hydrogen valleys in the near future.
Until now, many hydrogen valleys have tackled similar challenges independently. ValHyCon aims to change this by fostering strong transnational collaboration, enabling partners to learn from each other and accelerate impact together.
§ Project objectives:
• Exchange and document best practices and lessons learned
• Launch concrete pilot initiatives for cross-border collaboration
• Develop a coordinated long-term strategy to physically connect hydrogen valleys
The consortium includes: WaterstofNet (FLHyPorts, BE), Cluster TWEED (Green WaHyVe, BE), HydrogenIreland (SH2amRock, IE), HyCologne Wasserstoff Region Rheinland e.V. (Hydrogen Valley RheinRuhr, DE), HyNorth (NL), @Hydrogen Valley Emsland (DE), University of Luxembourg (LuxHyVal, LU), and Pôlénergie (FR).
During the kick-off all partners shared insights into their regional ecosystems. It was inspiring to see the diversity of initiatives, strong ambitions, and commitment to move forward with realistic goals beyond the hydrogen hype.
A highlight of the event was the visit to the HyOffWind project - a 25 MW electrolyser plant developed by Virya Energy and Messer Technische Gase - offering a tangible glimpse into large-scale renewable hydrogen production in practice.
The core ambition of ValHyCon is clear: connect hydrogen valleys, strengthen international collaboration, explore new opportunities, and accelerate the development of a strong, interconnected European hydrogen economy.
Hydrogen plays an important role in decarbonising industry and energy systems, while also strengthening Europe’s energy independence and reducing reliance on geopolitically unstable regions.
A special thank you to Port of Antwerp-Bruges for the warm welcome and to Interreg North-West Europe (NWE) for making this project possible.
