French automotive supplier Plastic Omnium has received €74m from the national government to support its growth strategy for hydrogen mobility in France.
The award was announced by Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne during a visit to Plastic Omnium’s α-Alphatech research and development center. The public funding is part of the PIIEC (Important Project of Common European Interest) framework and supports projects considered essential for Europe’s competitiveness.
Laurent Favre, Plastic Omnium’s CEO, welcomed the government’s decision to support development of the hydrogen industry in France, and announced the construction in Compiègne of Europe’s largest hydrogen vessels factory. The future facility will produce 80,000 vessels a year, with the first produced as of 2025. The new plant in Compiègne and its expansion of hydrogen activities in France will in time represent around 200 jobs.
Laurent Favre also announced the signing of two major contracts with Stellantis and HYVIA. Both contracts cover the design and production, at its future Compiègne plant, of 700-bar high-pressure hydrogen vessels modules for commercial vehicles. Laurent Favre declared that: “The support of the French government allows us to accelerate the ramp-up of our industrial production of hydrogen vessels in France. The signing of two new contracts with Stellantis and HYVIA illustrates our customers’ confidence in our technological expertise in hydrogen storage. These announcements are a major step in our ambition to become the world leader in hydrogen mobility by 2030 and the preferred partner of the players in this sector, serving the profound transformation of our industry towards low-carbon mobility”.
