Europe Fuel Cell Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The European fuel cell market is expected to witness a CAGR of around 8.5% during the forecast period. The COVID-19 pandemic had a reversed impact on the region as compared to the global picture, with accelerated fuel cell deployment in the residential sector to expand the home electrification for increased heat and power demand. Many countries in Europe were found using SOFC (solid oxide fuel cell)- based micro-CHP systems in individual homes to meet the additional demand. Moreover, the fuel cell technology also witnessed a high utilization rate in the makeshift hospitals during the pandemic. The European fuel cell market is likely to have robust growth in the future due to the regional efforts to promote renewable energy sources, and the technology development consistently happening in the continent. However, the aggressive competition from the electrical battery market is expected to hamper the market growth in the near term.

Key Highlights

• The transportation segment is expected to dominate the market due to the efforts of the European Union to achieve an emissions-free transport sector.
• The technology developments currently happening in the field place ample opportunities for the growth of the fuel cell market. As an example, a recent update revealed that Panasonic has launched a 5kW type pure hydrogen fuel cell generator with the industry's peak level electrical efficiency of 56%.
• Germany is expected to have the lion's share in the fuel cell market due to the growth witnessed in the development of hydrogen-based technologies.

Key Market Trends

Transportation Sector Expected to Dominate the Market

• The region has witnessed an upscaled deployment of fuel cell-based systems in the transportation sector, from cars, trucks to heavy-duty vehicles. The most significant catalyst for such a transition is the constant endeavors made by the European Union to decarbonize mobility in the region.
• According to Eurostat, the share of renewables in the gross energy consumption in the transport sector was around 10% in the year 2020, which was an achievement on the part of the EU as they had set the same target. Now, they have tabled a new target to stretch the number to 14% by 2030. Thus, many projects are currently in progress to propel the growth of green-hydrogen technologies in the transport sector.
• In 2020, the FCHRAIL project was launched by the European Union to develop, build, test, and demonstrate a scalable, modular and multi-purpose Fuel Cell Hybrid PowerPack (FCHPP) for rail applications ranging from multiple units, shunting locomotives, and mainline. The project was implemented under the framework of the Horizon 2020 programme.
• Furthermore, several private companies have presented new versions of fuel cells exclusively made for transport applications. For instance, in 2021, Johnson Matthey, one of the industry players, announced plans to develop advanced fuel cell technology for heavy-duty trucks with the joined effort of a consortium. The EUR3.8 million project, IMMORTAL, is a three-year programme, planned by European Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH 2 JU), a consortium of private companies and research organizations.
• Such developments are expected to have a positive impact on the growth of the fuel cell market in the transport sector.

Germany Expected to Dominate the Market

• The German government has come up with concrete plans to convert the country into a more hydrogen-based economy in the coming years. The country has also envisaged an expansion in hydrogen applications in the recent past for the energy requirements in the transport sector, power production, energy storage, and other industrial uses.
• As of 2021, the International Energy Agency recorded a fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) stock of around 3.08 thousand in the European region. Germany held the highest share in the number of FCEVs registered in the year. The go-through was the conclusion of the government's initiatives to promote the technology in the sector. More such projects are expected to come online in the coming years to increase the share.
• As an example, in May 2021, the country’s Federal Ministry of Economics (BMWi) and the Federal Ministry of Transport (BMVI) revealed the blueprints to invest more than EUR8 billion for the development of 62 large-scale hydrogen projects. The first step planned for the project is the deployment of fuel cell systems in the transportation sector. The Federal Ministry of Transport is currently funding 12 projects in the mobility sector. They include the development and manufacturing of fuel cell systems for all kinds of vehicles and promoting hydrogen fuelling infrastructure.
• Germany is also set to enhance the fuel cell fabrication capability of the country by establishing new manufacturing facilities in the country. For example, in April 2021, Cummins Inc. broke the ground for a fuel cell systems manufacturing facility in Herten, Germany. The upcoming facility is likely to start with assembling operations initially and then has plans to expand to fuel cell stack refurbishment. The expected annual capacity is 10 MW.
• Owing to such developments, the country is forecasted to have the largest market share in the near future.

Competitive Landscape

The Europe fuel cell market is moderately fragmanted. Some of the key players in this market include Ballard Power System Inc, Toshiba Corp, Fuelcell Energy Inc, Plug Power Inc, and Nuvera Fuel Cell LLC.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
• 3 months of analyst support

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