From proposal to progress: HI2 Valley breaks ground in Austria

Following its kick-off in Graz in January 2025 and the groundbreaking of the Hy4Smelt plant in Linz in October 2025, the HI2 Valley is showing how ambitious hydrogen projects move from proposal stage - where we at ENERCY had the honour to accompany them - to real-world delivery.

The journey began with the consortium’s official kick-off in Graz, where partners met over two days to align priorities, define concrete actions for the first phase, and reinforce a shared vision for building a hydrogen ecosystem across Styria, Upper Austria and Carinthia. The participation of the project officer from the EU's Clean Hydrogen Partnership underlined the project’s strong European relevance, while a visit to the Renewable Gasfield facility offered an early glimpse of the practical deployment context behind the initiative.

That strategic start has now been followed by a highly tangible next step: the groundbreaking of the Hy4Smelt plant in Linz. As part of HI2 Valley, Hy4Smelt targets one of the hardest-to-abate sectors by advancing the decarbonisation of Austria’s steel industry through the use of green hydrogen. According to the project announcement, the demonstration plant will be the first of its kind to combine hydrogen-fuelled electric smelting with hydrogen-based reduction of metallic ore.

The scale of the wider initiative is equally notable. The HI2 Valley brings together 48 national and international partners and includes 17 hydrogen projects across the three Austrian regions. The project counts with a total investment volume of €588 million and aims, over six years, to enable annual production and use of more than 10,000 tonnes of green hydrogen, contributing to 200,000 tonnes of CO2-equivalent savings by 2030. The Hy4Smelt demonstration plant in Linz is scheduled to begin first production by the end of 2027.

For ENERCY, it is particularly rewarding to see clients progress from a successful funding application to visible implementation on the ground. The HI2 Valley illustrates the value of well-structured project development, strong consortium design, and a clear strategic vision in securing public funding for ambitious hydrogen initiatives.

We congratulate the HI2 Valley consortium on this important milestone and look forward to following the next stages of implementation.