Innovative PEM electrolysis for green hydrogen(PEMPIRE)

The 3-year industry-driven project PEMPIRE is coordinated by Fraunhofer-Institut für Solare Energiesysteme ISE and will develop next-generation PEM electrolysers, low in critical material consumption, scalable, and durable. Steinbeis Europa Zentrum successfully supported this ambitious EU proposal in 2025.

PEMPIRE will contribute to advancing EU’s clean hydrogen strategy by making hydrogen production more sustainable and cost-effective by integrating advanced materials with circulardesign, coupled with digital approaches such as degradation modelling and predictive analytics.

PEMPIRE aims to significantly improve the lifetime, efficiency and cost competitiveness of low-temperature proton exchange membrane electrolysis (PEMEL) at system level, as well as minimising the use of critical raw material (CRM), by developing and integrating advanced functional and structural materials. The project will demonstrate these innovations' scalability and industrial viability through pilot and demo-scale (TRL6) production and system integration, contributing to the acceleration of green hydrogen (H2) deployment in line with EU climate and energy targets.

PEMPIRE will reach its objectives through a holistic approach building on two pillars: (A) Design, Validation and Demonstration of Next-Generation PEM electrolysers and (B) Paving the path to exploitation through sustainability assessment, in alignment with engagement and collaboration with key stakeholders. The development of a business case and sound exploitation strategy will allow a rapid transfer of technical results created within PEMPIRE towards final exploitation and significantly shortens time-to-market of the PEMPIRE innovations. This general mindset is also represented by the large share of industrial partners, allowing for the rapid scaling of the technology.

Steinbeis Europa Zentrum supports as a project partner:

• Communication and dissemination of project results
• Co-definition of research and market needs
• Management of intellectual property rights and technology transfer
• Exploitation, replication and business model

Further information:

• Project name: Pem Electrolysis: Pushing towards significant improvements reaching extended performance and lifetime (PEMPIRE)
• Funding: Horizon Europe and Clean Hydrogen Partnership (grant agreement no. 101251073)
• Funding budget for all partners: € 4 million
• Participating countries: Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, United Kingdom
• Project duration: 01/2026 - 12/2028