IMT has joined Hydrogen Europe Research, which brings together nearly 170 European universities and research organisations, thereby strengthening its commitment to hydrogen technologies at the European level.
This membership opens up new opportunities for professional exchanges, strengthens cooperation with leading research organisations and industrial partners, and enables the joint development of European research and demonstration projects. IMT is also involved in the preparation of future European research and innovation guidelines for the period 2028-2034.
A major European partnership for hydrogen research and innovation
As Europe aims for climate neutrality by 2050, hydrogen is becoming a key solution to decarbonise industry, transport and energy.
Hydrogen Europe Research is the scientific partner of the European Clean Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (JU), a public-private partnership bringing together the European Commission, the industry association Hydrogen Europe and the research community Hydrogen Europe Research. This initiative aims to promote research and innovation in the field of clean hydrogen technologies and to significantly advance Europe on the path to climate neutrality by 2050.
This partnership is indeed one of the main European instruments for funding research and innovation in the field of hydrogen. With a budget of EUR 2.4 billion, including EUR 1.2 billion from Horizon Europe and EUR 1.2 billion from private funding, it covers the entire value chain.
Hydrogen Europe Research contributes directly to this dynamic. Its technical committees work on strategic roadmaps that feed the European research and innovation agenda and contribute to the development of work programmes and future calls for proposals.
Preparing future European research and innovation orientations
This accession comes at a crucial time for European research and innovation policy. As the current Horizon Europe framework programme 2021-2027 enters its final phase, discussions are already underway to prepare the next European programming period, 2028-2034.
For IMT, joining Hydrogen Europe Research will help strengthen its participation in the discussions that will shape future European priorities in the field of hydrogen. This includes contributing to the development of strategic research and innovation guidelines, in a context where future European instruments will need to strengthen the links between research, innovation, industrialisation and large-scale deployment.
This dynamic should help anticipate changes in the European landscape as well as promote the expertise of its teams and develop new scientific collaborations.
A community-driven research dynamic ENR2
Within IMT, participation in Hydrogen Europe Research is primarily based on the Renewable Energy and Resources (ENR2) scientific community, for which hydrogen is a central theme. Christophe Coquelet, a researcher at IMT Mines Albi and the ENR2 community leader, therefore represents IMT within Hydrogen Europe Research.
The challenges associated with hydrogen also mobilise expertise present in several other IMT scientific communities, particularly in the areas of materials, advanced processes and risks. This membership therefore strengthens a scientific dynamic that is already underway within the IMT Technological Universities.
New European hydrogen partnerships
In June 2026, IMT, along with Mines Paris – PSL and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, organised a seminar on the future of European hydrogen research. This meeting aimed to bring together Franco-German expertise and to foster new scientific collaborations in the context of future European programmes.
This dynamic is also reflected in applied research projects, such as AVICAR, which is being carried out under the Carnot M.I.N.E.S umbrella and coordinated by IMT Mines Albi, and which addresses the challenges of low-carbon aviation.
By joining Hydrogen Europe Research, IMT is taking another step towards strengthening its presence in the European hydrogen ecosystem and contributing, along with its partners, to the future direction of research and innovation in Europe.
