European H2SHIFT project for innovation in hydrogen technologies
The Department of Energy of Politecnico di Milano is participating in the European project H2SHIFT – Services for Hydrogen Innovation Facilitation and Testing, funded under the Horizon Europe programme. The project aims to accelerate the development and validation of innovative hydrogen production technologies through an integrated ecosystem of testing infrastructures, scientific expertise, and innovation support services.
In this context, the first open call of the project is currently open, targeting startups and small and medium-sized enterprises active along the hydrogen value chain and interested in accessing qualified services for the development, testing, and scale-up of their technological solutions. The call will remain open until 18 March 2026.
Within H2SHIFT, the Department of Energy contributes through advanced experimental activities and analyses, making available high-level research expertise and infrastructures. In particular, the LCCP laboratory (Laboratory for Catalysis and Catalytic Processes) is responsible for one of the project’s demonstrative activities (TestLine 3), dedicated to the testing of an electrified steam reforming unit for biogas/methane, based on a patented reactor configuration.
The activities include an initial experimental phase in the laboratories of Politecnico di Milano, using a unit capable of producing up to 7 Nm³/h of hydrogen, followed by testing at a more advanced scale at the TestLine 3 facilities. These tests will use purified biomethane and will operate under continuous operating conditions, with a capacity of up to 20 Nm³/h of hydrogen.
Alongside the experimental activities, the GECOS group (Group for Environmental and Computational Sustainability) of the Department of Energy coordinates the project’s Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) activities, providing an environmental consultancy service—defined as a non-technical service—to support the companies involved. This service is aimed at assessing environmental impacts and offering strategic support for the sustainable development and scale-up of technologies, and it is integrated into the Single Entry Point, the project’s one-stop access point for interested companies.
“The participation of the Department of Energy in H2SHIFT makes it possible to integrate experimental expertise and environmental analysis to support companies in developing technologies that are truly market-ready,” says Davide Bonalumi, professor at the Department of Energy and project representative. “The project represents a concrete example of how university research can contribute directly to the energy transition by supporting industrial innovation in hydrogen from a European perspective.”
The H2SHIFT project is structured as an Open Innovation Test Bed (OITB) and involves a consortium of 13 industrial, academic, and research partners at the European level, coordinated by Snam. In addition to the open call, the project includes dedicated networking and matchmaking events for innovators, with in-person meetings planned in several European cities.
All information on the call and participation modalities is available on the official H2SHIFT project website: https://h2shift.eu/
