The activity of the Aragon Hydrogen Foundation and its sector is decisive for the creation of employment and wealth, not only in the field of action of this energy vector, but in many others directly or indirectly related to it. This conclusion is drawn from the study ‘Analysis of the economic, social and business impact of hydrogen in Aragon’, presented at the closing ceremony of the 20th Anniversary held today at our headquarters.
This event, chaired by the Second Vice-President and Regional Minister of Economy, Employment and Industry of the Government of Aragon, Mar Vaquero, served to commemorate two decades of achievements, national and international positioning and teamwork dedicated to the promotion of hydrogen as a sustainable energy vector, decarbonisation and engine of economic development. The event was attended by many of the people and entities that have marked this successful trajectory, including the members of a board of trustees that today comprises 90 companies, entities and research centres, leaders in their respective areas.
Mar Vaquero highlighted that the future of the Aragon Hydrogen Foundation looks ‘hopeful’, thanks to its ‘solid foundations’. ‘We can highlight that these two decades of trajectory have allowed us to place our community as an international benchmark and in the coming years we will be working here on projects that will change the lives of citizens around the world,’ she stressed.
‘We can highlight that these two decades of trajectory have allowed us to place our community as an international benchmark and in the coming years we will be working here on projects that will change the lives of the citizens of the world,’ she stressed.For this reason, she highlighted the ‘enormous importance’ of the region in this area and described it as one of the areas with ‘the greatest future’ in terms of employment and economic activity.For the Vice-President, the figures are ‘enlightening’ of the great progress being made and she considers it a ‘magnificent starting point’ because ‘our ambition is to continue working on more projects, to be more relevant and to continue increasing the importance of the hydrogen sector from an economic and social point of view’.
Impact of hydrogen in Aragon.
The study presented, prepared by the consultancy firm Smartpoint, offers interesting data on the multiplier effect that the activity of the Aragon Hydrogen Foundation has, such as the one that indicates that each euro invested by the entity in hydrogen-related projects – more than 200 since its creation – has generated an additional 3.5 euros in the economy, or the one that indicates that each euro that the Government of Aragon has dedicated to the Foundation has been multiplied by seven. The work predicts that the Foundation’s activity will have an impact on the Aragonese economy over the next 10 years that could reach 200 million euros and states that each job created by the hydrogen sector in Aragon over the last 10 years has generated another 62. The investments made in the autonomous community in the field of hydrogen between 2011 and 2023 alone have amounted to 134 million euros, with the creation of 2,150 jobs and a total footprint of more than 900 million euros, the result of adding their direct, indirect and induced impacts and the associated tax revenue.
If the figures are important, no less important is the social benefit that the entire hydrogen value chain has had and continues to have in Aragon, which has led to great technological development in areas such as transport, storage or electrolysers, has allowed specialised training programmes to be set up that will provide the workforce and research capital that the sector will need from now on, and has attracted new companies that work in hydrogen or are in turn hydrogen suppliers. All this has resulted in a clear improvement in competitiveness, in the diversification of the regional economy and, in short, in the generation of a whole ecosystem that combines industry, technology and innovation.
Thanks to all of you who have joined us on this day of celebration.
