French hydrogen storage developer McPhy Energy has launched a €23.9m research, development and demonstration project in Italy.
The 39MWh pilot will be constructed in consortium with seven partners, including utility Enel, IT specialist Engineering Ingegneria Informatica and Belgium's Hydrogenics.
The facility will utilise McPhy's hydrogen-based electrolysis and fuel cell technology, storing more that one tonne of hydrogen and with a fast-responding 1.2MW generator.
It will be located in the Puglia region of southern Italy, where more than 3.5GW of renewable energy is in operation.
The project will be supported by €13.8m of funding from the European Commission and is expected to take four years to build and commission.