Stargate Hydrogen has signed the grant agreement with the European Climate, Infrastructure, and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) for 20.6 million Euros as part of an EU Innovation Fund grant. The funds will support the expansion of the company’s manufacturing facility in Tallinn, Estonia
The new manufacturing plant will be developed in phases and will produce alkaline electrolyser electrodes, pressurised alkaline stacks, and electrolyser systems with an annual production capacity of 250MW, 150MW, and 66MW, respectively.
The project addresses a key barrier to wider green hydrogen adoption: the price of the green molecule. Stargate Hydrogen’s innovations include proprietary stack design and electrodes coated with a patented ceramic-based catalyst that replaces precious metals, reducing reliance on imported critical raw materials while enabling highly efficienct hydrogen production.
Over its first decade of operation, the project is expected to avoid 3 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions by supporting broader deployment of affordable green hydrogen across hard-to-abate industries, including chemicals, steel, and other energy-intensive sectors.
The grant, financed by revenues from the EU Emissions Trading System, is a major investment in the Estonian clean technology sector. The project is expected to create 150 high-value jobs, while supporting hundreds of additional jobs across construction, logistics, maintenance, and wider European supply chain. Additionally, the new facility will reinforce regional manufacturing capabilities for strategic clean technologies and enhance the resilience of Europe’s hydrogen value chain.
Marko Virkebau, CEO of Stargate Hydrogen, said, “This grant marks an important milestone for Stargate Hydrogen and demonstrates confidence in our technology and manufacturing strategy. With the help of the Innovation Fund, we truly step up our game. After the factory expansion is finalised, Stargate will become one of the largest electrolyser manufacturers in Europe. Such manufacturing capability is important in order for us to be able to deliver our products to large industrial electrolysis projects, such as projects delivering green ammonia, synthetic natural gas, as well as sustainable aviation fuel.”
In 2025, Stargate Hydrogen closed a Series A financing round that included Repsol, a hydrogen producer in Europe, and SmartCap, an Estonian state-owned venture capital firm, among other. Clients include Fortum, Utilitas, ABB, and Rockfin, among others across Europe, Turkey, and India.
The European Commission has aknowledged Stargate Hydrogen’s development of advanced alkaline electrolysis as an Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI). The company has recently deployed a turnkey electrolysis system to Fortum in Finland and has supplied electrolysis stacks to several countries in Europe and beyond.
The Innovation Fund-backed project supports the European Union’s Hydrogen Strategy and aligns with key policy initiatives, including REPowerEU, the Net-Zero Industry Act, and the Clean Industrial Deal, which consider electrolysers as strategic clean technologies for Europe’s industrial future.
