The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved a €450 million loan to support OMV’s flagship green hydrogen project in Austria, providing a major financial boost for one of Europe’s largest renewable hydrogen production facilities currently under construction.
Located in Bruck an der Leitha, Lower Austria, the project represents a total investment of €600 million and is expected to begin operations by the end of 2027. Once completed, the 140 MW electrolyser will become Austria’s largest green hydrogen production plant and rank among the largest facilities of its kind in Europe.
Powered by renewable electricity, the plant is designed to produce up to 23,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually. The renewable hydrogen will be transported to OMV’s nearby Schwechat refinery, where it will replace fossil-based hydrogen used in refining processes, helping to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of fuel and chemical production.
OMV estimates that the project will lower carbon emissions at the refinery by approximately 150,000 tonnes per year, equivalent to around 10% of the site’s direct emissions.
The investment reflects the growing role of green hydrogen in decarbonising energy-intensive industries that cannot easily be electrified. Refining is considered one of the sectors where renewable hydrogen can deliver substantial emissions reductions by replacing conventional hydrogen produced from natural gas.
The EIB said the financing supports Europe’s broader objectives of strengthening industrial competitiveness, improving energy security, and accelerating the transition toward a climate-neutral economy. In addition to reducing emissions from refining, the hydrogen produced at the facility is expected to support the future production of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and other low-carbon fuels.
The project forms part of OMV’s Strategy 2030, which aims to significantly expand the company’s portfolio of renewable fuels and sustainable chemical feedstocks. Alongside the new Austrian plant, OMV is developing additional green hydrogen projects in Romania and investing in renewable fuel production at several refining sites.
Combined with an existing 10 MW electrolyser already operating at the Schwechat refinery, the new facility represents a major expansion of OMV’s renewable hydrogen capacity and supports the company’s long-term goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
As Europe continues to scale up renewable hydrogen production, projects such as OMV’s Bruck an der Leitha plant are expected to play an increasingly important role in reducing industrial emissions while strengthening domestic supplies of clean energy. The EIB’s financing also highlights the growing confidence of public financial institutions in large-scale hydrogen infrastructure as a key pillar of Europe’s energy transition.