The lack of adequate hydrogen infrastructure is a critical challenge impairing the development of the hydrogen market across Europe. To unlock the potential of hydrogen and ensure European decarbonization targets are fulfilled, infrastructure will have to be developed throughout the continent to connect production to demand centres, enable imports of cheap hydrogen and provide a resilient system through storage capacities.
Hydrogen is happening!
The activities of the hydrogen sector shaping up in Europe and globally are starting to yield results. Projects especially in Europe are mushrooming. However, only 4 percent of them are getting to final investment decision. This shows how important it is to understand the interconnections and interdependencies of different technologies and energy sectors in order to de-risk investments into hydrogen projects.
As the hydrogen era dawns, we are met with enormous potential for a cleaner, more sustain- able future. However, this future hinges on our ability to establish universally applicable and rigorous standards for hydrogen certification. The European Union (EU) is ideally positioned to pioneer this initiative, and this paper is a concerted effort towards providing guidance in this pivotal endeavour.
Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing the world today and energy systems need to meet the commitments made at the 2015 Paris Agreement now.
It is now widely accepted that hydrogen derived from renewable energy sources will be required as part of decarbonised energy systems, and there is significant momentum building in the renewable and low-carbon hydrogen energy sector around the world.
Just two years after the launch of the European Hydrogen Strategy, hydrogen is now at the forefront of the European energy transition conversation.
2022 has seen many significant policy developments as we strive to create a bona fide hydrogen market. The priority now must be to tie up all remaining loose ends and provide clear regulatory certainty to producers, end-users, and all parts of the value chain.
Russia’s unprecedented military attack on Ukraine has turbocharged the European Union’s (EU) clean energy transition. The European Commission has formulated a bold, common action plan entitled “REPowerEU” to achieve independence from Russian gas well before the end of this decade. This action plan consists of three-pillars that will increase the resilience of the EU-wide energy system.
We cannot achieve climate neutrality without hydrogen
The past year has seen ever-increasing momentum for the hydrogen industry in Europe. From being viewed as an innovative niche technology, hydrogen has become a key pillar in the European Union’s (EU) energy and climate policy and is recognised as a key enabler in the EU’s efforts to transition to a climate-neutral society by 2050.
