- Europex joined a coalition representing the European hydrogen value chain. The statement warns that without urgent adjustments to the EU hydrogen framework, Europe risks missing its climate targets and holding back industrial decarbonisation and economic competitiveness.
- Despite the EU’s 2030 goal to produce 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen, unclear and complex rules coupled with high production costs are delaying projects and discouraging investment on both the demand and supply side.
- The coalition is calling on the European Commission to simplify rules, reward low-emission products based on their GHG emissions performance, streamline the roll out of hydrogen, derivatives and CO2 infrastructure, and strengthen financing.
- The co-signatories also call for the revised European Hydrogen Strategy to facilitate crossborder trade and enable the role of both renewable and low-carbon hydrogen (including imports) in delivering the EU’s decarbonisation objectives.
A coalition representing the European hydrogen value chain including Eurogas, Ammonia Europe, GIE, and the Carbon Capture and Storage Association, is warning that without urgent adjustments to the EU’s hydrogen framework, Europe will not be able to scale up hydrogen and derivatives sufficiently to make a difference to industrial emissions.
The statement comes ahead of the first European Hydrogen Regulatory Forum and the revision of the European Hydrogen Strategy later this year, which the coalition describes as a decisive moment for building a viable hydrogen market and derivatives. Scaling up domestic renewable and low-carbon hydrogen production is not only key to achieving Europe’s climate goals but can also strengthen its energy resilience.
The EU has set a 2030 goal to produce 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen, but only around 29,000 tonnes were produced in 2024, and the EU is unlikely to meet its target, according to the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER). The high cost of renewable hydrogen, which remains around four times more expensive to produce than conventional hydrogen and 23 times more expensive than low-carbon hydrogen. The industry coalition says the strict production rules add further costs and complexity, making projects difficult to finance and limiting demand.
The coalition argues that recent EU legislation, including the RFNBO and Low-Carbon Fuels Delegated Acts, is too rigid and complex, increasing costs and delaying investment decisions and projects. Industry also warns that binding RFNBO consumption targets have been introduced before sufficient affordable supply, infrastructure or financial support were in place, exposing industrial users to high costs and uncertainty.
As a result, companies are struggling to sign long-term supply contracts, which are essential to unlock investment on both the production and demand sides. This is undermining the emergence of a competitive, liquid European hydrogen market including derivatives.
Andreas Guth, Secretary General of Eurogas, said: "The Hydrogen Forum is the EU’s chance to show it’s serious about scaling this industry. Only by making producing and using clean hydrogen economically viable can we realistically expect industry to invest, scale up projects, and accelerate the transition to a competitive low-carbon economy."
Stephen Jackson, CEO of Ammonia Europe, said: "The EU’s hydrogen strategy should be revised to be simpler and truly fit for purpose. It must take a technology-neutral approach that recognises the role of both low-carbon and renewable hydrogen in delivering decarbonisation, while reflecting the specific realities of the ammonia sector in Europe."
Lucie Boost, Secretary General of GIE (Gas Infrastructure Europe), said: "Hydrogen infrastructure is the backbone of a functioning hydrogen market. To connect producers with industrial users at scale, Europe must enable timely investments in hydrogen transport and storage infrastructure, including the repurposing of existing gas assets. A clear and pragmatic regulatory and financial framework is essential to support market development. "
Thierry Grauwels, EU Director of CCSA (Carbon Capture and Storage Association), said: "Low-carbon hydrogen produced with CCS technologies will be essential to scale up Europe’s hydrogen economy quickly and cost-effectively. CCUS enables large-scale hydrogen production with significantly lower emissions while supporting industrial competitiveness. Achieving this will require alignment across the full value chain, including support for the development of CO₂ transport infrastructure, and recognising its strategic role for the hydrogen value chain. The Hydrogen Forum is Europe's chance to prove it is serious about building a competitive hydrogen market."
Christian Baer, Secretary General of Europex, said: “A competitive hydrogen market requires a transparent, trading-oriented design. This means moving beyond bilateral offtake agreements towards standardised trading and virtual trading hubs. Traded hydrogen markets would enhance liquidity, enable transparent price discovery and strengthen the link between infrastructure and trading. Ultimately, only an open, market-based framework can deliver the price signals needed to unlock large-scale investment and integrate hydrogen into the wider energy system.”
Philippe Cornille, General Secretary of EIGA, said: “Industry is ready to invest, but we need a technology-neutral framework that accelerates production, unlocks demand and supports infrastructure.”
Felicia Mester, Managing Director for Europe and IMO Affairs at Methanol Institute, said: “Hydrogen derivatives like methanol are essential to move hydrogen where it’s needed and decarbonise sectors that can’t electrify easily. Europe must reward fuels based on real CO₂ performance, regardless of the technology used. Clear demand signals and reliable offtake are urgently needed to build an affordable and liquid market for hydrogen-based fuels.”
The coalition is calling on the European Commission to ensure the revised European Hydrogen Strategy, expected by end of 2026, creates the necessary conditions for Europe to realistically develop a thriving hydrogen market including derivatives by:
- Simplifying hydrogen production rules to provide flexibility and ensure technology neutrality, linking support eligibility to verified lifecycle GHG intensity of the fuel.
- Rewarding lower-emission products based on lifecycle CO₂ performance standards.
- Adopting a phased cluster-based approach to hydrogen infrastructure, complemented by blending, asset repurposing, bunkering and recognising CO₂ infrastructure’s strategic role in the hydrogen value chain.
- Strengthening financing frameworks across the hydrogen value chain to address competitiveness gaps, de-risk infrastructure and enable timely final investment decisions.
- Enable both renewable and low-carbon hydrogen and its derivatives as well as imports, including import corridors and bunkering, and strategic partnerships to support EU’s demand ambitions, effectively contribute to EU’s decarbonisation objectives.
