A new study of the top 100 highest-spenders on EU lobbying based on LobbyFacts data shows that Big Hydrogen spends over €75.75 million a year on lobbying the EU institutions.
This is significantly more than Big Finance (€38.75 million). The study and infographics by Corporate Europe Observatory and WeSmellGas expose the dark side of the EU’s hydrogen craze – and the lobby firepower of the corporate giants driving it.
This new study is published a few days after the IEA’s newly released figures for hydrogen showed that 99 per cent of globally produced hydrogen is made from fossil fuels. Green hydrogen amounts to less than 0.1 per cent of hydrogen production (less than 0.08 million tonnes) – a stark contrast with the EU’s 2030 target of 20 million tonnes.
The dirty truth about the EU’s hydrogen push also exposes the serious risks of large scale green hydrogen production, which requires vast amounts of land, water, and renewable energy.
For instance, a third of the globally planned gigawatt-scale green hydrogen projects (41 out of 109 projects in our database) are in countries already facing high or extremely high water stress, including Spain, Namibia, Chile, or Morocco.
The new study by Corporate Europe Observatory and WeSmellGas raises serious concerns about the EU’s hydrogen push. The study shows that Big Hydrogen is spending heavily to lobby the EU, and that the EU’s hydrogen plans risk extending fossil fuel use and driving new colonialism.
The study also highlights the risks of large-scale green hydrogen production, which requires vast amounts of land, water, and renewable energy.
The EU needs to rethink its hydrogen strategy and focus on genuinely renewable energy solutions that are just and equitable.
