EU Parliament calls for hydrogen market

The EU Parliament is establishing a European hydrogen economy in order to reduce hundreds of millions of tons of CO2. However, the advancement has been widely panned.

In order to meet climate targets, the European Parliament has come out in favor of establishing a European hydrogen economy. In a paper released on Wednesday, it was said that infrastructure for the production, storage, and transportation of hydrogen is urgently needed. As a result, industry, as well as air, sea, and heavy goods traffic, are the most important lead markets.

The usage of hydrogen in the EU is designed to minimize CO2 emissions. The method, according to the paper, may save roughly 560 million tons of CO2 per year by 2050.

However, whatever percentage of hydrogen should be employed is a point of contention among the fractions. According to the paper, fossil hydrogen should be phased out of the market as soon as practicable. Green hydrogen is the preferred fuel. The CSU’s Angelika Niebler stressed the importance of immediately developing a market for affordable hydrogen. Only by using hydrogen from low-carbon generation as a transitional solution can this be accomplished.

Jens Geier, a member of the SPD, emphasized that hydrogen produced from climate-neutral natural gas should not be considered a long-term answer or a comparable alternative. The Green Party’s Michael Bloss called the promotion of fossil fuels for hydrogen “absurd.” “Conservatives cater to the demands of the oil and gas sector, opening the door to a flow of billions in climate-damaging bad investments.” Cornelia Ernst von der Linke pushed for exclusively investing in green hydrogen as well.

Holger Lösch, Deputy General Manager of the Federation of German Industries, asked for a standardized, EU-wide certification system based on hydrogen’s CO2 concentration in order to create a tradable hydrogen market. Ingbert Liebing, the President of the Association of Municipal Companies, stated that municipal enterprises’ gas distribution networks are ready to assist the changeover.