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Hydrogen Acceleration Act

Last week, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWK) presented the Draft Law for a new Hydrogen Acceleration Act (Wasserstoffbeschleunigungsgesetz).

📄 The Draft Law is available via this link.

✅ Key Points:

📌 Broader Scope Beyond Green Hydrogen

Unlike previous strategies focused solely on green hydrogen, the new Draft Law grants equal treatment to both green and blue hydrogen.
Projects producing blue H2 from natural gas with carbon capture and storage (CCS) may now benefit from acceleration measures.

📌 Support Across the Entire Hydrogen Value Chain

The Act aims to fast-track:

Electrolyser deployment
Hydrogen imports and derivatives (e.g., ammonia, methanol)
PtX plants for e-fuel production
Hydrogen storage and transport infrastructure

📌 Natural Hydrogen Recognition

Natural hydrogen will be classified as a non-mineable mineral resource under the Federal Mining Act (Bundesberggesetz).
This change simplifies project development by removing the need for contracts with landowners—similar to how resources like coal or natural gas are handled.

📌 Accelerated Permitting

No public hearing (Erörterungstermin) will take place during the approval process.
A planning approval decision (Planfeststellungsbeschluss) must be issued within 12 months.
A planning permit (Plangenehmigung) must be granted within 7 months.

📅 Consultation Period:

The BMWK is accepting feedback from federal states and industry associations until 28 July 2025.

Posted By : admin 15 Jul, 2025

Nuremberg Hydrogen Conference 2025

On 14 July 2025, I had the pleasure of attending the Nuremberg Hydrogen Conference, hosted by the University of Technology Nuremberg.

The event brought together leading researchers, policymakers, and industry representatives to discuss the current state and future of the hydrogen economy in Germany and beyond.

✅ Key takeaways:

📌 AI and clean energy:

The growing energy demands of AI make clean hydrogen a key enabler for a sustainable digital future.

📌 Speed of integration:

While oil and gas took ~50 years and renewables ~15 years to become integral to the energy system, hydrogen should achieve this in just 5 years — provided the right conditions are in place.

📌 Hydrogen production costs (2023, EU grid-mix):

Lowest: Finland (€4.1/kg), Sweden (€4.4/kg)
Highest: Cyprus (€17.4/kg), Poland (€12.4/kg)

📌 Barriers slowing hydrogen deployment:

Limited willingness to pay for H2
Market uncertainty and lack of demand aggregation
Permitting delays
Industry is still waiting for GW-scale proof and strong public support mechanisms.

📌 Hydrogen imports remain slow, and it is important to create competition between demand and production side.

📌 A clear market dynamic: as hydrogen prices rise, demand drops – and vice versa.

📌 Two-sided auctions, such as those facilitated by H2Global, are a promising tool to stimulate both supply and demand and accelerate market ramp-up.

Posted By : admin 11 Jul, 2025

2nd Florence Aviation Regulation Conference

Just returned from the 2nd Florence Aviation Regulation Conference, co-organized by the International Institute of Air and Space Law (IIASL), Leiden University and the Florence School of Regulation.

It was an honor to contribute to such a high-level exchange of ideas shaping the future of aviation regulation.

I had the pleasure of presenting my paper on “Interaction of Certification and Standards for e-SAF Production”, exploring how regulatory frameworks and technical standards impact the uptake of sustainable aviation fuels in Europe.

The conference addressed a wide range of topics, including:

Interaction between CORSIA and the EU ETS
Implementation of the AI Act in aviation
Market incentives and social sustainability in the net-zero transition
Regulation of non-CO₂ effects in aviation

Posted By : admin 9 Jul, 2025

Delegated act for Low-Carbon Fuels

📢 New EU Regulation on Low-Carbon Hydrogen and Fuels

On 8 July 2025, the European Commission adopted a Delegated Regulation specifying the methodology for calculating GHG emissions savings from low-carbon fuels, including low-carbon hydrogen (the Delegated Act).

✅ What is this about?

The Delegated Act establishes a GHG emissions methodology for low-carbon hydrogen and fuels, as outlined in the Hydrogen and Gas Market Directive.
It complements existing rules on renewable hydrogen and RFNBOs, creating a complete EU regulatory framework for hydrogen certification.

☑️ Who does it apply to?

The Delegated Act applies to EU and non-EU producers wishing to place hydrogen on the EU market.
Certification can be achieved through Voluntary Schemes — third-party systems already in use for renewable fuels.

📅 What happens next?

The Delegated Act will now be reviewed by the European Parliament and Council, who have 2 months to accept or reject it.
This scrutiny period may be extended by an additional 2 months, if requested.
If approved, the Delegated Act will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the EU.

📄 Delegated Act: Commission delegated regulation (EU) specifying a methodology for assessing greenhouse gas emissions savings from low-carbon fuels

➡️ Source: Clarity to hydrogen sector with new EU methodology for low-carbon hydrogen and fuels

Posted By : admin 7 Jul, 2025

Bringing Hydrogen to the EU Market

In this episode of Clean Energy Talks video blog with Joris Vlasblom, an experienced energy advisor specializing in hydrogen, renewable energy, and Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), we talk about bringing hydrogen to the EU Market:

I. EU Hydrogen Targets & Demand

How do you assess the current demand for hydrogen and its derivatives in the EU?

How aligned is the current market demand with the EU’s hydrogen targets for 2030 and beyond?

II. Market Entry & Readiness

What are the biggest challenges to bringing hydrogen into the EU market today?

III. Certifications & Standards

How can producers confirm the compliance of hydrogen with EU market requirements?

How crucial is the RFNBO certification for accessing the EU market?

IV. Infrastructure & Technology

What infrastructure gaps (e.g. ports, pipelines, storage) are most urgent to address?

V. Practical Solutions

What are some practical steps companies should take when planning to enter the EU hydrogen market?

➡️ Reach out here on LinkedIn or contact me for more details on the video topic.

Posted By : admin 6 Jul, 2025

Amendments to the EU Climate Law

Amendment to the EU Climate Law by the European Commission

On 2 July 2025, the European Commission proposed an amendment to the EU Climate Law, introducing a 2040 climate target:

✅ 90% reduction in net GHG emissions by 2040, compared to 1990 levels.

📄 Proposal for a 2040 EU climate target is available via this link.

☑️ Main Proposals:

To support the achievement of the 2040 EU climate target, the European Commission will ensure that future legislative proposals appropriately reflect a broad set of guiding principles and priorities, including:

📌 Starting from 2036, high-quality international credits (up to 3% of 1990 emissions) under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, supporting both EU and global efforts to stay below a 1.5°C temperature rise.

📌 The role of domestic permanent removals within the EU ETS to address residual emissions in hard-to-abate sectors.

📌 Enhanced flexibility across sectors for cost-effective progress.

📌 Use of the best available science, including IPCC and Advisory Board reports.

📌 Consideration of social, economic, and environmental impacts, the costs of inaction, and the benefits of action over the medium and long term.

📌 Ensuring a just and socially fair transition for all.

📌 Promoting technology neutrality, simplification, economic efficiency, and security.

📌 Positioning climate action as a driver for investment and innovation.

📌 Strengthening the global competitiveness of EU industries, especially SMEs and sectors most exposed to carbon leakage.

📌 Supporting affordable and secure energy, efficiency, and the energy efficiency first principle.

📌 Maintaining and enhancing natural carbon sinks and protecting biodiversity.

📌 Addressing investment needs and financing opportunities.

📌 Aligning with international efforts under the Paris Agreement and the UNFCCC.

✅ Next Steps:

The proposal will be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council for discussion and adoption under the ordinary legislative procedure.

➡️ Source: EU’s Climate Law presents a new way to get to 2040

Posted By : admin 27 Jun, 2025

EEA report

Renewables, electrification and flexibility — for a competitive EU energy system transformation by 2030

The EEA report ‘Renewables, electrification and flexibility — for a competitive EU energy system transformation by 2030’.

✅ Key Insights:

📌 The EU has made remarkable progress in cutting electricity-sector CO2 emissions over recent decades. However, decarbonising heating and transport — still dominated by gas and oil — lags behind.

📌 Scaling up domestic renewable electricity generation, together with improvements in energy and resource efficiency, can replace volatile fossil fuel imports with cleaner, lower-cost energy.

📌 If 2030 renewables and efficiency targets are met, variable electricity generation costs in the EU could fall by up to 57% compared to 2023 levels. In the long term, this means lower consumer prices, though near-term investments in grid flexibility and infrastructure will be essential.

📌 The shift to green hydrogen as an industrial feedstock will significantly increase electricity demand post-2030. By 2050, hydrogen use could rise more than tenfold compared to the end of this decade, with around 65% dedicated to industrial applications.

📌Meeting climate goals requires a rapid decline in fossil fuel use: annual oil reduction must double by 2030, while gas use must fall eightfold. This would cut the fossil energy share from 59% in 2022 to 6% by 2050.

📌 Urgent priorities include:

Unlocking capital to expand renewable capacity to 77% of total installed capacity by 2030.
Doubling system flexibility through smart grids, storage, and demand response.
Strengthening EU-wide coordination to balance regional disparities and improve resilience.

➡️ Source: Renewables, electrification and flexibility – For a competitive EU energy system transformation by 2030

Posted By : admin 27 Jun, 2025

Clean Industrial Solutions and Aid Framework (CISAF)

📢 On 25 June 2025, the European Commission adopted the Clean Industrial Solutions and Aid Framework (CISAF) — a major step to align State aid rules with the goals of the Clean Industrial Deal.

This new framework provides targeted support for low-carbon fuels, including low-carbon hydrogen, RFNBOs, and synthetic fuels, through structured investment aid schemes.

🔹 What’s new for hydrogen and e-fuels?

The European Commission will consider compatible with the internal market aid measures to support:

investments for the production of low-carbon fuels
investments for the production of RFNBOs
investments in storage for low-carbon fuels that store exclusively low-carbon fuels, or a mix of low-carbon fuels and RFNBOs.

🔹 Key conditions:

30% of budgets must be reserved for RFNBOs
GHG reduction threshold of 70% for low-carbon fuels
Aid applies only to new capacity
Schemes must remain open, non-discriminatory, and compliant with the ‘Do No Significant Harm’ principle.

✅ This is a promising signal for project developers and industrial actors across Europe. The CISAF framework may play a critical role in de-risking early investments in the hydrogen economy and scaling up low-carbon fuel production.

➡️ Source: Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework (CISAF)

Posted By : admin 25 Jun, 2025

Regulatory Update: Low-Carbon Hydrogen Rules

Source: In Search of the Real Price of Blue Hydrogen

📢 Regulatory Update: Low-Carbon Hydrogen Rules

The European Commission plans to finalize the Delegated Act for low carbon hydrogen in the coming months, with implementation planned before the end of the year.

At the same time, growing concerns remain about the viability blue hydrogen. This is confirmed in the recent report by the Green Hydrogen Organization: “In Search of the Real Price of Blue Hydrogen”, available via this link.

✅ Key Takeaways from the report:

📌 Low-carbon hydrogen – not proven at scale

No current projects meet the emissions criteria of the EU, US, UK, Japan, or Korea.
True low-carbon production would require 95%+ carbon capture and permanent, verifiable CO₂ storage

📌 Carbon capture performance is inconsistent

Among 16 reviewed CCS projects, none have consistently captured more than 80% of CO₂ emissions.

📌 High uncertainty = risky pricing assumptions

Unlike green hydrogen projects, carbon capture assumptions are not validated by real-world performance.
Volatile gas prices and gaps in life-cycle emissions reporting make pricing blue hydrogen highly speculative.

☑️ CONCLUSION: clarity, predictability, and consistency in definitions and requirements will be essential to build trust and attract investment in low-carbon hydrogen pathways.

➡️ Source: Commission’s draft rules make low-carbon hydrogen ‘practically impossible’, say stakeholders

Posted By : admin 22 Jun, 2025

Renewable Energy Directive (RED III) implementation in Germany

The German Federal Ministry for the Environment has submitted a draft bill for the further development of the GHG reduction quota for consultation with associations. The law serves to implement the requirements of the amended Renewable Energy Directive (RED III).

✅ The main changes:

📌 General overview:

The mandatory percentage reduction in GHG emissions for fuels will be set until 2040 and will gradually increase to 53%.
The GHG reduction quota must be met by all fuel suppliers for all transport sectors.
The separate quota for RFNBO in aviation will be replaced by a general quota for all transport sectors.
The quota for advanced biofuels will be increased and the double counting will be abolished.
Renewable fuels can only be counted if on-site inspections by government inspectors are possible.

💧 The minimum shares of RFNBO for the transport sector is:

0.1 % from 2026,
0.5 % from 2028,
1.5 % from 2030,
2 % from 2032,
3 % from 2034,
5 % from 2035,
7 % from 2037,
9 % from 2039,
12 % from 2040.

📊 For the calculation of the reference value against which the GHG reduction must be achieved, the energetic quantity of the RFNBO multiplied by a factor of:

3 from the commitment year 2024,
2.5 from the commitment year 2035,
2 from the commitment year 2036,
1.5 from the commitment year 2037,
1 from the 2038 commitment year.

The factors shall additionally be multiplied by 1.5 if the respective fuel is used in aircraft or vessels.

✈️ Aviation:

Previous PtL Quotas for aircrafts (in paragraph 4a § 37a) are excluded;
New PtL Quotas are defined under the ReFuelEU Aviation Regulation;
An aviation fuel supplier is defined as anyone who, on a commercial basis or within the framework of commercial enterprises pursuant to the Energy Tax Act, places on the market aviation turbine fuel under subheading 2710 19 21 of the Combined Nomenclature.
Penalties for non-compliance with PtL Quotas by aviation fuel suppliers:
- for SAF – EUR 4,700 per tonne;
- for e-SAF – EUR 17,000 per tonne.

➡️ Source: Referentenentwurf eines zweiten Gesetzes zur Weiterentwicklung der Treibhausgasminderungs-Quote

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Renewables, electrification and flexibility — for a competitive EU energy system transformation by 2030