Following the publication of the European Commission's action plan to support the steel and aluminium sectors (see EUROPE 13603/14) on Wednesday 19 March, Hydrogen Europe, the association representing the European hydrogen sector, welcomed the fact that with the European Commission, “once again hydrogen is placed at the centre of the transition”.
“We are pleased to see a direct acknowledgment from the European Commission that hydrogen is the best route to decarbonisation for primary steel production”, said Laurent Donceel, Director for Transport, Industrial Policy and Sustainability.
The final version of the action plan states that the European Commission will adopt the delegated act on low-carbon hydrogen – which has been awaited for many months – “in the coming weeks”, without specifying a date.
The Commission has also announced that it will open the third call of the European Hydrogen Bank (see EUROPE 13596/6) in the third quarter of 2025, and it will be “designed to support production and thus facilitate access for industrial offtakers, including steel”.
An earlier version of the text (see EUROPE 13601/9) mentioned opening up the Bank to low-carbon hydrogen, whereas only renewable hydrogen is currently being considered. This inclusion of low-carbon hydrogen no longer appears in the final text.
Hydrogen Europe also appreciates that the European Commission’s proposal envisages making compensation for the indirect costs of the Emissions Trading System (ETS) permanent beyond the initial 2030 timeline, which “enables more competitive clean hydrogen production for use in energy intensive industries”. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)