As EU Member States in the last TTE Council meeting of the year on December 18, 2017 committed to a target of 27% renewable energy of its overall energy consumption by 2030 and the renewables transport target for 2030 is set at 14% for each member state, hydrogen, thanks to the lobbying of a lot of stakeholders, has improved its visibility in this review of the 2009 Renewable Energy Directive as well as in the  Internal Market Design Directive.  A week earlier a 1.800 km Hydrogen Tour organized by EHA national association member H2IT covered 1.800 km and stops at many public HRS along the way. At a workshop on December 14, 2017, organized by the H2 Future project, where the EHA facilitated the presence of the TSO2020 project, the gas and electricity regulators were informed about the increasing presence of hydrogen in the race to reduce the costs of renewable power curtailment (€ 1 bln in Germany last year). Verbund, the Austrian eenrgy company and the coordinator of the H2Future project, highlighted their efforts in greening of the steel industry through the use of renewable H2 (85% decarbonization), pointing to the need to adapt regulatory conditions to allow H2 installation integration. Gasunie, the coordinator of the TSO2020 pointed to the increasing interest of a gas TSO to link with electricity networks to provide grid management solutions through the production of hydrogen. ACER and CEER are publishing a report on the “Future role of gas” beginning 2018. On the same day the Core coordinators of the TEN T North Sea-Mediterranean Corridor, Atlantic, North Sea-Baltic Corridor and Scandinavian-Mediterranean Corridor organized a Flagship Action workshop for interested parties in TEN T Alternative fuel  infrastructure development to discuss projects that would fill the gaps and provide cross border fuelling and charging. 77 H2 refuelling stations have been set up since 2012 on the TEN T Core and Comprehensive network in 10 hydrogen projects. The EHA submitted a proposal for “Flagship Action” on coordinated and accelerated HRS roll out along core and comprehensicve TEN T networks, linked to sustainable interconnected energy networks to produce and distribute renewable hydrogen.

To ensure concrete and expert support in linking the H2ot Spots in Europe  the EHA has switched gears at its last AGM on December 4, 2017, establishing an Energy and Hydrogen Alliance (EHA!) of  the most innovative clusters of European professionals in the field. Together with the team in Brussels we will continue to put H2 in action in Europe and beyond. Wishing you a lovely Holiday Season!