Hydrogen stations: faster deployment is required

Following the adoption of the AFIR regulation on alternative fuels, a group of hydrogen players has sent a letter to the European Commission.

Consequently, the European Council has adopted a new law to increase the number of recharging and refuelling stations in Europe. In particular, it stipulates that hydrogen refuelling stations for cars and trucks must be deployed from 2030 onwards in all urban hubs and every 200 km along the TEN-T core network.

That’s all well and good, but now we need to move fast. These are the main points made by a group of 18 players* in a letter to the Commission. The letter states that it is “urgent to move without delay to the implementation phase in order to collectively deploy the HRS network, which is crucial to achieving the objectives of reducing CO2 emissions.″ And the group is calling for “a dedicated working group to be set up and led, bringing together the main industry players (vehicle manufacturers, infrastructure providers, fleet operators), investors and volunteer Member States.”

Taking action before 2030 on the deployment of hydrogen stations

“The aim of this working group will be to actively coordinate the implementation phase of AFIR and effectively support the rapid and dense deployment of the hydrogen refuelling stations network, well ahead of 2030.” This letter highlights the investments already made by carmakers and hydrogen distributors.

The players are also calling for fundings that “cover the risk of under-utilisation in the early years and offers long-term predictability to investors.”

You can read the letter here (in French).

The letter from the 18 signatories has been sent to European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans, and to the European Commissioners for Transport Adina Valean, Internal Market and Industry Thierry Breton, and Competition Margrethe Vestager, as well as to all the transport ministers of the EU Member States.

*Hy24, Air Liquide, BMW, Daimer, Engie, Everfuel, H2 Mobility, Hydrogen Europe, Honda, Hyundai, Hyvia-Renault, Lidce, Messer, Vinci, snam, Stellantis, TotalEnergies, Toyota.

Do you want to learn more about the deployment of hydrogen stations? You can read our latest article on that topic here. 

Article written by Laurent Meillaud and translated by Logan King