Joint call on EU to provide framework for H2 infrastructure

The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, Hydrogen Europe and the International Road Transport Union are jointly calling on European policymakers to ramp up investments in EU-wide hydrogen refuelling infrastructure for fuel cell vehicles.

ACEA, Hydrogen Europe and IRU signed the statement during the Hydrogen for Climate Action conference. Their main concern is for the next European Commission and newly-elected MEPs to provide the right framework to support the roll-out of hydrogen infrastructure across the entire EU.

The listed demands include revising the EU’s Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Directive to include mandatory targets for hydrogen. New financial instruments for such infrastructure investments, as well as tapping into existing EU funding mechanisms, are to help to accelerate the roll-out. ACEA’s Director-General, Eric-Mark Huitema stressed the potential of fuel cell vehicles depending on refuelling stations. He added, “today, there are just 125 hydrogen stations in the EU, so there is much work to be done in the coming years.”

For this, the organisations also want to see a strategic plan put in place with hydrogen infrastructure development to take into account heavy fuel cell vehicles such as trucks in particular. Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, Secretary-General of Hydrogen Europe, commented that for any infrastructure, “a precondition is the right legal framework to incentivise the production of low carbon or renewable hydrogen, and the respective fueling infrastructure.”

The ACEA represents 15 major manufacturers such as the BMW Group, DAF Trucks, Daimler, Hyundai Motor Europe, the PSA Group, Renault Group, or Toyota Motor Europe and Volkswagen Group.

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