*Post Dr. Georgios Anthrakefs
4nd sequel
V. Towards a Common Hydrogen Policy
Across Europe, hydrogen has become a central pillar of national energy and climate policy.
According to the European Hydrogen Observatory’s overview of National Strategies, most
EU Member States and several EFTA countries have now adopted, or are in the process of
adopting, dedicated national hydrogen strategies.
These strategies reflect a shared recognition
of hydrogen’s potential role in decarbonising energy systems, strengthening energy security,
and supporting industrial competitiveness, while also revealing differences in national
priorities and starting points.
As of mid-2025, the majority of European countries have published national hydrogen
strategies. Large and medium-sized economies such as Germany, France, Spain, Italy,
Poland, Austria and Belgium already have strategies in place. A smaller group of
countries are working with draft strategies, while only a few have not yet published a
dedicated hydrogen strategy. This broad uptake signals a high level of policy maturity and
political commitment to hydrogen as part of the energy transition. The Observatory tracks not
only the existence of these strategies but also their publication year and qualitative content,
providing a comparative picture of how hydrogen policy is evolving across Europe. Most
national strategies articulate a long-term vision for hydrogen’s role in achieving climate
neutrality. Hydrogen is generally positioned as a solution for sectors that are difficult to electrify directly, such as heavy industry, long-distance transport, aviation, shipping, and
certain applications in heating and power generation. In this sense, hydrogen is rarely
framed as a replacement for electrification, but rather as a complementary energy
carrier where electricity alone is insufficient.
National visions are typically aligned with EU climate objectives, particularly the goal of
climate neutrality by 2050, and often reference hydrogen as a means to reduce dependence on
fossil fuel imports while enhancing energy system resilience. A defining feature of many
national hydrogen strategies is the inclusion of quantitative targets. These commonly relate to
electrolyser capacity, clean hydrogen production volumes, or deployment milestones by 2030
and beyond. Larger economies often set ambitious gigawatt-scale targets for electrolyser
deployment, while smaller countries tend to define more modest or indicative benchmarks.
Although the exact figures vary, these targets serve several purposes: they provide direction
to investors, allow progress to be monitored over time, and help align national efforts with
EU-wide ambitions under frameworks such as the EU Hydrogen Strategy and REPowerEU.
European hydrogen strategies typically address the entire hydrogen value chain. On the
production side, there is a strong emphasis on renewable or low-carbon hydrogen, supported
through financial incentives, public funding schemes, and measures to reduce investment
risk. Many strategies prioritise scaling up electrolyser manufacturing and deployment as a
foundation for market development. Infrastructure planning is another common element.
Strategies often outline approaches to hydrogen transport, distribution, and storage, including
the repurposing of existing gas networks where feasible. At the same time, end-use
applications are promoted in industry, transport, and energy generation, with targeted support
for early adopters. Regulatory and enabling measures feature prominently as well. These
include permitting reforms, safety standards, certification schemes, and guarantees of origin,
all aimed at creating a functioning and trusted hydrogen market. Research, innovation, skills
development, and demonstration projects are also widely highlighted as necessary to support
long-term competitiveness.
A consistent theme across national strategies is alignment with EU policy. Countries
explicitly link their hydrogen plans to European initiatives, ensuring coherence with
common market rules and funding instruments.31 This alignment is particularly important
given hydrogen’s potential role in future European energy trade and integrated infrastructure
networks. The European Hydrogen Observatory’s overview shows that hydrogen has moved
firmly into the mainstream of national energy policy across Europe. While national strategies
differ in ambition and focus, they share common structural elements: a long-term
decarbonisation vision, quantitative targets, value-chain-wide measures, and close alignment
with EU objectives. Together, these strategies form a coherent policy landscape that aims
to turn hydrogen from a niche technology into a cornerstone of Europe’s clean energy
system.
The EU’s common hydrogen policy represents one of the most ambitious energy transition
experiments globally. Its strength lies in its systemic approach: Hydrogen is treated not
as a niche fuel, but as a structural component of a future climate-neutral economy.
However, private sector reactions reveal that ambition alone does not guarantee delivery.32
Nevertheless, whilst policy has succeeded in mobilising interest and early investment, it has
not yet resolved fundamental economic challenges related to cost, demand certainty, and
infrastructure synchronisation.
