The development of hydrogen energy will become a component of Ukraine's recovery
During an international online conference organized last month by the Energy Association "Ukrainian Hydrogen Council", the preparation of a plan for Ukraine's recovery and the role of hydrogen in the transformation of the post-war Ukrainian economy were discussed. According to the president of the Association, Oleksandr Riepkin, the development of the hydrogen sector in Ukraine will make it possible to achieve a rather ambitious goal: 100% consumption of clean energy in our country.
"Europe sees huge opportunities in Ukraine, so we need to prove with specific actions our ability to be a reliable partner in supplying the latest energy resource to meet European needs," emphasized Oleksandr Riepkin.
Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, the CEO of the European association Hydrogen Europe, assured that he sees huge potential in Ukraine and considers our country an interested and promising partner.
Hydrogen Europe, which unites over 400 members from more than 25 regions of the EU and 30 national associations, sees hydrogen as a means to create a zero-emission economy. With the goal of achieving global carbon neutrality, the association is interested in developing hydrogen technologies and markets not only in Europe but also beyond its borders. According to the CEO of Hydrogen Europe, events in the world and in Ukraine have changed attitudes towards the topic of hydrogen. "We started with the European Green Deal (a package of systemic solutions for achieving climate neutrality by 2050). The COVID-19 epidemic has caused a major economic crisis that the whole world has faced. The war in Ukraine has only brought together like-minded people working with renewable energy sources. These events have brought hydrogen to the forefront as an important component of the energy system.
Moreover, in a relatively short time after the invasion of Ukraine, hydrogen became a component of the energy transition," emphasized Jorgo Chatzimarkakis. According to the speaker, in recent years, extremely important decisions and documents have been adopted aimed at the development of the hydrogen economy. Among them are The European Green Deal and the EU Hydrogen Strategy. In addition to the widespread use of hydrogen as an energy carrier, the strategy declares the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to zero from industrial facilities, transportation, energy, construction, and others. Hydrogen is intended to become an important tool for decarbonizing the EU economy. Importantly, the priority is given to the production of renewable hydrogen, which is produced through electrolysis using mainly wind and solar energy. To implement the Hydrogen Strategy, the European Commission has created the European Clean Hydrogen Alliance, which includes the European Investment Bank, ministries, public organizations, and businesses.
Currently, specific goals are being finalized and negotiations are taking place between the European Parliament and European countries, taking into account the provisions of the EU Directive on renewable hydrogen. According to Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, the process is moving so quickly that the goals set out in REPowerEU can already be considered outdated: "We have the capacity to obtain 10 million tons of renewable hydrogen - we want to reach this level by 2030." Another important document that all potential hydrogen market players were waiting for is the definition of the components of green hydrogen. According to Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, the approach to defining them is not as competitive as the American one. However, despite the remaining open questions, it is important that the EU is moving forward with new rules, as this will provide companies with clarity in making investment decisions and business models. The speaker announced the creation of a Hydrogen Bank on May 17 to launch the hydrogen market.
Another promising direction is the organization of a Hydrogen Academy for the systemic training of specialists in the hydrogen field. Europe is interested in involving Ukrainian experts in this activity, as announced at the conference. Europe not only receives software documents but also concurrently deals with infrastructure issues and designs the future market taking into account both hydrogen and gas components. When considering hydrogen transportation issues, Ukraine is essentially perceived as a component of a united Europe. Considering the formal assumption that any hydrogen produced in Ukraine is imported to Europe, experts see the prospect of using the existing Ukrainian gas pipeline infrastructure to integrate the Ukrainian and European markets.
European experts are confident that Ukraine has become a catalyst country for accelerating hydrogen decision-making and taking hydrogen to a new qualitative level. Therefore, they emphasize that hydrogen should by no means be forgotten when adopting the Recovery Plan for Ukraine. Developing, updating this plan, and integrating it into the plans currently developed in the EU, including the Industrial Plan for the Green Deal, is a matter of the near future perspective.
"Hydrogen Europe will support our joint work with the Ukrainian Hydrogen Council, and we will cooperate together," reassured Jorgo Chatzimarkakis.