In an effort to achieve carbon neutrality by the middle of the century, the European Union is pushing to increase the use of renewable energy, but this effort has been slowed down by a disagreement over hydrogen's role in the transition.
According to a letter from the EU's economy and energy ministers to the executive branch of the union seen by Bloomberg, France and eight other member states of the EU are urging the European Commission to include hydrogen produced by so-called "low carbon" technologies, such as nuclear, in the bloc's Renewable Energy Directive. In addition to renewable energy, the term is also understood to refer to hydrogen produced by gas with the emissions captured.
Low-Carbon Hydrogen to Achieve Carbon Neutrality
In its efforts to reduce emissions by 55% by the end of the decade, the EU views hydrogen, which when burned only yields water, as a byproduct. However, disagreements over the types of fuels used to produce it and how clean they are threatening to scuttle negotiations to increase renewable energy in the EU.
According to those with knowledge of the situation, discussions between the two camps are at a standstill because Germany is opposing efforts to increase hydrogen sources. A senior official with knowledge of the situation believes that the two parties could reach an agreement if the classification rules for renewable hydrogen were made public.
According to the letter to internal market commissioner Thierry Breton and energy commissioner Kadri Simson, "renewable-only objectives would indeed limit the speed of development of our hydrogen economy to the development pace of renewable energy sources, leaving the untapped potential to produce low-carbon hydrogen."
"Opposing low-carbon is a collective dead end that puts our goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050 in jeopardy," said one critic. The EU is making every effort to finish the directive before the summer. As a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the commission proposed raising the headline goal for clean technology's share of energy consumption to 45% by the end of the decade. Member states are currently pushing for a 40% target.
By 2030, the bloc wants to import the equivalent of 10 million tons of green hydrogen and produce 10 million tons of it itself. The letter was to be signed by France, as well as Romania, Bulgaria, Poland, Slovenia, Croatia, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic.
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Technology is a useful servant, but a dangerous master, it was rightly said. Electronic devices have grown into an inevitable part of our daily lives.
