The rules of the hydrogen game
In the last twenty years, issues related to hydrogen have acquired centrality in the context of EU policy on energy and climate, culminating in the adoption of the Commission communication "A hydrogen strategy for a climate-neutral Europe" of 8 July 2020.
European policies have not yet produced a complete regulatory outcome: at present, in fact, the production, circulation and use of hydrogen does not have an organic discipline. Partial and fragmented regulatory discipline can be found in legislation of various kinds (mainly decisions and regulations) on hydrogen R&D, hydrogen-fueled vehicles and hydrogen distribution networks, as well as industrial activities and hydrogen from renewable sources.
Many point out the need to revise existing legislation in order to adapt the existing regulatory framework to the new demands determined by the European strategy for hydrogen. It is true, however, that, at least in relation to the transport sector, the regulatory interventions have been numerous and far-reaching, defining a significant corpus perhaps suitable for merging into an organic and single text.
Faced with this situation, the EU strategy for hydrogen, starting from quantification of investments between €180 and €470 billion into renewable hydrogen by 2050, provides a real roadmap for the next 30 years, whichi is divided into three phases.
The first phase (2020-2024) calls for the installation of at least 6 GW of electrolyzers for renewable hydrogen and production of 1 million tons of renewable hydrogen is expected. On a regulatory level, this first phase should be characterized by the need to define the regulatory framework "for a liquid and well-functioning hydrogen market and on the incentives to supply and demand in leading markets, also compensating for the cost differences between the solutions and renewable and low-carbon hydrogen and adopting adequate rules on state aid ".
During the second phase (2025-2030), hydrogen will have to take on the role of an essential element in an integrated energy system, with the installation of at least 40 GW of electrolyzers for renewable hydrogen and the production of 10 million tons of the fuel. At this juncture, an improvement in the competitiveness of renewable hydrogen is expected, the extension to various industrial applications (steel, trucks, rail transport) and the development of local hydrogen hubs. The infrastructure will also need to be adapted, with the planning of a pan-European hydrogen network and a network of refueling stations. At this stage, the legislation will have to provide for the "completion of an open and competitive EU hydrogen market, characterized by the absence of a barrier to cross-border trade and by an efficient distribution of hydrogen between the various sectors".
Finally, the third phase (2031-2050) foresees the maturity of technologies based on renewable hydrogen and their application on a large scale, with the spread of synthetic fuels derived from hydrogen also to aviation and shipping and with the use of biogas to replace natural gas in the production of hydrogen with capture and storage of carbon dioxide.
To support such a far-reaching transformation, the Union foresees the need for substantial investments - between €24 and €42 billion by 2030 for electrolyzers, €220-340 billion for increasing energy production from renewable sources and an additional €11 billion for the rollout of carbon capture and storage technologies, in reference to which a specific "European Alliance for Clean Hydrogen" will be set up, bringing together companies, public administrations, research bodies in implementation of the hydrogen strategy by defining of investment projects.
Individual national experiences, more or less developed in their approaches, find space within the EU framework. Italy has attributed a particularly important role to hydrogen in order to achieve the so-called "ecological transition starting from the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC), published in January 2020.
The key point towards an energy system that integrates hydrogen among its sources is, however, the Italian National Plan for Recovery and Resilience (PNRR) which enables the outlay of sizable sums for investment. As part of the legislation related to the PNRR, which within Mission 2 lists hydrogen as an investment item, and the PNIEC, the Legislative Decree May 31, 2021, no. 77, as converted into the Law of 21 July 2021, no. 108, has included among the works and infrastructures necessary to achieve the objectives set out by the PNIEC, the production, transport and storage of hydrogen, as well as those functional to the refueling of hydrogen vehicles.
With the Decree of 27 April 2022, the Italian Ministry for the Ecological Transition has, lastly, has approved the regulations for the implementation of the investments envisaged by the PNRR. In particular, €450 million have been allocated, so apportioned: €250 million for the construction of plants for the production of electrolyzers of European interest; €100 million for the construction of additional electrolysis capacity reaching 1 GW per year of electricity by 2026; €100 million for investment programs aimed at developing the production chain of hydrogen from electrolysis and/or related components, including projects for targeted R&D and training of specialized personnel.