EU speeds up development of hydrogen technologies

The European Commission has organized its first Stakeholders General Assembly on Fuel Cells and Hydrogen in Europe this week.

By ARI SYRQUIN
Hydrogen car 88 (photo credit: )
Hydrogen car 88
(photo credit: )
To mark the start of its Joint Technology Initiative (JTI) on Fuel Cells and Hydrogen, the European Commission has organized its first Stakeholders General Assembly on Fuel Cells and Hydrogen in Europe this week. The JTI on Fuel Cells and Hydrogen is supposed to implement a target-oriented research and development program to support the broad-market introduction of fuel-cell and hydrogen-energy applications and infrastructure. Hydrogen energy Hydrogen is a clean energy carrier. European research shows that hydrogen energy could reduce oil consumption in road transport by 40 percent by 2050. Fuel cells can be applied in a variety of products, such as mobile phones and laptops, cars, buses, ships and planes, as well as stationary heat and power generators in the domestic and industrial sector. The founding members of the Joint Technology Initiative on Fuel Cells and Hydrogen are the European Commission and a nonprofit association of European industry interests including more than 60 companies. The European Commission is expected to fund 470 million from the Seventh Framework Program over a period of six years, which will be matched by industry contributions. Reducing oil consumption A scientific project funded by the EU's research program has claimed it found that introducing hydrogen into the energy system would reduce the total oil consumption by the road transport sector by 40% between now and 2050. By working toward taking a leading position in the worldwide market for hydrogen technologies, Europe wants to open new economic opportunities and strengthen its competitiveness. But the analysis also states that transition won't happen automatically. Substantial barriers have first to be overcome, ranging from economic and technological to institutional barriers, and actions must be taken as soon as possible. The European Commission strives to bring together industry, research institutes and government agencies from 10 European countries. Following a series of more than 50 workshops the project has produced a road map to analyze the potential impacts on the EU economy, society and environment of the large- scale introduction of hydrogen short- and long-term, as well as an action plan detailing what needs to be done for this to take place. Uniform requirements At the moment, uniform requirements for hydrogen vehicles are not included in the EU approval system. This poses problems for hydrogen-vehicle manufacturers when trying to place these vehicles on the market in the EU. Currently, even if a vehicle obtains approval in one member state, it is not guaranteed that the registration of this vehicle will be authorized in all the other member states. Further, member states have the possibility to establish different requirements for issuing an approval certificate. This situation results in a fragmented internal market of hydrogen-powered vehicles, as well as complicated and costly approval procedures, which discourages the introduction of this environmentally friendly technology. Joint technology initiatives Joint technology initiatives are public-private partnerships set up at European level to address strategic areas where research and innovation are essential to European competitiveness. A novel element of the Seventh Framework Program for Research, Technological Development and Demonstration Activities, JTIs support large-scale multinational research activities. They bring together private and public partners to define common objectives of wide societal relevance and to combine funding and knowledge to fulfill these objectives. JTIs target well-defined areas where existing programs and instruments (including those of the framework program), which often follow a project oriented approach, cannot cater for the scale and scope needed. In these areas, cooperation between private and public partners, at the national and European levels, can yield significant added value by creating incentives for increased spending in research and development. By joining forces, industry could accomplish more than by doing it alone. Furthermore, the creation of spinoffs as a result of JTI activities may be widespread across the regions of Europe.