Although Europe will be able to produce a substantial share of its green hydrogen domestically, imports will be required for large-scale deployment. Speaking on The Hydrogen Elevator, recorded at The Smarter E Europe exhibition in Munich and hosted by Jürgen Pfeiffer, the two guests differed on what should happen next. Cornelius Matthes, CEO of DII Desert Energy and Chair of the MENA Hydrogen Alliance, called for regulations that are "pragmatic", "stable" and "continuous". Laurent Antony, Executive Director of the International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE), described the challenge of agreeing on common rules in a global context.
NEOM Green Hydrogen project 95% completeMatthes shared an update on the NEOM Green Hydrogen project in Saudi Arabia, which originated from a DII initiative launched in 2017. According to him, the project is now 95% complete and is "due to be commissioned in the next few quarters."
German companies play a key role in the project. The 2.2 GW electrolyser is being supplied entirely by Thyssenkrupp Nucera. Germany is also providing the ammonia storage tanks, while the project includes 1.7 GW of wind capacity alongside large-scale solar generation.
Matthes argued that the widely quoted production cost of around US$6/kg for green hydrogen is far too high. "We can go below three euros per kilogram today," he said, adding that NEOM Green Hydrogen is the benchmark proving this is already possible.
He also dismissed concerns about the Strait of Hormuz for green hydrogen trade. NEOM is located on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast, close to the Suez Canal, and most other hydrogen projects in the MENA region are likewise situated on the Red Sea or in North Africa rather than the Gulf.
MENA developers losing patience with Europe
Matthes was sharply critical of Europe's regulatory framework. According to him, prospective producers in the MENA region are "extremely annoyed, extremely frustrated by a lack of speed, a lack of clarity, [and] the lack of continuity from a European point of view." Without reliable long-term offtake commitments, investors are increasingly looking towards Asia, where projects move faster and regulatory frameworks are more predictable.
He also called for competitive export credit agency (ECA) support to facilitate the delivery of European technology into the region.
Antony likewise argued that the biggest barrier to a global hydrogen market is not cost but regulation. From his perspective, the core challenge is interoperability between different regulatory systems. IPHE aims to develop common foundations for the hydrogen economy that governments and standards organisations can build upon.
The task remains substantial. IPHE has identified 21 hydrogen certification schemes and seven support mechanisms worldwide. Antony considers a single global certification scheme unrealistic. "That's just a dream," he said.
Certification schemes, he argued, are designed to demonstrate compliance with local regulations. Instead, IPHE advocates a modular approach that identifies common elements across different systems to facilitate international trade.
As a major milestone, Antony highlighted the publication of a new ISO standard at the end of April for quantifying greenhouse gas emissions from hydrogen. The methodology is based on work initiated by IPHE, involving more than 15 countries and over 70 meetings.
The new standard provides a common methodology "to compare apples with apples". At the same time, Antony stressed that ISO standards remain voluntary technical standards. They improve comparability but cannot override national regulations.
Virtual certificates remain controversial
The two experts also disagreed over certificate trading. Matthes argued in favour of virtual trading similar to virtual power purchase agreements (PPAs) in electricity markets. Such an approach, he said, could accelerate market development while avoiding unnecessary transport in the early stages.
Antony rejected a pure book-and-claim model, at least for now. Before virtual trading can become credible, he argued, the industry must establish trust through physical traceability using a mass-balance approach that links the hydrogen produced with the hydrogen ultimately consumed.
As an example of a successful long-term hydrogen policy, Antony pointed to Japan's Hydrogen Society Promotion Act. The legislation combines 15-year contracts for difference (CfDs) with a further ten years of planning certainty and covers the entire supply chain, from producers to logistics providers.
What do hydrogen partnerships really require?
Both speakers argued strongly in favour of international hydrogen partnerships, albeit with different priorities. Long-term agreements emerged as a central issue.
"Ten years is not so good. Twenty years is super. If you have 30 years, it's even much better," Matthes said. "A solid offtake, a solid long-term agreement is simply a prerequisite to make any of these projects bankable."
Antony likewise called for long-term, stable and predictable rules.
"We need to create the trust through long-term commitment," he said, again citing Japan's model of 15-year CfDs followed by an additional ten years without CfD support.
Matthes criticised Europe's regulatory framework as overly slow and called for a legal framework that is pragmatic, stable and continuous. In his view, the market now needs "simplicity" and "a bold commitment by Europe."
Antony argued that Europe should regard exporting countries as co-owners rather than merely suppliers. Standards, technologies and expertise should be developed jointly to create shared understanding and interoperable certification systems as the basis for a global hydrogen market.
"Let's understand each other and work together," he concluded.
This episode of The Hydrogen Elevator was recorded in English. Episode 4 will be available from 30 June at h2-international.com/podcast.
