Germany must speed up its hydrogen transition, industry associations agree

Germany needs to pick up the pace and take a more pragmatic approach to its hydrogen transition and the development of a hydrogen market. At a press conference today, Timm Kehler, head of the German gas association Zukunft Gas, and Werner Diwald, head of the German Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association (DWV), agreed on this. The German government is now revising its national hydrogen strategy, approved in June 2020.

“The launch of our hydrogen future was successful. But now we need more pragmatism and greater speed,” Kehler and Diwald said, marking one thousand days since the national hydrogen strategy was approved.

According to Kehler, the plans now need to be put into action to ensure competitiveness. “We need much more pragmatism so that we produce hydrogen instead of directives,” he said.

Kehler stressed that developing a hydrogen economy requires infrastructure in Germany and the European Union, as well as in the third countries from which Europe and Berlin plan to import hydrogen. He noted that Europe already has a good foundation in its existing gas network, which can be adapted to transport hydrogen.