Ministers from Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain said Brussels should bring forward its review of the renewable fuels of non-biological origin (RFNBO) delegated act and finalise it in 2026 – two years earlier than planned.

The intervention reflects growing concern that the framework risks delaying investment and scaling of Europe’s hydrogen sector.

“A timely, efficient, and targeted revision of the delegated act is essential to achieve the EU’s climate and industrial ambitions,” the ministers said.

The EU adopted its RFNBO rules in 2023, setting the ground rules for green hydrogen production under renewable targets.

However, they have faced widespread criticism from companies and nations for their complexity and potential to increase hydrogen costs.

Under existing rules, electrolyser operators must use electricity from new renewable sources, ensuring they don’t divert existing clean power from the grid. They must also match electricity use with renewable generation in time (moving to hourly matching by 2030) and location (same or connected market zone).

The ministers call for the European Commission to delay the additionality and hourly matching requirements until 2035.

Additionally, they say first-mover projects should be legally protected for future regulatory changes to ensure predictability and continued bankability.

They suggested these changes could be made without “reopening the delegated act in its entirety” to avoid lengthy regulatory processes.

“If left unchanged, the current RFNBO delegated act criteria risks slowing down the hydrogen ramp-up by imposing a very significant burden on projects, making it more difficult to reach the ambitious targets set out by the renewable energy directive,” they said.

This call follows significant lobbying efforts by trade groups to get the rules relaxed. While many support them as an endpoint for the sector, they are viewed as overburdensome at this early stage.

However, some have warned that changing them now would halt investment due to uncertainty in the regulatory framework.

Brussels had previously looked set to hold strong on the rules, but has shown recent glimpses of being open to compromise.