In the roadmap, over 400 topics are listed and clustered along the segments of the hydrogen value chain, addressing sectors more well-addressed such as gas cylinders and building-residential applications, as well as applications like mobility, industry, and process that require the development of new standards.

Additionally, the roadmap identified pre-normative research activities including safety (material compatibility and leakage) and issues linked to different energy carriers.

Beyond specific standardisation topics the ECH2A working group on standardisation identified a number of complementary needs that are required to facilitate the implementation of standards across the hydrogen industry.

The ECH2A roadmap noted the need for:

A clear regulatory framework to give direction to the detailed standardisation work;
The publication of standardisation requests, which are mandates of the European Commission to prepare specific standards;
The engagement of industry on topics that need to be developed and/or topics for which no standardisation committee exists or is yet to be active; as well as clear information exchange with associations such as the Hydrogen Council, IRENA, Hydrogen Europe;
The need for an overall coordination of hydrogen activities focusing on the technical needs of industry; the alignment with European Commission policies and legislation and the implementation capacity of the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation (CEN-CENELEC);
Increased cooperation between European and international standardisation bodies based on the existing agreements.

Laying six key actions, the roadmap is hoped to pave the way for new hydrogen standards to accelerate the roll out of large-scale hydrogen solutions.

Key action 1: Integration of the identified standardisation topic list into the standard-setting process at an EU and international level (CEN-CENELEC and ISO-IEC).

 Key action 2: Prioritise topics that are not yet directly addressed in specific standardisation committees; topics that need further technical understanding to allow for identification of standardisation needs; topics that are horizontal and therefore relevant for different segments of the hydrogen value chain.

Key action 3: Get broader stakeholder engagement in standardisation process by sending experts to the relevant standardisation committees. 

Key action 4: Call on the European Commission to support the standardisation process by issuing standardisation requests. 

Key action 5: Continuous support of the standardisation process by the ECH2A working group on standardisation.

Key action 6: Strengthen the coordination of the overall process, including with relevant Horizon Europe Partnerships.