Lord Callanan, the UK Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance, and Germany’s Philip Nimrmann, the Federal Republic of State Secretary for Energy, signed the agreement, ensuring the two countries will work together to underpin the international trade in hydrogen.

Under the agreement, each government will accelerate the role of low carbon hydrogen in its nation’s energy mix and have committed to work together to advance innovative and renewable hydrogen technologies, supporting jobs and low carbon investment.

The leaders agreed five key pillars as part of the collaboration:

Accelerating the deployment of hydrogen projects for industry and consumers.
Establishing international leadership on hydrogen markets, setting safety and regulations to aid trade.
Research and innovation on hydrogen, from production to end use.
Promoting trade for hydrogen, plus related goods, technologies and services.
Joint market analysis to support government and industry planning and investments.

Lord Callanan said, “The UK and Germany are neutral partners in making low carbon hydrogen a cleaner and more sustainable way to power up our societies.

“This agreement will underpin the development of this new fuel not just for our respective countries but also for an international trade that could be transformative in our work towards achieving Net Zero emissions by 2050. It is through these partnerships that we can move away from expensive fossil fuels – and in doing so boost our energy security.”

The partnership is built on the back of significant investment in both countries towards the development of hydrogen as an alternative fuel, with the UK Government providing the £240m Net Zero Hydrogen Fund (NZHF) and the Climate and Transformation Fund in Germany, supported by the National Hydrogen Strategy.

Read more: UK Government announces winners of £240m Net Zero Hydrogen Fund

Read more: Industry welcomes Germany’s National Hydrogen Strategy

Nimmerman said, “Our cooperation will not just involve trading of hydrogen and its derivates, but also cooperation on technologies and innovation in this field, which will be of mutual benefit for both Germany and the UK.”

The agreement is expected to increase the amount of private investment in hydrogen technology and projects and help the UK and Germany research respective Net Zero emissions by 2050.

The agreement has caused a response throughout the hydrogen industry, with Steve Scrimshaw, Vice President of Siemens Energy UK & Ireland, claiming this will accelerate the scale and pace needed in the hydrogen economy.

Denis Schulz, CEO of ITM Power, said, “As the UK’s only commercial electrolyser manufacturer, we are welcoming this cross-border collaboration agreement. An effective hydrogen economy can only take shape if countries form alliances like this one.

“Germany is a very significant market for hydrogen and for ITM Power. We are currently building several hundreds of megawatts of electrolyser capacity for projects in Germany, some of which are among the biggest projects in the world.”

Join H2 View in Kuala Lumpur this December (2023)

H2 View heads to KL on December 7-8, 2023, to talk hydrogen in the Asia-Pacific.

How will the region fuse its huge potential with the practical economic needs against the ticking clock of sustainability?

Join H2 View for a 1.5 day hydrogen summit, devoted to definitively making hydrogen happen. Providing thought leadership, insights and case studies, combined with networking and the key connections to enable a true climate for action and investment in the APAC region.

Book your ticket or register your interest here.