Ministry of Industry and Trade presents Czech Hydrogen Strategy
The EU member states have committed to achieving climate neutrality across the EU by 2050. Following this obligation, the Ministry of Industry and Trade presented the Czech Hydrogen Strategy at an international hydrogen conference held on 16 July 2021.
The Czech Hydrogen Strategy represents an important tool to achieve climate neutrality in the EU, with basic strategic goals involving reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting economic growth. These goals were used to determine the four pillars of the strategy, which are as follows:
- production of low-carbon hydrogen
- use of low-carbon hydrogen
- transport and storage of hydrogen
- promotion of hydrogen technologies.
To achieve climate neutrality, it is necessary to gradually transform industries and change technologies, since, among other things, the methods currently used to produce hydrogen in the CR release vast amounts of CO₂. The strategy does not only concern transport but also the chemical industry, the energy sector, energy-intensive industries, producers of hydrogen technologies and transport equipment, and the transport, distribution and storage of hydrogen.
The Czech Hydrogen Strategy is divided into three phases: the first focuses on the use of hydrogen under the clean mobility concept; the second, planned from 2026, involves operational industrial testing of the use of hydrogen. The third phase should start in 2031 when it is assumed that hydrogen will already be transported using well-established pipelines, without any need for subsidies. Likewise, it is also expected that the construction and repurposing of hydrogen pipelines will have commenced and that hydrogen will be commercially used in many industries.
To support the development of hydrogen technologies, the ministry is primarily planning to use existing programmes such as The Country for the Future, IPCEI or OP TAC. Other programmes organised by the Technology Agency, the Ministry of the Environment, the State Environmental Fund, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry for Regional Development shall also be used for this purpose.
The Hydrogen Strategy is currently subject to intra-departmental comments. The final version will be published after its approval by the government.