A new framework for hydrogen certification created by a group of international bodies will help ensure the efficient development of global markets, according to industry body the Hydrogen Council.

The Hydrogen Certification 101 paper was developed by intergovernmental agency the International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE), industry bodies the IEA, the International Renewable Energy Agency and the Hydrogen Council, and knowledge-sharing platform the Power-to-X Hub.

Certification is becoming an increasingly important topic globally, with G20 ministers in July calling for mutually recognised and interoperable certification schemes.

Internationally recognised certification procedures will help facilitate the development of a global cross-border trade in hydrogen, according to Daria Nochevnik, director for policy and partnerships at the Hydrogen Council.

“Certification will play an important role in providing transparency for consumers and allowing them to signal demand for [the] type of hydrogen they need,” she told Hydrogen Economist.

“Certification will play an important role in providing transparency for consumers” Nochevnik, Hydrogen Council

Governments around the world—including those of Australia, Saudi Arabia, the UK and other European countries—are working on defining the rules and compliance requirements for hydrogen based on their national circumstances.

Incompatibility between different countries’ certification schemes could lead to additional administrative burdens and delays in the development of trade corridors.

“In [the] case of fragmented compliance markets with different certification schemes, only bilateral trades between a hydrogen producer and an importing country would be possible. This would effectively preclude the development of a global hydrogen market,” noted the paper.

A common agreement on standards will also help avoid certification scams that have taken place in the European biofuels and emissions trading scheme markets over the past few years.

Common framework

Achieving exact alignment on any set of rules is challenging because different countries have different carbon intensity requirements. And the EU has strict rules around geographic and temporal correlation of electrolysers and renewable power that are based on the specific structure of its electricity markets.

“There is a consensus globally that because of divergent policies you cannot always do certification in the same way, but what you can do is provide a common framework based on shared principles of transparency and the building of consumer trust,” said Nochevnik.

According to the paper, this common framework must include information regarding the following:

• The fundamental design principles of schemes.
• The variables that need to be certified, such as carbon footprint, use of land, use of water and socioeconomic impacts.
• The governance of schemes.
• Certification issuing, oversight and supervision rules.
• Scope and boundary conditions for certification schemes.
• Chains of custody used for tracing of product attributes along the supply chain.

Another key goal of the paper is to develop a common set of terms for certification schemes.

“The paper is a milestone in capturing international consensus on terms to make sure that we use a common language,” said Nochevnik.“Some terms can be used interchangeably so the paper aims to facilitate co-operation around this common language for the international community.”

Ongoing work

The IEA and the IPHE will continue to build on the work of the paper, developing technical solutions for the mutual recognition of certification schemes, as well as more technical guidelines for the certification process itself.

The most mature standard methodology being developed at global level is the ISO Methodology for GHG Emissions Assessment of Hydrogen Production, Conditioning and Transport (ISO TS19870).

Bodies such as the Hydrogen Council want to provide robust technical guidelines such as these while simultaneously ensuring the scheme can adapt to updates in sustainability methodologies or assessment frameworks.

“There is a unique opportunity to help build the momentum from calls for action and commitment on this topic,” said Nochevnik. “There is ongoing work, and we can expect further developments at COP28.”

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Author: Tom Young