Although Eastern Europe, Russia and the CIS accounts for only 4% of total active hydrogen project market share, several countries in the region are investing in low- and zero-carbon hydrogen pathways. Most projects are in Poland, Romania, Russia and the CIS (see Fig.1). Several nations in the region have also announced national hydrogen strategies.

Visegrad countries

Hungary unveiled its national hydrogen strategy in May 2021, which provided priority objectives for domestic hydrogen production and decarbonisation goals by 2030. These included increasing domestic low-carbon and green hydrogen production capacity to 20,000t/yr and 16,000t/yr, respectively, as well as developing 240MW of electrolyser capacity. The strategy also calls for the decarbonisation of various industries using low- and zero-carbon pathways, including industrial processes (e.g., MOL plans to incorporate green hydrogen in its refining operations), the transportation sector (e.g., 10,000t/yr of green hydrogen to be used as road fuel, building 20 hydrogen fuelling stations, the deployment of 4,800 hydrogen-fuel cell vehicles), and blending more hydrogen in the electricity generation system and natural gas infrastructure.

Hungary also joins the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia to develop cross-border hydrogen projects/initiatives. The partnership is anchored by the more than €5.8b Black Horse project, which envisions 320t/d of green hydrogen production capacity, more than 10,000 hydrogen-fuelled trucks and a green hydrogen fuelling network, among other infrastructure.

Poland’s inclusion in the Black Horse project will help move the nation closer to reaching its 2030 hydrogen objectives. Poland released its hydrogen strategy in 2021, which focused on several initiatives to develop a domestic green hydrogen economy. By 2030, the country is striving to have 2GW of electrolyser and low-carbon capacity operational, 800–1,000 hydrogen-fuelled buses, more than 30 hydrogen fuelling stations, a minimum of five hydrogen valleys, a robust hydrogen research programme and financial support structure, and additional regional and international cooperation.

Poland intends to meet these goals by increasing the use of hydrogen in its domestic energy and heating sectors, promoting green hydrogen use in the transportation sector, switching to low-carbon and green hydrogen in industrial sectors, creating a stable regulatory framework, and establishing financial incentives to build a domestic green hydrogen economy.

The Czech Republic and Slovakia both also released national hydrogen strategies in 2021. The Czech Republic’s two primary strategies are to lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and stimulate economic growth. These two strategic goals will be realised by increasing domestic production and consumption of green hydrogen, developing a robust hydrogen transportation network and storage capabilities, and boosting research and development activities in hydrogen technologies.

According to government forecasts, the Czech Republic’s hydrogen consumption is expected to reach more than 1.7mt/yr by 2050. This includes consumption from most hydrogen-consuming sectors (transport, chemicals production, steelmaking, power/electricity), with transportation representing nearly half of hydrogen demand.

Slovakia’s hydrogen demand is forecast to reach 200,000t/yr by 2030 and up to 400,000–600,000t/yr by 2050. The government’s goal is to have 90% of this demand covered by low-carbon sources, including low-carbon and renewable hydrogen. This includes the construction of new renewable energy capacity, with a portion of this power flowing to electrolysers for green hydrogen production.

The Slovakian government envisions 140–390MW of electrolyser capacity as being operational in the country by 2030. Green hydrogen will be used to help decarbonise the nation’s various industries, with a special focus on the industrial sector and transportation. For example, the national hydrogen strategy aims for 15–40 hydrogen fuelling stations to fuel 5,000–15,000 hydrogen-powered cars, 500–2,000 hydrogen-powered utility vehicles, 100–300 hydrogen-powered buses and 12–20 hydrogen-powered trains. The reason for the large range in the hydrogen-powered vehicles forecast is that it is based on two different scenarios.

Romania

Romania has published its hydrogen roadmap—National Hydrogen Strategy and Action Plan for Romania—in Q4 2023. The strategy focuses on four general objectives, each with various action plans for implementation. These objectives include the use of green hydrogen in the industrial, transport and energy sectors; increasing green hydrogen production; developing hydrogen technologies and implementing them in the domestic economy; and using hydrogen and power-to-x solutions to integrate the two for a green hydrogen value chain.

4% – Proportion of active hydrogen projects in Eastern Europe, Russia and CIS

By 2027, Romania anticipates having nearly 49,000t/yr of green hydrogen production capacity operational, increasing to nearly 153,000t/yr by 2030. Total cost to scale up domestic hydrogen production capacity is approximately €4.8b ($4.99b). This forecast is well below the country’s initial targets but is reflective on revised anticipated hydrogen demand for various industries.

The nation’s hydrogen strategy also calls for the development of five potential hydrogen valleys (also referred to as hydrogen ecosystems):

• Bucharest–Ploiesti-Targoviste–Pitesti
• Constanta–Medgidia–Calarasi–Slobaozia
• Cluj–Targu Mures–Sighisoara–Sibiu–Sebes
• Galati–Braila–Tulcea
• Craiova–Slatina–Targu Jiu-Valcea.

As noted above, Romania will also be the site of a significant amount of green hydrogen production for the Green Hydrogen @ Blue Danube initiative. This project will be complemented by other green hydrogen projects such as Hidroelectrica’s Iron Gates and Olt River plants, OMV’s Petrobrazi refinery green hydrogen plants (the refiner is building two green hydrogen plants with a combined production capacity of 8,000t/yr), and Mass Global Energy’s Mintia conversion project (the plant will run on natural gas but could operate off green hydrogen in the future).

Other regional plans

Azerbaijan: With an abundance of solar and wind resources and natural gas reserves, Azerbaijan has the potential to develop a massive amount of both blue and green hydrogen. The country plans to increase renewable wind power production from 1.3GW in 2020 to more than 4GW by 2030 (Masdar broke ground on three wind projects in the country in June 2024, totalling 1GW of production capacity). Azerbaijan is aiming to increase domestic low- and zero-carbon hydrogen production to 200,000t/yr by 2030 and to more than 1mt/yr by 2040. The low-carbon and green hydrogen will be used to decarbonise the nation’s economy, most likely starting with the country’s industrial sector (steelmaking, power generation, chemicals, ammonia/fertiliser and methanol production) and transportation market.

Croatia: The country’s goals are to install 70MW of green hydrogen production capacity by 2030, increasing it to 2,750MW by 2050. An accelerated adoption of green hydrogen would result in the need for domestic electrolyser capacity to reach more than 7,300MW. The range of possible investments needed for both scenarios is $3.5–10b. These investments include the cost of electrolysers, compressors, hydrogen containers, and additional equipment and infrastructure, among other items. Either scenario will help Croatia realise its net-zero emissions ambitions.

Estonia: The country has divided its hydrogen strategy into three phases. The Pilot Phase (2021–2030) will focus primarily on policies/regulations, research and development, the implementation of pilot projects and increasing renewable energy capacity. This phase includes the inclusion of green hydrogen in various sectors of the economy, such as petrochemicals production (e.g., Power2X’s €1b green methanol plant in Parnu) and transportation. For example, Estonia is aiming to build a hydrogen fuelling station every 100–200km along the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) core network. Domestically, this would equate to 3–5 stations, each with a capacity of 2,000t/yr of hydrogen. This phase also includes the country’s goal of building a nationwide hydrogen valley—i.e., Hydrogen Valley Estonia. By 2030, the project’s goals are to have green hydrogen production in at least six regions of the country, develop transport and storage infrastructure, and bring distribution and fuelling networks into operation.

550,000t/yr – Russia’s planned hydrogen production capacity by 2030

Building on the successes of the Pilot Phase, the Scaling Phase (2030–35) will facilitate developing a hydrogen value chain and making green hydrogen production and subsequent distribution cost-competitive against alternative forms of power and fuel (e.g., fossil fuel-based products). The Expansion Phase (2036–50) seeks to scale up both renewable energy (possibly more than 7GW) and hydrogen production capacity, as well as the mass distribution of green hydrogen within the country.

Kazakhstan: In the country’s latest hydrogen draft (released in April 2024), Kazakhstan is targeting the development of 10GW of renewable energy capacity and the installation of 10GW of electrolysis capacity by 2040. In turn, the Kazakhstani government is aiming for more than $11b in investment in the domestic hydrogen sector within this timeframe. These investments will be in both blue and green hydrogen routes, as well as in blending natural gas and green hydrogen (i.e., gas-hydrogen). The low- and zero-carbon hydrogen will be utilised in power generation and the transportation sector (e.g., long-haul trucks).

However, one project not mentioned in the new hydrogen draft is the massive Hyrasia One initiative. The $50b project will establish five wind and solar parks in the Mangystau region, totalling 40GW of renewable energy capacity. The energy generated by renewable power will flow to electrolysers (20GW of planned capacity) near the Caspian Sea for electrolysis—the electrolysers will use water from the Caspian Sea (the project includes building desalination plants) for the process.

Once operational, the Hyrasia One project is expected to produce 2mt/yr of green hydrogen. This amount of green hydrogen production would more than satisfy the country’s targeted hydrogen ambitions; however, the project does have several challenges, including the overall cost to build renewable power generation capacity, the lack of domestic demand, and environmental and transport infrastructure issues, among several others.

Lithuania: The country aims to develop significant renewable energy capacity, totalling 23.5GW by 2050 (comprising 14.5GW of onshore/offshore wind power and 9GW solar power). The additional renewable energy production will help Lithuania build out its domestic electrolyser capacity. The country plans to install 1.3GW of electrolyser capacity by 2030, increasing to 8.5GW by 2050. This capacity increase will boost domestic production to more than 730,000t/yr by 2050, covering more than 30% of the nation’s total energy demand. The produced green hydrogen will flow into various sectors of the Lithuanian economy, most likely being the refining and fertiliser production sectors and the transportation sector.

Russia: The country announced plans to invest approximately $125m in 2024 to help develop its domestic hydrogen sector. The country has abundant natural gas reserves, paving the way to becoming a large blue hydrogen exporter. However, with the country’s attack on Ukraine, Russia has been shunned by many nations around the world, which has closed many options for the nation’s hydrogen export ambitions.

The country’s ambitious hydrogen strategy, which called for massive hydrogen exports of 15–50mt/yr by 2050, was written in 2021 prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Regardless, Ilya Torosov, Russia’s first deputy minister of economic development, said in late 2023 that Russia plans to boost domestic hydrogen production to 550,000t/yr and capture 20% of global hydrogen market share by 2030. Torosov also announced that Russia has more than 40 low-carbon hydrogen production projects under development. These projects are primarily located in four hydrogen clusters: the Northwestern cluster (Leningrad region), the Arctic cluster (Murmask region, Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District and Kamchatka Territory), the Southern cluster and the Eastern cluster (Sakhalin region).

Serbia: The country’s draft hydrogen strategy (published in 2022) aims to increase both renewable energy and green hydrogen production capacity. The plan envisions hydrogen production to reach 5,100t/yr by 2035 and up to 20,600t/yr by 2050. The legislation focuses on six objectives to building a green hydrogen network: legislation, research and development, decarbonising the country’s energy and transport sectors, using green hydrogen in domestic agriculture sectors (e.g., green fertilisers), building new green hydrogen facilities and utilising green hydrogen in power generation. Helping to accomplish these plans is the country’s nearly $2.2b flagship renewable energy and hydrogen production plant project. In partnership with China’s Shanghai Fengling Renewable company, the project will include a 1.5GW windfarm, a 500MW solar plant and a 30,000t/yr green hydrogen production facility. The integrated project is scheduled to be operational by 2028.

Tajikistan: The nation plans to reach 1mt/yr of green hydrogen production by 2040, which will be used in the domestic economy, with any surplus being exported. Tajikistan’s strategy is to build 10GW of renewable capacity by 2030, with a portion of this energy to be used to produce 500,000t/yr of green hydrogen within that timeframe. The country then plans to double domestic green hydrogen production over the next decade.

Turkey: Released in January 2023, Turkey’s Hydrogen Technologies Strategy and Roadmap provided the country’s goals of incorporating hydrogen into the country’s economy to adhere to its 2053 net-zero ambitions. The primary targets call for the reduction of green hydrogen production costs to less than $2.40/kg of hydrogen produced by 2035 and less than $1.20/kg of hydrogen produced by 2053, and to increase installed electrolyser capacity to 2GW by 2030, 5GW by 2035 and 70GW by 2053. At the time of publication, the nation’s green hydrogen ambitions were being spearheaded by the HySouthMarmara initiative.

Ukraine: Although embattled by its war with Russia, the nation has announced plans for the additional inclusion of hydrogen in the nation’s economy. The use of additional green hydrogen will help Ukraine’s goal of becoming net-zero by 2050—the country has a three-stage strategy to incorporate green hydrogen in the country. The country’s latest strategy calls for renewables to comprise at least 25% of the nation’s energy mix by 2030. In turn, the additional renewable energy will enable Ukraine to boost domestic green hydrogen production. However, the significant increase in renewables and green hydrogen production capacity is likely to cost approximately $10b.

Ukraine has already begun developing the H2U Hydrogen Valley. The project’s scope is the development of two hydrogen valleys in the Odesa and Zakarpattia regions. However, these projects will need to rely primarily on private investments since the nation is limited in funding due to its war efforts. The Odesa project includes the construction of a 100MW electrolyser that could be doubled in capacity, if needed.

70GW by 2053 – Turkey’s planned electrolyser capacity by 2053

The Zakarpattia project includes a 1,100MW electrolyser that could expand to 1,500MW, if needed—the project also includes the construction of a 120MW solar farm and 160MW wind turbines. The green hydrogen produced in Zakarpattia will be exported to Slovakia for steel production. With additional projects proposed, Ukraine’s domestic green hydrogen production could reach 900,000t/yr by 2035, according to
Igor Kovalov, general director of the Directorate for Resources Efficient Transformation at the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine.

Uzbekistan: The country has increased its renewable energy targets to more than 20GW by 2030, with the goal of being carbon neutral by 2050. At the time of this publication, the nation had nearly 30 renewable energy projects (e.g., solar, wind) under development. If realised, renewable energy will account for approximately 40% of the nation’s electricity production by 2030.³⁰ A portion of this renewable power will feed domestic green hydrogen projects, such as LONGi Hydrogen’s 3,000t/yr green hydrogen facility (Phase 2 could potentially produce 500,000t/yr of green ammonia) and the development of a hydrogen valley, a cooperation between the Uzbeki government and the US Agency for International Development.

Lee Nichols is Vice-president, content, at Gulf Energy Information.

Read more from the 2025 Hydrogen Market Databook:

• Introduction
• Africa
• Asia
• Western Europe, Part 1
• Western Europe, Part 2
• Middle East
• Central & South America
• North America

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Author: Lee Nichols