NS HyMaP Information Bulletin No 5 Available

The fifth North Sea Hydrogen Ports and Maritime Community (NS HyMaP) Information Bulletin has been published.  Below we have published the introduction to the Newsletter which previews  the news articles  in the publication.  If you would like to receive the full Bulletin, please contact Jon Jordan at mailto:[email protected]

A reminder that membership of NS HyMaP will be free until 31 August 2020 and we would like to develop other forms of communications such as a website, podcasts and webinars. The Information Bulletin is published on a fortnightly basis. This initial period will also allow us to begin discussions to make NS HyMaP a more permanent and influential organisation.

The Bulletin begins by an Opinion Piece from NS HyMaP Member, Future Proof Shipping and the University of Genoa. The authors stress the importance of hydrogen and fuel cells in the development of zero emission vessels for Short Sea Shipping. There has been a great deal of interest in developing hydrogen ferries and support vessels but the article emphasises the need for investments in a variety of cargo vessels.

The Bulletin then reviews the latest draft of the Commission’s Hydrogen Roadmap which has been covered by the European media.  Drafts have been sent to the European media but it has already stimulated debate and lobbying, so we felt it worthy of extensive coverage. We briefly outline the content of the Roadmap and its importance to the North Sea ports and maritime community.   This will be a key document for NS HyMap and, although the final version is likely to change significantly between now and the publication date, it is important that the drafting process is monitored closely as it covers some important issues that may be dropped in later versions of the Roadmap.

The Roadmap will be subject to consultation and debate from stakeholders and the EU Institutions. This debate has already started and the Bulletin looks at the lobbying done by interest groups such as the electricity industry and oil and gas companies. The Lobbying Theme is then continued with Hydrogen Europe’s Top Ten recommendations for inclusion in the EU Hydrogen Strategy.

Although there is intense debate about the EU’s hydrogen Strategy, a number of funding programmes are beginning to put together their Operational programmes. One of these is the North Sea INTERREG Programme which in the current programme has funded a number of maritime and ports project with a hydrogen dimension. The Bulletin looks at the potential opportunities for NS HyMaP members in the new Programme which will operate from 2021 to 2027.

The Bulletin also looks at the Recovery Report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) which emphasises that hydrogen should have a prominent role in the Recovery Plans of national governments.

Lastly, we look at the Annual Report of the UK Government’s Climate Change Committee (CCC.) This Committee advises both the UK Prime Minister and the UK Parliament. The UK was one of the first countries to enshrine the target of net zero emissions by 2050 into law but it still does not have an integrated hydrogen strategy. The CCC recommends the drafting of such a Strategy and this should be completed by June 2021.