Policy Overview

In March 2024, the EU reached an agreement on the Gas Package, which was officially adopted in June. According to the agreement, hydrogen is considered “low-carbon” if it produces 70% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than fossil fuels and hydrogen made from unabated fossil gas. This agreement follows from rules on renewable hydrogen agreed by the Commission in June 2023, as part of the Renewable Energy Directive revision.

In September 2024, the Commission presented supplementary legislation in the form of a Delegated Act to expand on the methodology for meeting the 70% GHG threshold, addressing key issues such as:

  • Inclusion of life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions, including indirect emissions (caused if new fossil gas production is added to meet demand for low carbon hydrogen, thus increasing overall GHG emissions);
  • Hydrogen and methane leakage, which if not accounted for, could undermine GHG emissions savings due to their increased warming effect when compared with CO2;
  • Performance of carbon capture and storage, including carbon capture rates, since low rates could result in high GHG emissions from hydrogen production.

The Commission also launched a public consultation alongside the draft Delegated Act, seeking to gather stakeholder views on the methodology. The consultation concluded in late October 2024.

Policy in progress

Despite opposition from heavy industry, the EU Commission proposal presented in July 2025 introduced a methodology that assesses emissions across the entire life cycle of low-carbon hydrogen, taking into account indirect emissions and carbon capture rates. However, in contrast to the Gas Package agreement, it did not include hydrogen leakage, citing a lack of scientific data available. A pledge to ‘safeguard’ existing low-carbon hydrogen projects from future revisions of the Act was also included. The Delegated Act will now be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council, which have a period of two months (extendable with another two months) to accept it or object to it, and will enter into force only after it passes this period of review.

InfluenceMap Query

Energy Transition & Zero Carbon Technologies

Policy Status

Commission due to publish finalized proposal in Q1 2025

Evidence Profile

Key

opposing not supporting mixed/unclear
supporting strongly supporting

European Commission

Policy Engagement Overview

The aggregated evidence of corporate and industry lobbying on the Delegated Act shows intense, negative engagement from the energy, heavy industry and utilities sectors, which advocated for exempting existing hydrogen facilities and looser certification rules. This was counteracted by some positive positions from the renewable energy and renewables-based utilities industry, which supported stricter rules on indirect emissions.

Long-term Lobbying Trends

A number of actors, primarily from the energy and chemicals sectors, called for a “grandfathering clause”, which would exempt existing low-carbon hydrogen production facilities from having to comply with the rules, including the 70% GHG emissions threshold and/or the strict lifecycle accounting of fossil gas emissions. Consistent advocacy for such exemptions originated from companies including Equinor, ExxonMobil, Snam, BASF, Johnson Matthey, and industry associations Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE), Hydrogen Europe and the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic).

The heavy industry, utilities and energy sectors called for a revision which would allow them to evade rules on renewable hydrogen production. Entities advocated for the inclusion of hydrogen produced from renewable power purchase agreements in the definition of low-carbon hydrogen. Through this revision, companies could avoid the stricter criteria for hydrogen produced with renewable electricity finalized by the EU Commission in 2023, which aim to ensure that renewable hydrogen contributes to GHG emission reductions. This was promoted by companies such as Air Liquide, ArcelorMittal, Shell, Enagás, Engie, and Centrica, and industry associations including Cefic, the European Steel Association (Eurofer), API, GIE, and Hydrogen Europe.

The renewable energy and parts of the utilities sector supported an ambitious delegated act, including companies EDF, Enel, EDP, Iberdrola and industry association WindEurope. ReNew and Acciona advocated for more ambitious measures, calling for low-carbon hydrogen to be produced only from existing fossil energy facilities, avoiding any new fossil production.

Impacts on Policy Ambition

Draft EU Commission Proposal

  • GHG Emissions Reduction Threshold: To be certified as low-carbon, hydrogen must produce 70% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than fossil fuels or hydrogen made from unabated fossil gas. The European Commission uses a standard value of 94 grams of CO₂ per megajoule (gCO₂/MJ) to represent the typical emissions from fossil fuel energy production.

  • Life-Cycle Emissions Analysis: The methodology assesses emissions across the entire life cycle of low-carbon hydrogen, covering all stages from input sourcing, production, transportation, and distribution to end-use combustion.

  • Indirect Emissions: The methodology includes indirect emissions, which are generated if new fossil gas production is added to meet demand for low carbon hydrogen.

  • Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS): Only carbon emissions captured in the production of hydrogen from fossil gas which are permanently stored in a geological site count towards meet the 70% threshold, excluding other forms of carbon capture and utilization (CCU) that would result in eventual CO₂ release.

  • Hydrogen leakage: The Act states that hydrogen leakage should be included in the methodology following further scientific study, as opposed to the original Gas Package agreement setting out the broad guidelines for the methodology, which included a reference to hydrogen leakage.

  • Low-carbon Electricity Production: The methodology allows for electricity sourced from the grid that isn’t fully renewable to be used for low-carbon hydrogen production, provided it meets the 70% GHG emissions reduction threshold.

EU Commission Proposal

  • Low-carbon Electricity Production: The Act requires hydrogen made with both renewable and non-renewable electricity to be assigned a single, averaged emissions value, ensuring that the emissions reflect the full mix of energy used. Hydrogen producers must also show that the renewable electricity they claim to use was actually being generated at the same time as the hydrogen was made (temporal correlation). These changes ensure GHG emissions from production are not underreported.

  • Life-Cycle Emissions Analysis: The Act states that if methane emissions data is missing, actual emissions are assumed to be 40% higher than the default values, encouraging producers to report their data accurately. It also simplifies default emissions values for methane, nitrogen and CO2 to make the rules easier to apply, but covers a smaller list of hydrogen production feedstocks as values are based on commonly used fuels and materials.

  • Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS): The final rules include detailed formulas for how carbon captured during hydrogen production is measured. They set strict limits on how much of that captured carbon can be credited toward lowering the hydrogen’s reported emissions, and include safeguards to account for leaks. These changes help ensure that only real and permanent emissions reductions are counted.

  • Safeguard for Existing Projects: A new clause has been introduced which states that any future revisions of the Delegated Act should consider “the need to safeguard existing projects,” potentially reducing the policy ambition of future reforms applying to existing low carbon hydrogen production plants.

Policy In Progress

In July 2025, the European Commission released its proposal on the Delegated Act, which maintained the ambition of the draft proposal published in October 2024. The final proposal introduced changes to the methodology, tightening requirements when hydrogen is produced using low-carbon electricity, and strengthening the measurement of captured carbon during production. This is despite intensive opposition to the draft proposal by the energy and chemicals industries. However, a new clause was included to ‘safeguard existing projects’, following demands for exemptions for existing projects.

InfluenceMap Query

Energy Transition & Zero Carbon Technologies

Policy Status

Commission due to publish finalized proposal in Q1 2025

Evidence Profile

Key

opposing not supporting mixed/unclear
supporting strongly supporting

European Commission

Live Lobbying Alerts

European industry associations push back on final EU rules for low-carbon hydrogen

25/07/2025

Following the European Commission’s 8 July announcement that it had finalized the Delegated Act defining low-carbon hydrogen, both Hydrogen Europe and the German Chemical Industry Association (VCI) issued press releases that appeared unsupportive of the final rules. Hydrogen Europe advocated for the continued use of power purchase agreements (PPAs) to source low-carbon electricity, while VCI argued that the rules are "too strict."

Energy industry associations oppose EU Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonisation Package Delegated Act on the definition of low-carbon hydrogen

26/06/2025

In a 23 June joint statement, multiple industry associations including Eurogas, FuelsEurope, and the International Federation of Industrial Energy Consumers (IFIEC) opposed the EU Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonization Package Delegated Act on the definition of low-carbon hydrogen. The entities advocated to weaken the Delegated Act by not supporting stringent measures on methane leakage and promoting the grandfathering of existing production facilities. The signatories also advocated for a technology-neutral policy framework for hydrogen, in contradiction to the EU Commission's ambition to primarily promote renewable hydrogen, as stated in its July 2020 Hydrogen Strategy.

SolarPower Europe supports an ambitious definition for EU low-carbon hydrogen

08/10/2024

In a 22 July position paper, SolarPower Europe advocated for an ambitious definition for low-carbon hydrogen to be included in the EU Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonization Package, which takes into account full lifecycle emissions, excludes carbon offsets and introduces leakage monitoring.

EU industry calls for the inclusion of 'low-carbon' hydrogen in EU energy policies

16/12/2022

In a November 28th open letter from EU industry, several entities including Eurelectric, European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic), Eurofer, EDF and ArcelorMittal, advocated for the inclusion of ‘low carbon’ hydrogen in the EU Renewable Energy Directive III and Hydrogen and Gas Market Decarbonization Package, which can include non-renewable hydrogen sources.

GasNaturally advocates to weaken EU energy policies

06/07/2022

In a 30th June position paper, GasNaturally advocated for the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive revision to reverse national bans on fossil gas technologies, including gas and hybrid boilers. Furthermore, GasNaturally called for the EU Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonization Package to provide clearer definitions for renewable and low-carbon gases in a 1st July position paper. However, the group also advocated for all forms of hydrogen to be supported in the scope of the policy.

Hydrogen Europe advocates for clear definitions of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen

30/06/2022

Hydrogen Europe advocated for clear definitions for renewable and low-carbon hydrogen under the EU's Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonization Package in a June 2022 position paper. The group also appeared to support the EU Commission's proposal to include hydrogen and fossil gas blending as a transitional measure.

European Round Table for Industry communicates mixed position on energy mix

18/05/2022

In a 12th May statement, the European Round Table for Industry (ERT) advocated a mixed position on the transition of the energy mix. ERT advocated for the EU to reduce its demand for gas, broadly supporting the EU Gas and Hydrogen Decarbonization Package, and carbon contracts for difference, however it also supported increasing fossil gas production and infrastructure, and "renewable and low carbon" hydrogen.

Equinor advocates for fossil gas and 'all types of hydrogen'

17/05/2022

In a 12th April consultation response on the EU’s Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonisation Package, released this week, Equinor advocated for the role of fossil gas in the energy transition, stating that all types of hydrogen will be required to meet the EU’s climate ambitions, and that this will require ‘new sources’ of fossil gas.

BP supports fossil gas and 'technologically neutral' hydrogen policies

17/05/2022

In a 12th April consultation response on the EU’s Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonisation Package, published this week, BP appeared to support the continued use of fossil gas in the energy mix, citing the need to complement renewable energy, improve air quality and reduce emissions. The company also advocated for ‘technologically neutral’ hydrogen policies, stating preference for a certification scheme that is based on carbon intensity, rather than method of production

Eurofer unsupportive of ambitious EU ETS reforms

04/05/2022

In an opinion piece for Euractiv, published on the 29th April, Eurofer Director General Axel Eggert cited the war as justification for slowing down the EU Commission’s proposed phase out of free allowances in the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) alongside the implementation of a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. Axel Eggert also did not support proposed reforms to the EU ETS to rebase the emissions cap and strengthen the Market Stability Reserve, stressing the impacts of a unilateral and high carbon price and international competitiveness. However, Eggert also advocated for the RePowerEU and Gas and Hydrogen Decarbonisation package to increase renewable electricity and green hydrogen since the war in Ukraine “undermined the possible role of gas as a transition fuel.”

Cefic communicates mixed positions on hydrogen and gas

20/04/2022

In a position paper on the Hydrogen and Gas Markets Decarbonization Package, published on 12th April 2022, Cefic did not support the proposal to blend hydrogen with fossil gas, preferring pure fossil gas networks. The association stated support for the roll out of low-carbon and renewable solutions, including hydrogen, albeit in a technology neutral manner. Cefic also seemed supportive of the phase out of unabated fossil gas in the energy mix, but advocated for long-term gas contracts to create low-carbon hydrogen and for carbon capture use and storage (CCUS).

Fortum advocates for continued role for LNG in the EU gas package

13/04/2022

In an April 2022 position paper on the EU Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonization Package, Fortum supported the package with major exceptions. The utility promoted a continued role of unabated fossil gas, supported fossil gas and hydrogen blending, and supported exemptions for LNG in the package.

EU business associations promote fossil gas use for decarbonization

17/11/2021

In a join position paper, Federation of German Industries (BDI), Confindustria and The Mouvement des entreprises de France (MEDEF) promoted fossil gas as a 'a key commodity of the decarbonization process' for decarbonization without clear conditions related to CCS or mitigating methane emissions. However, the associations also supported development of regulatory framework for climate-neutral gases within the 'Gas Package' and Hydrogen Strategy.

EnBW announces EU policy positions

04/11/2021

EnBW released a COP26 page on its corporate website discussing several elements of EU climate policy. The company stated support for the reforms made to the EU ETS, in particular suggesting waiting till after 2030 to integrate emissions trading systems for the buildings and road transport sectors.

However, the company appeared to advocate against increased ambition in the EU’s Energy Efficiency Directive, highlighting issues with the inclusion of new CHP high-efficiency criteria. Similarly, it supported a weakening of the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive, by suggesting the criteria for renewable hydrogen and bioenergy were too strong.

Finally, EnBW advocated for a greater role for fossil gas in EU policy. The company called for the weakening of the EU's taxonomy, particularly by including fossil gas for heating/cooling generation as a transitional activity. EnBW also suggested that the EU's Hydrogen and Gas Decarbonization Package applies too much pressure to transition away from fossil gas.

Entities Engaged on Policy

Influencemap Performance BandOrganizationPolicy PositionPolicy Engagement Intensity