And now, European businesses are terrified that China may apply the same principle and practices to green hydrogen, eventually coming to dominate yet another clean tech market. So, this time, they’re calling on Brussels to impose “Made in Europe” requirements to block Beijing — and they’re looking to Japan for help.
Green hydrogen is made by splitting hydrogen atoms from oxygen in water and, crucially, it doesn’t emit carbon dioxide. It’s been hailed as the future of clean energy and could potentially transform heavy polluting industries, such as steelmaking and aviation. And as the first country to unveil a national hydrogen gas strategy back in 2017, who better to bank on to help build this yet nascent industry than tech giant and strategic partner Japan?
Europe has set a target to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, and by then, both the EU and Japan will be major importers of hydrogen. China and the U.S., on the other hand, are expected to be major exporters. And once bitten twice shy, Europe is now reluctant to rely on China for critical energy supplies.
When European countries had to cut off Russian gas after the country’s invasion of Ukraine, it led to a frenzy in policymaking to secure energy needs. This included encouraging the production of hydrogen gas. But now, the EU is worried that if China were to invade Taiwan, and ties between European capitals and Beijing were to further deteriorate, China could choke critical exports.
Mindful of this, Brussels has been scrambling to build alternative supply chains and sign deals with countries in Africa, the Middle East and the Indo-Pacific. Thus, some see the EU and Japan as natural partners in not just advancing this technology, but also creating demand and building a resilient supply chain protected from Beijing’s political and economic coercion.
A Japanese official who talked to POLITICO on condition of anonymity to speak freely said cooperation was essentially about “de-risking” from China. “We share a common view with EU in this regard,” they said.