Grexel to operate the first EU-wide Guarantees of Origin market for Green Hydrogen
Grexel, part of EEX Group, has been appointed by the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU) as the operator and issuing body of the first European Guarantees of Origin (GO) market for green hydrogen, in the frame of the third phase of the CertifHy project.
The CertifHy project was initiated upon the request of the European Commission back in 2014. Undertaken by a consortium led by HINICIO and financed by the FCH JU, the CertifHy scheme has been bringing together stakeholders to develop a common European-wide certification scheme for renewable and non-renewable Hydrogen. Grexel will be part of a consortium of six companies (Hinicio, Grexel, Ludwig-Bölkow-Systemtechnik (LBST), TÜV SÜD, the Association of Issuing Bodies (AIB) and Commissariat à l’énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)) who have joined together for this third phase of the CertifHy project to accelerate the European deployment of the hydrogen Guarantees of Origin scheme. This follows a pilot phase which ended in April 2019 which focused on the testing of the CertifHy scheme’s procedures and operations.
“The key objective is to establish a sustainable and liquid Guarantees of Origin market for renewable and non-renewable hydrogen in Europe. For a Guarantees of Origin market to work, both a tradable product and a well-structured market setup are required. As the leading energy certificate registry provider, Grexel will use its broad and longstanding experience in the certificates industry to contribute to the building of a common renewable and non-renewable hydrogen market, where trading will be both easy and reliable”, explains Marko Lehtovaara, CEO of Grexel. “As hydrogen’s role in the European carbon free economy is anticipated to grow, we find this project to be of great societal significance” Lehtovaara continues.
Hydrogen’s role is increasing
A Guarantee of Origin is an electronic document that guarantees and provides information to final consumers on the origin of a product. The CertifHy Guarantees of Origin aim at proving to end-users that the hydrogen they are buying is either renewable or non-renewable and provides information regarding its attributes, such as greenhouse gas intensity and production location. Grexel will provide the central GO registry system and be the issuer of hydrogen certificates to expand the hydrogen registry in the European marketplace for the next 18 months.
“The hydrogen economy is still in its infancy and will play a growing role in the years to come. Conditions for its treatability and its trading are being set now. I am thrilled to see EEX Group contributing to set up a more decarbonised energy sector, supporting the creation of the first ever unified European market for hydrogen through Guarantees of Origin” says Dr. Tobias Paulun, Chief Strategy Officer of EEX.
The GO market has seen a tremendous growth over the last years with the development of power renewable offers. Through EEX and Grexel, EEX Group has become a key player in the Guarantees of Origin sector, servicing registries in 14 European countries.
Please read the full press release here.
For more information please contact Laura Malinen.
T +358 44 550 7001 | laura.malinen (a) grexel.com
