BENCHMARKING ANALYSIS OF THE POLICY SYSTEM IN SLOVENIA AND AUSTRIA TO PROMOTE THE DEVELOPMENT OF HYDROGEN TECHNOLOGIES IN THE CROSS-BORDER AREA

As part of the activities of the H₂GreenTECH project, the Slovenian Ministry of Education, Science and Sport conducted a benchmarking analysis of the policy system in Slovenia and Austria to promote the development of hydrogen technologies in the cross-border area.

The document provides an overview of existing documents in the field of low-carbon technologies in Slovenia and Austria, with a focus on hydrogen technologies. With the analysis SWOT and PEST it identifies the gaps, advantages and opportunities of the cross-border area for creating a critical mass of R&I capacities for accelerated development of hydrogen technologies in the Slovenian and Austrian cross-border area. It also presents good practice in the development of hydrogen technology policies in the case of Germany and China.

The most important document for the development of hydrogen technology is the Hydrogen Strategy (A Hydrogen Strategy for a Climate Neutral Europe), which is part of the Green Deal. The strategy aims to decarbonise hydrogen production and expand its use in sectors where it can replace fossil fuels. It focuses on hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources (i.e. “green hydrogen”). Almost all EU Member States (including Slovenia and Austria) have included plans for clean hydrogen in their national energy and climate plans, and some have already adopted or are in the process of adopting national strategies (including Slovenia and Austria).

The comparison showed that while both countries lag behind in adopting hydrogen strategies, both have a system in place to ensure and support the development of low-carbon technologies. There is also growing political will to use hydrogen. The targets set in various national plans and strategies (including in Slovenia and Austria) are still mainly focused on transport, although there is a clear trend from 2018 to include targets for other sectors such as industry, households and electricity generation. This shows that there is a renewed interest in the cross-sectoral role that hydrogen can play as it also contributes to the decarbonisation of different sectors.

The analysis is the basic starting point for the improvement of cross-border cooperation between research institutes, companies and public administrations, which will take place in the framework of the cross-border network of key stakeholders in the Roadmap for Hydrogen Technologies in Slovenia and Austria and the preparation of the Hydrogen Center Strategy until 2025. The document is available on the website of the H₂GreenTECH project.

Author:

Dr. Peter Kumer, Ministry of Education, Science and Sport



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