“Certification is a common language. If we can make that language science-based,
interoperable, and digital, I think we can unlock scale.”
- Ruta Ballause, European Commission (DG Ener)
The Green Hydrogen Certification Roundtable, chaired by Shri Abhay Bakre, Mission Director,
MNRE and joined by Shri Mahaveer Singhvi, MEA, Ms. Ruta Baltause, European Commission
(DG ENER) and certifying bodies like CertifHy, ISCC, along with key industry stakeholders,
addressed the regulatory and technical barriers shaping India–EU green hydrogen trade. The
discussion, held under Chatham House rules, focused on certification alignment, market
access, and mutual recognition.
In his opening remarks, Shri Bakre outlined India’s vision under the National Green Hydrogen
Mission, launched in 2023 with an outlay of $2.4 billion. He emphasized that India’s ambition is
to emerge as a global hub for the production, domestic use, and export of green hydrogen and
its derivatives. This ambition has been bolstered by the launch of the Clean Hydrogen
Certification Scheme, which operationalizes emission thresholds and sets clear standards for
producers.
Indian stakeholders highlighted the unique characteristics of the country’s power system,
particularly the “one nation, one grid, one frequency” model, which allows seamless electricity
trading across regions. More than 99 percent price convergence across bid zones was
presented as evidence that India functions de facto as a single bidding zone. Against this
backdrop, Indian participants argued that the rigid application of European rules on bidding
zones risked creating unnecessary barriers, raising project costs, and undermining the flexibility
required for market development.
The European Commission representatives, led by Ms Ruta Ballause, European Commission,
DG ENER, underscored the need for robust, legally sound, and non-discriminatory certification
frameworks. She stated that certification should act as a “common language”, one that is
science-based, interoperable, and digital, to enable scale, lower financing costs for projects, and
facilitate smoother exports to Europe and beyond. She also made clear that principles such as
traceability, prevention of double counting, and compatibility in greenhouse gas calculations
were non-negotiable. Any deviation from established rules, she stressed, would need to
withstand scrutiny before the European Court of Justice, highlighting the importance of legal
certainty.
The discussion then turned to the technical challenges of certification. Indian experts proposed
pragmatic mechanisms such as grid-level assessments and rolling five-year certification
frameworks, which they argued better reflected the integrated nature of India’s power market.
Certifiers acknowledged the validity of India’s price convergence argument and suggested it
could form the basis for recognizing India as a single bidding zone. However, European
participants cautioned that granting country-specific exceptions could set precedents that
undermine the EU’s commitment to non-discrimination.
Despite these differences, the session was marked by a constructive spirit. Both sides agreed
on the value of undertaking detailed comparative studies of certification and registry systems
and exploring mechanisms for pre-certification support, emissions monitoring, and digital
registries. The Indian delegation committed to consolidating the discussion into a set of
proposals and sharing them with the European Commission for further consideration.
The roundtable concluded with a recognition of the complexity and promise of global green
hydrogen trade. While significant regulatory and technical hurdles remain, the dialogue
underscored a shared commitment to finding pragmatic, verifiable, and mutually acceptable
solutions. In doing so, the session reinforced India’s positioning as a credible and ambitious
future supplier of green hydrogen to Europe and signaled a pathway for deeper India–EU
cooperation in this strategic sector.
