The European Commission is preparing a new round of its Hydrogen Mechanism later this year, with a specific focus on advancing hydrogen infrastructure across Europe.
The initiative follows encouraging participation in the programme’s first market-matching exercise, held in April.
The upcoming round is designed to help transmission system operators (TSOs), hydrogen network operators (HNOs), and other infrastructure organisations gauge market demand for future hydrogen projects.
The exercise will focus on assets such as hydrogen pipelines and storage facilities, providing valuable insight before investment decisions are made.
By enabling infrastructure developers to better understand market interest, the Commission aims to reduce uncertainty surrounding hydrogen deployment while supporting the development of a more connected and commercially viable European hydrogen market.
Supporting Europe’s hydrogen infrastructure
The Hydrogen Mechanism was established to address some of the most significant challenges slowing hydrogen adoption. These include uncertain supply and demand, limited hydrogen infrastructure, and financing barriers that can delay investment.
Rather than acting as a trading platform, the mechanism connects potential buyers and sellers through structured market engagement. This helps participants identify potential commercial partners while improving visibility of future market needs.
Following positive feedback from the first round, the Commission is expanding the initiative to focus specifically on hydrogen infrastructure planning. The goal is to provide network developers with clearer evidence of market demand before major projects move forward.
How the infrastructure market test will work
The infrastructure round will follow a standardised, non-binding process designed to collect market intelligence.
First, the European Commission will work alongside participating TSOs and HNOs to define the infrastructure projects and parameters to be assessed.
Once these have been agreed, registered market participants will be invited to express their interest in the proposed projects. The Commission will gather and organise the submitted information before sharing the results with participating infrastructure developers after the exercise closes.
The collected data will help project developers evaluate commercial interest in planned hydrogen pipelines, storage facilities, and other network assets, supporting more informed investment and planning decisions.
Organisations invited to participate
The Commission is encouraging TSOs, HNOs, and other relevant organisations interested in future hydrogen infrastructure projects to register their interest by 7 September 2026.
Submitting an expression of interest does not commit organisations to participation. Instead, interested parties will be contacted by the Commission to receive a demonstration of the Hydrogen Mechanism and discuss how future market testing could support their infrastructure planning.
By expanding the Hydrogen Mechanism beyond supply and demand matching, the Commission hopes to strengthen Europe’s hydrogen network and provide greater confidence for organisations investing in the continent’s clean energy transition.
