Hydrogen Council Expands Membership With New Sectors and Geographies as Governments Rely on Hydrogen for COVID-19 Recovery
Brussels— The Hydrogen Council, a global CEO-led coalition working to enable the global energy transition through hydrogen, has today announced 11 new members. The news comes at a pivotal moment for the world’s sustainable economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and further bonds the industry’s commitment to leverage hydrogen solutions to build a cleaner, more resilient economy post-COVID. It also comes on the back of several major government announcements regarding investment and policy action to support hydrogen over the last two weeks. The Hydrogen Council has grown from 13 founding companies in 2017 to 92 members in just three years.
The group of new joiners includes two steering members: CMA CGM and Microsoft; seven supporting members: Baker Hughes, Clariant, MAHLE, NYK Line, Port of Rotterdam, TechnipFMC, and Umicore; and two investors: Mubadala Investment Company and Providence Asset Group. This group mirrors the wide range of geographical and sector interest in hydrogen – including companies headquartered in Europe, Asia, Australia, the United States and United Arab Emirates, as well as representing sectors such as chemicals (Clariant), automotive (MAHLE), energy and materials technology (Baker Hughes, TechnipFMC, Umicore), shipping (CMA CGM, NYK Line), industrial ports (Port of Rotterdam) and digital (Microsoft). The two investors – Mubadala Investment Company and Providence Asset Group – will be joining the Hydrogen Council’s Investor Group, established in January 2020 to bridge the gap between the investor community and the hydrogen industry and facilitate investment of large-scale projects.
“As policymakers, businesses and investors across the globe are working to recover from the economic and social consequences of the pandemic, hydrogen is increasingly recognized as an indispensable piece of the puzzle. The recently announced EU, German and Korean plans on hydrogen are among prime examples of that momentum and we hope that other countries will join in soon”, said Benoît Potier, Chairman and CEO of Air Liquide and Co-chair of the Hydrogen Council. “This crisis will define our energy production and consumption for at least a generation. The companies joining our group today acknowledge that this is a critical time to accelerate clean energy innovation to reach our climate goals and recognize that hydrogen can play a paramount role in doing so.”
Takeshi Uchiyamada, Chairman of the Board of Toyota Motor Group and new Co-chair of the Hydrogen Council since July 2020 added: “On the cusp of a global energy transformation, we need long-term thinking and massive investments in systemic solutions like hydrogen. Hydrogen technologies can provide zero-emission energy and transport solutions, enable deep industrial decarbonisation and help renewables maximise their potential through storage.”
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