France is campaigning for the European Union to recognize hydrogen produced by nuclear power as part of its renewable energy rules, but some member states oppose the idea, fearing it could undermine efforts to rapidly scale up solar and wind energy, BTA reported, referring to a letter from the governments of nine EU countries to the European Commission, which the agency obtained access to.

Ministers from France, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovenia, Croatia, Slovakia, Hungary and Bulgaria have called on the European Commission to open up the EU's renewable energy targets to a review to include nuclear-produced hydrogen as such.

Increasing emissions-free hydrogen production is key to Brussels' plans to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from industries such as fertilizer and steel.

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Most of the hydrogen now used in European economies is produced from coal and gas.

Hydrogen can also be produced using electricity, so the EU wants to set sectoral targets for hydrogen produced from renewable electricity.

The letter, which the nine countries jointly addressed to the EC, says that nuclear power, which is low-carbon but non-renewable, should be included in the new "green" energy rules.

We will create the same incentives for the production of hydrogen from renewable sources (so-called green hydrogen) and hydrogen generated thanks to energy from fossil fuels (so-called blue hydrogen), the letter states.

Otherwise, "targeting (for development - note) only renewable sources would really limit the speed of development of our hydrogen economy", the governments of the nine countries wrote to the EC.

In contrast, at least nine EU countries oppose the idea, including Germany, Denmark, Austria and Luxembourg, government officials said.

They argue that the EU's targets should focus solely on renewables such as wind and solar to drive the massive scale-up needed to reduce Europe's dependence on fossil fuels.

Next week, a law is expected to be discussed that will set the conditions for the expansion of renewable energy in Europe this decade.

Against this background, France has given the green light to consider the possibility of extending the life of its nuclear reactors to 60 years and even more if safety rules allow it, the French presidency said in a statement.

The statement came as President Emmanuel Macron, who recently announced plans to build at least six new reactors by mid-century, today chaired the first of a series of meetings on France's nuclear policy.

green energy

nuclear energetics

hydrogen