Industry calls to keep binding RFNBO hydrogen targets

BRUSSELS, September 24, 2026 – 170 companies investing in Europe’s energy sector across the entire value chain have sent a letter urging the European Commission to keep the Renewable Energy Directive (RED III) transport and industry targets and mandates for Renewable Fuels of Non-Biological Origin (RFNBO) hydrogen beyond 2030.

Addressed to President Ursula von der Leyen, Executive Vice-President Teresa Ribera and Commissioner Dan Jørgensen, the united, industry-wide message is clear: we need to keep the binding RFNBO hydrogen targets.

The companies stress that removing RFNBO targets and mandates would not amount to simplification. It would waste six years of work, send shockwaves through the market, punish first movers, and undermine confidence in EU climate and energy policies.

Europe’s RFNBO transport targets are already working. With over €15 billion committed to this day, Europe holds the largest volume of investments in end-use hydrogen applications globally. Investment in Europe grew 35% in the past year, while more than 4 GW of electrolysis capacity is now under construction, and this growth is driven primarily by the transposition of RED III transport targets. Meeting the existing RED III targets by 2030 represents a further €50-60 billion investment opportunity, alongside potential CO₂ savings of approximately 30 million tonnes per year.

Industry acknowledges it has called for a number of improvements to RED III, and there are real opportunities to remove the obstacles that stand in the way of delivering the industry target. Notably, the companies are asking that the Commission continue to engage with the hydrogen industry and Member States to ensure the industry targets are achievable and enable market ramp up. Improving the framework, however, cannot mean dismantling the targets and mandates altogether. Doing so would discard years of legislative, administrative, and corporate efforts that stand behind every final investment decision in Europe.

Investors in Europe need certainty. The Draghi report diagnosed what is holding Europe back: slow policymaking, delayed implementation, and too little predictability for investors. A post-2030 RED framework that jeopardises the demand signal Europe spent half a decade building would tell every investor that European policy cannot anchor long-term investment decisions.

Hydrogen and its derivatives are the EU’s resilience assets, serving Europe’s energy security, competitiveness, and climate goals in equal measure. Hydrogen is an indispensable partner to electrification, capable of reducing curtailment and delivering seasonal storage, grid flexibility, and clean molecules for industrial uses.

 Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, CEO of Hydrogen Europe, commented: "This is a test of Europe’s credibility. Weakening the renewable hydrogen targets now would change the rules mid-game and not only break faith with 100-plus European companies that invested under them, but also with the countless international companies who have been working so hard to be RFNBO-compliant. This will stall clean-tech innovation and Europe’s refinery transformation just as the first large-scale projects take off. Reversing course would destroy Europe’s investment certainty, industrial leadership, and resilience goals, while sending us back to square one.”

François Paquet, Managing Director, Renewable Hydrogen Coalition, said: “Europe needs investment. Investment needs certainty. Certainty needs binding RFNBO targets. Weakening the targets now would send exactly the wrong signal at exactly the wrong time. Europe’s problem is not that the targets exist. It is that we are still not doing enough to deliver them. The answer is better implementation, stronger support mechanisms, and effective enforcement, not weaker ambition. Investors need certainty that Europe stands by its commitments and remains a trusted place to invest.”

Ivana Jemelkova, CEO, Hydrogen Council, added: “Global investors need to know that when Europe sets a long-term policy direction, they can have confidence in it. Keeping binding RFNBO targets and mandates beyond 2030 would send a strong signal that Europe can provide the certainty investors need and create an investment climate that global capital can trust.”