Hydrogen diplomacy
Hydrogen diplomacy is a way countries work together to develop a global market for hydrogen, a clean energy source. This approach combines foreign policy, economic strategies, and international cooperation to support the transition to low-carbon energy. The focus is on setting up the rules and systems for producing, transporting, and using hydrogen, especially the kind made from renewable energy sources, known as “green” hydrogen.
Governments engage in hydrogen diplomacy to achieve three main goals: securing reliable energy for the future, reducing carbon emissions in hard-to-change industries like steel and shipping, and creating new economic opportunities. Unlike traditional energy diplomacy, which often revolves around the extraction and trade of limited fossil fuels, hydrogen diplomacy aims to build a whole new energy system based on innovative technologies.
Relevance
Hydrogen diplomacy is critical because it sits at the centre of the global energy transition and its geopolitical consequences. Politically, it offers a pathway for nations to achieve energy security and reduce reliance on volatile fossil fuel markets, a concern amplified by events like the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. For energy-importing nations like Germany and Japan, diplomacy is the only way to secure the vast amounts of clean energy required to meet their 2050 net-zero emissions targets. For nations rich in renewable resources, like Australia, Saudi Arabia, or Chile, it presents a historic opportunity to become new “green energy superpowers,” fundamentally redrawing the global energy map.
Economically, the stakes are immense. This diplomacy is laying the groundwork for a multi-trillion-dollar global market. Nations are racing to establish “green corridors” (maritime shipping routes for hydrogen) and finance mega-projects, positioning their domestic industries to become key technology exporters. Environmentally, hydrogen is one of the few viable solutions for decarbonising heavy industry, long-haul transport, and chemical production. Its successful global deployment, orchestrated through diplomacy, is essential for achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement. Strategically, this field is about managing the shift from a geopolitical order based on fossil fuels to one based on renewable energy and technology.
Methods and approaches
In practice, hydrogen diplomacy involves a combination of formal and informal negotiations. The most common method is the bilateral agreement, often styled as a “Hydrogen Accord” or Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). These pacts, signed between a potential producer and a consumer, establish formal cooperation, fund joint feasibility studies, and signal political backing to private investors.
Multilateral initiatives are used to establish global rules. Organisations like the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) host dialogues to standardise definitions and create certification schemes, ensuring that “green hydrogen” means the same thing in Berlin as it does in Riyadh.
Economic promotion is central, with governments using dedicated offices, like Germany’s “H2-diplo” network, to connect their domestic technology firms with projects abroad.
Financial mechanisms are also a key diplomatic tool. Public-private partnerships are formed to fund pilot projects. The European Union plays a leading role regionally with its hydrogen strategy and plan, which guides collaborations with nearby areas like North Africa. Furthermore, regional meetings are happening in parts of Central Asia and the Caucasus to coordinate energy infrastructure.
Finally, lobbying and advocacy by industry coalitions and expert communities play a crucial role in shaping national strategies and influencing the technical standards being negotiated.
Geographical scope
Hydrogen diplomacy spans the globe, operating across bilateral, regional, and multilateral venues. Bilateral relations are currently the most active theatre. These typically involve high-demand industrialised nations (e.g., Germany, Japan, South Korea) forging partnerships with countries that have vast renewable energy potential (e.g., Australia, Saudi Arabia, Chile, South Africa, Kazakhstan, and Namibia).
At the regional level, the European Union is a dominant force. The EU’s 2020 Hydrogen Strategy and REPowerEU plan function as a cohesive regional foreign policy, driving partnerships with North Africa and the Eastern Neighbourhood. Similarly, regional forums are emerging in Central Asia and the Caucasus to coordinate cross-border infrastructure.
Multilateral forums provide the institutional backbone. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement set the overarching decarbonisation goals. Specialised agencies like IRENA and the International Energy Agency (IEA) host the technical and policy dialogues necessary to build a transparent, standardised global market and track progress.
Historical development
While hydrogen has been an industrial gas for over a century, its role in diplomacy is a recent phenomenon. Its history as a foreign policy tool began in the late 2010s, driven by the 2015 Paris Agreement. The agreement’s net-zero emissions targets forced nations to find solutions for sectors that electrification could not fix.
A major turning point came in 2017 when Japan published its “Basic Hydrogen Strategy”, becoming the first nation to codify hydrogen as a central pillar of its future energy and national security. This act effectively established Japan as a “trailblazer” in the field. The European Union followed suit with its own comprehensive “Hydrogen Strategy” in July 2020, signalling the start of a global race.
The period from 2020 onwards became the “hydrogen decade”. Germany launched its “National Hydrogen Strategy” in 2020 and began establishing its global “H2-diplo” offices in 2021. This diplomatic push accelerated dramatically in 2022. Russia-Ukraine war forced Europe to seek rapid alternatives to Russian gas, transforming hydrogen from a long-term climate solution into an urgent matter of immediate energy security, as enshrined in the EU’s REPowerEU plan.
Actors
Hydrogen diplomacy involves a diverse set of actors working in close coordination. National governments are the primary drivers. Ministries of foreign affairs, economics, and energy (like Germany’s Federal Foreign Office or Australia’s Department of Climate Change) lead negotiations and sign agreements.
International organisations act as facilitators and standard-setters. IRENA is a key forum for global dialogue, while state-backed implementation agencies, like Germany’s GIZ, execute diplomatic projects on the ground.
Corporations are essential partners that build the physical infrastructure. This includes state-backed energy champions (like Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power), industrial giants (like Japan’s Kawasaki Heavy Industries), and technology firms (like Germany’s SEFE Energy). Industry federations and expert communities, such as German industry associations, provide the technical and economic analysis that informs government policy.
Finally, NGOs and climate-focused groups, like the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions, advocate for high environmental standards.
Examples
The Japan-Australia HESC Project
The Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain (HESC) project is a pioneering example of bilateral hydrogen diplomacy.20 Initiated by a Japanese consortium, it aimed to create the world’s first complete international supply chain for liquid hydrogen.21 The project’s pilot phase, supported by both the Japanese and Australian governments, ran from 2021 to 2022.22. It involved gasifying brown coal in Victoria, Australia, capturing the resulting CO2, and shipping the liquefied hydrogen to Kobe, Japan, aboard the Suiso Frontier, the world’s first purpose-built liquid hydrogen carrier. This project was a diplomatic success, proving the technical feasibility of transporting hydrogen by sea. It demonstrated Japan’s strategy of securing an energy supply chain and Australia’s potential as a major energy exporter. The project is now moving towards a commercial phase.
The Australia-Germany Hydrogen Accord
This 2021 accord is a model for diplomacy between a future producer (Australia) and a future consumer (Germany). Rather than just a political declaration, the accord established concrete, jointly funded initiatives.25 A key component is the “Hydrogen Innovation and Technology Incubator” (HyGate) to support joint pilot projects.26 More significantly, it includes the H2Global initiative, a sophisticated diplomatic and financial tool. Germany’s government provides funds (part of a joint €400 million window) to buy green hydrogen derivatives from Australian producers via an auction, and then sells them to its own industrial users. This mechanism uses state power to de-risk investment, bridge the early price gap, and accelerate the creation of a commercial market.
The Germany-Saudi Arabia Partnership
This partnership showcases the geopolitical evolution of energy relationships. In 2021, Germany and Saudi Arabia signed a governmental Memorandum of Understanding to cooperate on green hydrogen.29 This diplomacy laid the groundwork for a major commercial deal in 2025 between Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power and Germany’s SEFE Energy. The deal aims to supply 200,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually to Germany. This example is symbolic: it represents a traditional fossil fuel power (Saudi Arabia) strategically using its vast solar resources to transition to green energy, and a major industrial nation (Germany) diplomatically securing a new, clean energy supply chain with a key partner.
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