Stargate co-founds a national technical committee on hydrogen technologies

Stargate Hydrogen is taking an active role in helping to establish the regulative framework for green hydrogen projects in Europe

A comprehensive list of technical standards is an important prerequisite in order for the hydrogen industry to achieve its enormous potential. Standards improve public safety, preventing injuries to people, as well as preventing property damage – both of which can erode public trust in the industry. Standards further simplify the installation, design, and permitting process, thereby helping to speed up project planning and implementation.

“We have several first-hand experiences from the implementation of hydrogen projects where we could have benefitted significantly from a stronger regulative framework. Therefore, when earlier this year the Estonian Centre for Standardisation and Accreditation invited us to become a founding member of a first national technical committee on hydrogen technologies, we strongly supported the initiative,” says Dr Rainer Küngas, the CTO of Stargate.  

The Technical Committee on Hydrogen Technologies was officially established on 26^th September 2022 with Stargate among the 13 founding members. The first meeting of the technical committee, held on 31^st October, was attended by Dr Küngas, who also serves as the company representative in the committee.

The scope of the committee is the standardisation in the field of systems and devices for the production, storage, transport and distribution, measurement and use of hydrogen (including hydrogen from renewable energy sources), for example hydrogen refuelling stations, fuel cells and electrolysers. The committee has two mirror committees: ISO/TC 197 (Hydrogen technologies) and CEN/CENELEC/JTC6 (Hydrogen in Energy Systems).  

Liis Tambek, the coordinator of standardisation at the Estonian Centre for Standardisation and Accreditation, commented: “Hydrogen technologies are developing rapidly and their wider adoption is considered as a vital step towards achieving climate neutrality. The recently established committee allows stakeholders in Estonia to stay up to date with hydrogen related developments in Europe as well as internationally, and to boost their competitiveness on this rapidly growing market. I welcome the active role that Stargate Hydrogen has agreed to take in the committee.”

Founding members of the technical committee included:

• Tallinn University of Technology
• University of Tartu
• Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority
• Stargate Hydrogen OÜ
• Majandus- ja Kommunikatsiooniministeerium
• Inspecta Estonia OÜ
• Elering AS
• MTÜ Eesti Gaasiliit
• Eesti Vesinikutehnoloogiate Ühing
• Eesti Energia AS
• AS Gaasivõrk
• AS Alexela
• Metrosert AS