24 October 2024, Brussels – The Belgian Hydrogen Council (BHC) today organises its second conference in Brussels, bringing together the Belgian hydrogen ecosystem and many international stakeholders.
At the conference the Belgian interactive hydrogen map is launched, listing all hydrogen activities in Belgium, reflecting the progress realised by ‘Team Belgium’.
The Belgian Hydrogen Council (BHC) was launched in March 2023 by the regional cluster organizations WaterstofNet and Cluster Tweed, to strengthen Belgium’s position in Europe and on the global stage as a pioneering hub of excellence for clean hydrogen.
Besides advising the policymakers on the rollout of their regional and federal hydrogen strategies and acting as a spokesperson for the Belgian hydrogen ecosystem, an important task of the council is the promotion of the Belgian hydrogen industry on the international scene.Today, the Belgian Hydrogen Council organises its second conference “Building the EU hydrogen value chain, with Belgium at its heart”, in Dockx Dome, Brussels. With more than 300 participants, this conference clearly has become the meeting point for the Belgian hydrogen ecosystem and an gateway for internal collaboration.
The conference program reflects the strengths of Belgium and its drive to become an important European hydrogen hub (Conference Belgian Hydrogen Council: “Building the EU hydrogen value chain, with Belgium at its heart”):
Domestic hydrogen production projects are being developed, with recent first investment decisions. Additionally, several Belgian companies are using their expertise for developing large scale hydrogen import value chains internationally.
The existing hydrogen and ammonia ecosystem, concentrated in the ports, is expanded with new hydrogen pipelines and new import and storage infrastructure.
A number of worldwide leading hydrogen technology manufacturers are investing in new manufacturing capacity in Belgium and academic hydrogen expertise is further developed.
To visualize and promote these strengths and provide insight in all Belgian initiatives that already exist in the field of hydrogen, the BHC today proudly launches the ‘Belgian interactive hydrogen map’.
It is a comprehensive and up-to-date map of Belgium, listing all projects and demonstrations, infrastructure works, main technology players and research institutes, clearly indicating the purpose and status of the initiatives and the partnership and supporting organisations behind these initiatives. Through filters, the user can navigate through the Belgian hydrogen value chain – from production and storage projects to manufacturing sites – and follow the estimated status of the projects from now until 2030. New initiatives can be submitted by the user via the map interface.
Tom Hautekiet, president of the Belgian Hydrogen Council, welcomes this new initiative:
‘This tool clearly shows that the Belgian hydrogen ecosystem is growing and that we are setting vital steps to realise our ambition to become a major player in providing Europe with clean hydrogen. It also reflects the coherence among the different building blocks of the ecosystem and strengthens our approach as ‘Team Belgium’.
The map is developed by the program office of the Belgian Hydrogen Council, with the support of the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs.