India’s efforts to emerge as a supplier of green hydrogen and its derivatives to Europe could depend partly on whether domestic producers can meet the European Union’s certification and compliance requirements.
Differences in how renewable hydrogen is certified and emissions are accounted for could affect the ability of Indian producers to access the European market, even as the country seeks to build export-oriented supply chains.
Akash Tripathi, Managing Director, Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) called for aligned safety and certification frameworks that would ensure green molecules certified at the production stage are recognised at their delivery destinations. He said such alignment would help India leverage its competitiveness in green molecules and cater to global demand.
“If we have aligned framework, that means if green molecules is certified once, then it is accepted at the delivery point also,” Tripathi said. He added that India needed more global partnerships to gain access to international demand and supply chains.
EU Rules Could Shape Market Access
Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, CEO, Hydrogen Europe, said India and Europe needed to work together on certification, carbon accounting and traceability to strengthen green hydrogen trade. He argued that European regulations should allow trusted international partners, including India, to participate in emerging supply chains.
“Trusted partners such as India should be able to deploy European technology in joint projects and supply strategic molecules back to Europe,” he said.
Chatzimarkakis pointed to the European Union’s Renewable Fuels of Non-Biological Origin (RFNBO) rules, which govern how renewable hydrogen and its derivatives are classified. The framework also needed to give Indian producers a workable route to demonstrate compliance. Robust certification is necessary to protect environmental integrity but should not exclude credible international suppliers.
The EU’s RFNBO framework sets requirements around the renewable electricity used to produce hydrogen, including additionality, geographical correlation and temporal correlation between electricity generation and hydrogen production.
The temporal correlation requirement currently allows monthly matching until the end of 2029, before moving to hourly matching from January 2030. These conditions are relevant to producers outside Europe as well, if they want their hydrogen and derivatives to qualify as renewable under EU rules.
The scale of Europe’s planned demand also makes compliance commercially significant. Under the EU’s revised Renewable Energy Directive, renewable fuels of non-biological origin must account for at least 42 per cent of hydrogen used in industry by 2030, rising to 60 per cent by 2035. This creates a regulatory demand for certified renewable hydrogen, including imports that meet the bloc’s requirements.
Chatzimarkakis also highlighted the importance of mass balancing and the recognition of verified cross-border supply chains to prevent double counting. “Traceability should be a passport for trade and administrative easiness, and not administrative barriers,” he said.
India-EU FTA Could Provide Framework
The India-European Union Free Trade Agreement (FTA), negotiations for which were concluded in January 2026, could provide an opportunity to address some of these concerns. In September, the European Commission submitted proposals to the EU Council for the agreement’s signature and conclusion. The agreement is yet to enter into force.
Chatzimarkakis said the pact should go beyond tariff reductions and incorporate provisions relating to certification, carbon accounting, traceability and workable rules for industrial products.
India and the EU concluded negotiations on the FTA in January 2026. In September, the European Commission put forward proposals for its signature and conclusion, although the agreement has not yet entered into force. This provides a relevant policy backdrop to calls for greater alignment on standards and certification between the two sides.
Chatzimarkakis also raised concerns about the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), arguing that its implementation should reward actual emissions reductions and support investments in cleaner industrial processes. Clear methodologies and usable emissions data are needed to ensure that carbon-related regulations do not create additional trade barriers between strategic partners.
The Hydrogen Europe chief outlined five areas for cooperation: creating demand, aligning compliance requirements, making carbon border adjustment mechanisms workable, deepening industrial partnerships and building resilient supply corridors.
For Indian producers, the ability to demonstrate compliance with international standards will be an important consideration as the country seeks to expand its presence in the global green hydrogen market.
The extent to which India and its trading partners can align certification and verification frameworks could influence how easily domestic producers access overseas markets.
