Regional cluster organizations WaterstofNet and Cluster Tweed today launched the Belgian Hydrogen Council (BHC) to consolidate and strengthen Belgium’s position in Europe and on the global stage as a pioneering hub of excellence for clean hydrogen. The eight CEOs who make up the Board of the Council met for the first time today in Brussels, according to the Port of Antwerp-Bruges's release.
WaterstofNet and Tweed have both been coordinating their regional hydrogen clusters in Flanders and Wallonia respectively for several years and are now jointly establishing a national hydrogen council that aims to transcend the various political levels in our country. The Belgian Hydrogen Council will take on important tasks such as the promotion of the Belgian hydrogen industry at home and abroad, as well as advise policymakers on the rollout of their regional and federal hydrogen strategies.
The Belgian Hydrogen Council will take on some important tasks such as profiling and promoting the Belgian hydrogen industry at home and abroad, acting as a representative of the Belgian hydrogen ecosystem in national and international forums. The organization also aims at advising our various Belgian policymakers on the rollout of their regional and federal hydrogen strategies.
The Council is neither a regional nor a federal initiative but it is a national council driven by the hydrogen industry. The industry is the Council's pilot with the support of the various governments. The four competent ministers have all expressed their support for this new initiative.
The 150 Belgian members of the Waterstof Industrie Cluster coordinated by WaterstofNet since 2015 and the 70 members of the H2Hub Wallonia coordinated by Cluster Tweed since 2020 are automatically members of the Belgian Hydrogen Council. Thus, the Council effectively seals a partnership and brings together the existing industrial hydrogen ecosystems in Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels that reflect the entire Belgian hydrogen sector. It is these companies that will be the driving force of the Council.
The Board of the Belgian Hydrogen Council is formed by eight companies, covering the hydrogen value chain. These companies were elected among all cluster members and will represent the Belgian Hydrogen Council for the coming two years: ENGIE (production), John Cockerill (technology), Fluxys (infrastructure), Port of Antwerp-Bruges (ports & import), ArcelorMittal (industry), INEOS (industry) Virya Energy (mobility) and Sirris (research).