Madrid, June 25, 2026 — HydrogenSphere 2026: Connecting the Global Hydrogen Ecosystem was successfully held in Madrid, Spain. The conference was jointly organized by the International Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association (IHFCA), China Society of Automotive Engineers (China SAE), and Centro Nacional del Hidrógeno (CNH2). Under the theme of "Connecting the Global Hydrogen Ecosystem," the event brought together representatives from government agencies, international organizations, energy companies, vehicle and equipment manufacturers, financial institutions, standards and certification bodies, industry associations, and hydrogen project developers. Discussions focused on practical pathways for moving the global hydrogen industry from policy ambition to scaled implementation.
The conference convened high-level participants across policy, industry, finance, standards and international cooperation. Sen. Abubakar Atiku Bagudu (CON), Honourable Minister of Budget and Economic Planning of Nigeria, delivered the afternoon keynote remarks. Zhang Jinhua, Executive Vice Chair of IHFCA and President of China SAE, delivered opening remarks, while Ju Wang, Secretary General of IHFCA, gave a keynote speech. Heng Liu, Senior Technical Advisor at the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Miguel ángel Fernández, General Manager of CNH2, and representatives from REPSOL, MOEVE, the Spanish Hydrogen Association (AeH2), the World Bank, HyDeal, EDF, Airbus and Técnicas Reunidas also participated in the conference and exchanges. The event further demonstrated IHFCA's role as a platform connecting global hydrogen policy, industry, capital and standards resources.
Group photo of HydrogenSphere 2026 participants.
Building Consensus to Move Hydrogen from Vision to Implementation
The opening session was moderated by Benny Oeyen, CEO for Europe and the Americas at IHFCA. In his remarks, Zhang Jinhua noted that the global green and low-carbon energy transition continues to deepen, and hydrogen is moving from a stage driven mainly by policy support and demonstration projects into a new phase shaped by demand creation, project delivery and ecosystem coordination. Facing common challenges such as cost reduction, demand cultivation, infrastructure development, project financing, standards and certification, and cross-border trade rules, HydrogenSphere aims to connect policy, industry, standards, finance and project practice, helping hydrogen cooperation move from shared vision to project coordination, from technical exchange to ecosystem building, and from market momentum to market reality.
Zhang Jinhua, IHFCA Standing Vice Chairman and China SAE Chairman.
Zhang Jinhua, IHFCA Standing Vice Chairman and China SAE Chairman.
Zhang Jinhua, IHFCA Standing Vice Chairman and China SAE Chairman.
Sen. Abubakar Atiku Bagudu (CON), Nigerian Minister of Budget and Economic Planning.
Expanding Partnerships and Launching a Renewable Hydrogen Action Initiative
During the conference, Extreme H officially joined IHFCA, further strengthening the association’s international membership network and expanding the global hydrogen ecosystem partnership. In parallel, IHFCA signed memoranda of understanding with the Spanish Hydrogen Association (AeH2) and INHA, establishing structured cooperation in policy exchange, industry engagement, project cooperation, standards coordination, joint activities and international communications.
The Madrid RH2ACE Initiative: Renewable Hydrogen Action for Climate and Energy was also officially launched. The initiative calls on global partners to strengthen cooperation in renewable hydrogen utilization, replacement of fossil-based hydrogen, prevention and control of hydrogen losses and emissions, technology innovation, project collaboration and standards alignment. It provides new momentum for the scale-up of renewable hydrogen and the development of a more connected global hydrogen ecosystem.
New member signing, MoU signing and initiative launch session.
Focusing on Market Reality and the Key Conditions for Scaling Hydrogen
The keynote session, titled “From Momentum to Market Reality: What Will Actually Scale the Hydrogen Economy,” was moderated by Heng Liu, Senior Technical Advisor at UNIDO. Speakers included Ju Wang, Secretary General of IHFCA; Beatriz Almena, Senior Vice President at REPSOL; Mikaa Blugeon-Mered, founder of Hydrogen Mosaic; Enrique Iglesias Barbero from MOEVE; and Inés Gómez de Iturriaga Fica, General Manager of AeH2. Participants noted that the hydrogen industry has entered a more pragmatic phase, in which low-emissions hydrogen supply, infrastructure readiness, firm demand and bankable projects remain key constraints on scale-up.
The conference also featured four panel discussions focused on real demand and business model innovation, hydrogen hubs and industrial clusters, hydrogen project financing, and alignment of standards, certification and regulation. Participants broadly agreed that hydrogen projects must be organized around concentrated, persistent and actionable demand centers. Production, storage and transport, refuelling, end-use applications, capital structures and regulatory frameworks need to be planned together in order to build deployment models that are repeatable, financeable and scalable across regions.
Panel 1: From demand to deployment: scalable use cases and business models.
Panel 2: Hydrogen hubs, corridors and industrial clusters built around real use cases.
Panel 3: Financing hydrogen at scale in a more selective capital market.
Panel 4: Standards, certification and regulation for global hydrogen market scale-up.
Building Shared Understanding and Continuing the Global Hydrogen Dialogue
The closing keynote session featured Thierry Lepercq, founder and chairman of HyDeal, and Carlos Merino, Technical Director of CNH2. Miguel ángel Fernández, General Manager of CNH2, and Mikaa Blugeon-Mered, Chief Impact Officer of IHFCA, then delivered the conference summary and looked ahead to HydrogenSphere 2027.
The conference concluded that the global hydrogen industry is moving from isolated demonstrations to system-level deployment, from policy vision to market validation, and from technical feasibility to commercially repeatable models. Going forward, HydrogenSphere will continue to serve as a high-level global dialogue platform, promoting deeper exchange and practical cooperation among governments, international organizations, industry associations, energy companies, equipment manufacturers, financial institutions, standards and certification bodies, and project developers. IHFCA will continue working with global partners to advance hydrogen and fuel cell technology innovation, project cooperation, standards coordination and ecosystem development, contributing to the global green and low-carbon energy transition and the sustainable high-quality development of the hydrogen industry.
IHFCA and EDF mark the launch of Madrid RH2ACE Initiative: Renewable Hydrogen Action for Climate and Energy to unlock emissions reductions through large-scale deployment of renewable hydrogen.
Madrid, June 25, 2026 —The Madrid RH2ACE Initiative: Renewable Hydrogen Action for Climate and Energy was also officially launched. The initiative calls on global partners to strengthen cooperation in renewable hydrogen utilization, replacement of fossil-based hydrogen, prevention and control of hydrogen losses and emissions and its derivatives, featuring:
1. Explore to set short-term (2030) and longer-term (2050 and beyond) targets for renewable hydrogen utilization, and gradually raise the share of renewable hydrogen in total hydrogen consumption.
2. Aim to make renewable hydrogen the primary hydrogen source in sectors where direct electrification is unfeasible, accelerating the replacement of fossil-based hydrogen.
3. Prevent and minimize hydrogen losses and venting throughout hydrogen applications to ensure safety, preserve climate benefits, and improve resource-use efficiency.
The outcome was launched at the HydrogenSphere 2026: Connecting the Global Hydrogen Ecosystem was successfully held in Madrid, Spain. The conference was jointly organized by the International Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association (IHFCA), China Society of Automotive Engineers (China SAE), and Centro Nacional del Hidrógeno (CNH2). Under the theme of “Connecting the Global Hydrogen Ecosystem,” the event brought together representatives from government agencies, international organizations, energy companies, vehicle and equipment manufacturers, financial institutions, standards and certification bodies, industry associations, and hydrogen project developers. Discussions focused on practical pathways for moving the global hydrogen industry from policy ambition to scaled implementation.