EU Carbon Diplomacy: Assessing Hydrogen Security and Policy Impact in Australia and Germany

Hydrogen is fast becoming a new international “super fuel” to accelerate global climate change ambitions. This paper has two inter-weaving themes. Contextually, it focuses on the potential impact of EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) fossil fuel-generated as opposed green hydrogen imports. The CBAM, transnational carbon adjustment mechanism, trade in energy. It seeks both level playing field between imports and EU internal markets (subject ambitious policies), encourage emissions reduction laggards through its “carbon diplomacy”. Countries without price will be charged for embodied their supply chains when they export EU. Empirically, we focus export/import case studies: Australia non-EU state with ambitions hydrogen, Germany an Member State reliant energy Energy security central debates but needs conceptualized beyond demand economics include geopolitics, just transitions impacts border taxes diplomacy. Accordingly, apply further develop seven-dimension security-justice framework examples brown, blue operations, varying carbon-intensity chains, Germany. Applying framework, identify impact—risks opportunities—associated identified projects countries. research contributes emerging fields trade, diplomacy develops potentially useful researchers policy analysts.