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The GreenWave Podcast By Synergy International Episode 35 was out this Monday
August 27, 2025

💚🌊 The GreenWave Podcast By Synergy International 🌊💚 Episode 35 was out on Monday and you don't want to miss this one!

What's Wrong With the EU Hydrogen Bank?

SYNI, your host, tears into today's topic, the European Union Hydrogen Bank. Specifically, what is wrong with the Bank and why are winners of the biggest subsidies walking away from completing their green hydrogen projects? We’re talking about three of the largest green hydrogen projects in the EU turning an icy shoulder €589 million of future EU support during this blazing hot summer. We’ll need more than sun cream and a beach umbrella to unravel this one. Thankfully we have SYNI's take on both problems and solutions, so sit back for the next 23 minutes and enjoy the cool breeze of our pod. Episode 35
Our posts from last week touched on some important topics:

Global Plastics Treaty Comes Up Empty: Focus Turns to COP30



💚 🌊 Global Plastics Treaty Comes Up Empty: Focus Turns to COP30 🌊 💚 For all those holidaymakers out there who have enjoyed a recent ocean swim, let's not take for granted you won't be entangled in a floating nest of old plastic bags during your future summer sea dips. That's because the latest UN process in Geneva did not deliver a Global Plastics Treaty.

♻️ Positions hardened over whether to cut virgin plastic at the source or rely on waste management and recycling. That stalemate shifts responsibility to capital. If you deploy funds, the agenda is now yours to set. Keep focus on outcomes, transparency, and speed of execution.

🫵🏼 Investors have the levers that matter. Require standardised data on plastic footprints across portfolios. Tie financing to credible reduction plans for resin use and packaging intensity. Back city and regional collection systems that stop leakage and raise recycling yields. Support producer responsibility so manufacturers finance end of life costs. Build coalitions that move first across procurement, design, and logistics, and publish the evidence so policy can follow practice. Read more...


Doom Bells Chiming This Summer for EU Green Hydrogen Sector


💚 🌊 Doom Bells Chiming This Summer for EU Green Hydrogen Sector 🌊 💚 The latest signals of existential crisis have emerged as the three largest recipients of subsidies from the EU Hydrogen Bank's most recent auction have pulled out of the process, throwing into doubt the design and fitness for purpose of the programme. Three exits in one burst is not noise. They include Zeevonk in the Netherlands, Catalina in Spain, and H2 Hub Lubmin in Germany.

🧭 Under the current rules, projects must reach financial close swiftly and be operational on an aggressive clock, with hard proof of demand, in markets still waiting on grid, port, and pipeline links. That combination pushed roughly 1.3 gigawatts of electrolysis to walk away. Developers also point to regulatory uncertainty around RED III transposition and strict limits on combining national support with EU bids. Zeevonk’s partners cite delays on the Delta Rhine Corridor, which shifts connective infrastructure into the early 2030s.

⚙️ The auction should reward deliverability and real execution. Keep the fixed premium model, index payments to inflation and verifiable power costs, allow phased commissioning, and let compliant national top ups stack within clear caps. Align entry into operation windows with real permitting paths and dated infrastructure dependencies. Read more...


The Latest Sustainability Developments

The latest LinkedIn newsletter post highlights recent news and developments in sustainability.

Check it out here.


UPCOMING EVENTS
Investing in Hydrogen, Sept 2–3 (London) - Finance and offtake strategy for green H₂ deployment.

Climate Week NYC, Sept (exact dates TBA) - Large-scale climate policy & finance forum.

African Energy Week (AEW) 2025 Date: September 29 to October 3, 2025 Location: Cape Town International Convention Centre 2 (CTICC2) in Cape Town, South Africa

Organized by the African Energy Chamber, AEW serves as a premier platform uniting African energy stakeholders, global investors, and industry leaders for discussions on the continent's energy future. The event features high-level discussions, networking opportunities, exhibitions, private meetings, deal-signing forums, and project site visits, all aimed at driving industry growth and development.

The 2025 edition will cover critical topics such as investment in upstream development, legislative and regulatory policies, infrastructure growth strategies, the downstream sector, and Africa's role in the global energy transition. Delegates can expect workshops, discussions, and presentations addressing these areas, providing insights into new project updates, industry highlights, and investment opportunities aligned with Africa's energy and sustainability goals. aecweek.com

20th Conference on Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems (SDEWES) Date: September 2025 (Exact dates to be confirmed) Location: Dubrovnik, Croatia

This conference will gather scientists and professionals to discuss sustainable development in energy, water, and environmental systems. It serves as a platform for sharing research and advancements in these fields.

Green Hydrogen Summit USA Sept 30–Oct 1 - North American hydrogen commercialization.

Net Zero Conference (LA) Oct 1 - Built-environment strategies & design for net‑zero.

The Future of ESG Data EMEA 2025 Date: 13th October 2025 Location: London

The annual Future of ESG Data EMEA conference returns for its sixth year as a central source of discussion and learning for the increasingly vital sustainability data industry. Growing each year since its inception, this one-day event, held in London, will offer investors, corporates and financial institutions the tools needed to tackle the growing demand for decision-useful and reliable ESG data.

COP30 – 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference Date: November 10–21, 2025 Location: Belém, Pará, Brazil

The 30th UN Climate Change Conference will convene global leaders to discuss and negotiate actions to address climate change. This marks the first time the conference will be held in the Amazon region, highlighting the importance of rainforest conservation.


Visit the sustainability conferences and events calendar.
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