Schneider Electric and the startup Atmen have entered into a strategic partnership for the certification of green hydrogen. The startup's certification platform aims to help manufacturers more easily comply with and certify EU criteria for green hydrogen and e-fuels. The software automatically documents electricity origin and CO₂ footprint.
The French technology group Schneider Electric and the Germany-based startup Atmen announced their cooperation on January 29, 2025, at Hyvolution Paris. The goal is to jointly develop digital solutions for sustainability certification and traceability in Power-to-X supply chains (PtX).
The cooperation combines Schneider Electric's digital platforms with Atmen's certification technology. According to an Atmen press release, the focus is particularly on optimizing cybersecurity, data quality, and operational processes. The software solution is aimed at producers of hydrogen and e-fuels.
EU Standards for Hydrogen Production
Just a few days ago, Atmen announced a collaboration with hydrogen producer Lhyfe. This involves introducing a digital product passport that automatically documents the origin of electricity used for hydrogen production and the CO₂ footprint. Implementation starts at Lhyfe's first site in Bouin, France, which opened in 2021.
The complete traceability of green hydrogen is considered key for market growth. Since the end of December 2024, H2 producers can certify their products as renewable fuels of non-biological origin (RFNBOs) through three EU Commission-recognized systems – ISCC, CertifHy, and REDcert. By 2030, 42.4 percent of industrially used hydrogen in Europe should be classified as such an RFNBO.
RFNBO certification is tied to several EU criteria. For example, production must demonstrate at least 70 percent greenhouse gas savings compared to fossil alternatives. Additionally, the electricity used must come from newly built renewable facilities and correlate temporally and spatially with hydrogen production. The EU envisions a staged implementation process – the additionality criterion will only fully apply from 2028, while hourly temporal correlation becomes mandatory from 2030.
Automated Documentation
These requirements place high technical demands on documentation. The new partnership between Schneider Electric and Atmen aims to automate the necessary processes. "We combine Schneider Electric's expertise in energy management and industrial automation with Atmen's specialization in sustainability regulation and green certification," explains Flore de Durfort, CEO of Atmen. The startup received a million-euro investment in early 2024 for the further development of its digital certification tools.
The technical challenge lies particularly in documenting power supply. The EU allows various approaches: direct power lines from renewable facilities, grid supply through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), or – under certain conditions such as a very high renewable share – regular grid supply. "The integration of our digital platforms enables automated and tamper-proof documentation of these complex verification chains," explains Philippe Arsonneau from Schneider Electric. Through optimized monitoring of these processes, the company aims to reduce hydrogen costs.
Relevance for Industrial Transformation
The partnership is strategically important for Schneider Electric, as the group is heavily involved in industrial transformation towards climate neutrality as a provider of energy and automation solutions. One example is the steel industry: here, only the use of green hydrogen as a reducing agent in combination with electric arc furnaces enables CO₂-free production.
Operating in over 100 countries, Schneider Electric not only provides digital control systems but also aims to support the efficient integration of hydrogen and power supply. The new cooperation with Atmen now complements this portfolio with the necessary certification tools.
