Permitting process (include LAP: emission regulation)

This LAP refers to the permitting process. It identifies what is the competent authority responsible for the permitting requirements, highlights the different steps of the process, and what are the different kinds of permits needed by the approval authority. Finally, it shows if the process is uniform throughout the country, how much time is needed to obtain the permit, and if there are some exemptions/simplified processes.

Glossary:

The process in which an applicant files forms to a (regulatory) agency/competent authority with required narratives, maps, etc., to ensure in advance that the proposed operation will be in compliance with the applicable standards.
Is it a barrier?
Yes
Type of Barrier
Economic barriers, Operational barrier
Assessment Severity
2
Assessment
The impact of this LAP is essentially on the project duration. Well defined timescale in the reality can not be given, because many parameters determining the real timeframes in a negotiated case, e.g.: how many special authority must be involved in the permitting process, how much times and how extensive complementary information are required from the investor (design consultancy) for the permit application, etc.) Besides there is no lower limit given in the domestic IPPC legislation (Gov.Dec. 314/2005.), so theoretically the same permitting procedure should be conducted – from environmental point of view – for small H2–production installations as for the huge ones.

The barrier causes uncertainties in the necessary timeframe of permitting a H2–installation. Beyond time, cost is disproportionate in case of small production units: design & consultancy fees for unnecessary processes (like IPPC permitting).

Questions:

Question 1 What is the competent authority responsible for the permitting requirements? If more than one, list them
for the environmental permit (IPPC permit): Environment & Nature Conservation Departments of County Level Government Offices (IPPC permit is required according to present legislation without capacity limit, so even very small installations. While at the same time the necessity for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is not unequivocal, but Environmental Authority would require it also most likely, as from the EIA point of view hydrogen production do not has capacity limit value (t/d).) for the building permit: Technical Safety Departments of County Level Government Offices (without capacity limit). for the Seveso permit (dangerous plant permit): County Level Directorate for Disaster Management – if necessary (only in case <1,25 t hydrogen is present at the same time. Production capacity (t/day) is not relevant and not prescribed from this point of view.)
Question 2 What are the different steps of the process? Please indicate which authority in charge of which step if different authorities are involved
first step: application for Environmental permit (and/or) IPPC Permit. second step: application for building permit, plus “Seveso permit” for installation (if any; <1,25 t H2) third step: application for operational permit, plus operational “Seveso permit” (if any) At the time of submitting the building permit application you have to have already the environmental (IPPC) permit. You are allowed to start the construction, when having the building permit. After finishing the construction one can apply for operation permit. Having the operation permit (both for build, and the Seveso permit– if necessary) one can start its operation
Question 3 Are there any exemptions/”simplified” process (e.g. for demonstration projects)?
The permitting process is basically the same for demonstration units than for “industrial / commercial facilities”; a very few exemptions exist: if one have already environmental permit, an operational experiment is not considered to be a substantial change in the installation, and does not require changing the existing permit, but even in this case preliminary notification of Environmental Authority about experimental operation must be done
Question 4 What kind of permits are needed by the approval authority, and are they separated/integrated (single permit)? E.g. building permit , construction and operation permit for installations, environmental permit
a – environmental (and/or IPPC) permit, build permit, operational permit, Seveso installation permit; Seveso operation permit. These are single permits, as they are separated in time. Environmental (IPPC) can be an integrated permit, but it means, that environmental type of permits are integrated (emission point source, waste managements, wastewater discharge, etc.), but does not integrate in itself other type of permits, like disaster prevention permit (Seveso permit), which must be gained in different procedure
Question 5 Is the process at local level uniform throughout a country? (uniform interpretation?)
The process is uniform throughout the country theoretically; but because of the transforming of domestic public administration system, local level variations (smaller different interpretation) can occur in some cases.
Question 6 How long does it take to obtain a permit for the construction and operation of a hydrogen production facility? a - Is there a maximum response time for granting the permit
a - yes (but some – conditional – actions are not included in the deadline, like that time when the client is obliged to submit supplementary information to its permit application)
Question 6 How long does it take to obtain a permit for the construction and operation of a hydrogen production facility? b - If yes, what is the response time?
b - environmental permit 3–8 months (depending weather a preliminary phase is also needed, and/or weather IPPC permit is needed as well. Building permit 1 month, +1 month if special authority in is also necessary. Operation permit 0,5 month. Seveso permit for installation is 1,5 months. It should be noted, that i) these processes are connected in series, so are summarizing; ii) these are purely the authority administration deadlines, and do not incorporate the time requirement of elaboration of the different permit applications, which could take several months each.
Question 6 How long does it take to obtain a permit for the construction and operation of a hydrogen production facility? c - What is the experience in practice?
c - in practice the evaluation time can sometime exceed the legally prescribed timeframes, but Public Administration now makes considerable efforts to avoid these situations
Describe the comparable technology and its relevance with regard to hydrogen
ammonium, chlorine, fluoride, carbon–oxides, syngas, sulfur compounds production. These are in the same group (in the inorganic compounds manufacturing), in which hydrogen production also belongs

National legislation:

EU Legislation:

  • Directive 2012/18/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on the control of major-accident hazards involving dangerous substances (so-called SEVESO Directive)
    The Directive covers situations where dangerous substances may be present (e.g. during processing or storage) in quantities exceeding certain thresholds.

    It establishes:
    • General obligations on the operator (Article 5)
    • Notification (information on the form and amount of substances, the activity, and the surrounding environment) of all concerned establishments (Article 7),
    • The obligation to deploy a major accident prevention policy (Article 8),
    • The obligation to produce a safety report for upper-tier establishments (Article 10);
    • The obligation to produce internal emergency plans for upper tier establishments (Article 12);
    • Authorities to exert control of the siting of new establishments, modifications to new establishments, and new developments including transport routes, locations of public use and residential areas in the vicinity of establishments, (Article 13)
    • The obligation to conduct public consultations on specific individual projects that may involve risk of major accidents (Article 15)

    Annex I, Part 1, establishes Hydrogen as a dangerous substance (therefore within scope) and lists the quantity of hydrogen for the application of lower-tier requirements (≥ 5t) and upper-tier requirements (≥ 50t).

    For quantities of less than 5 tonnes of hydrogen, none of the obligations above would apply.

    The Directive is relevant for both the approval of bunkering / landing installations as well as on board transport of hydrogen
  • ATEX Directive 2014/34/EU - covering equipment and protective systems intended for use in potentially explosive atmospheres
    The Directive defines the essential health and safety requirements and conformity assessment procedures (Article 4) to be applied before products are placed on the EU market and is significant for the engineering of hydrogen production plants. It covers inter alia equipment and protective systems intended for use in potentially explosive atmospheres.

    The Directive requires employers to classify areas where hazardous explosive atmospheres may occur into zones. The classification given to a particular zone, and its size and location, depends on the likelihood of an explosive atmosphere occurring and its persistence if it does.

    The Directive requires the manufacturers to design their equipment to be suitable for use within their customer’s explosive atmosphere. Therefore, manufacturers of equipment rely upon their customer to give them information about the classification of the zone and the flammable substance(s) within that zone.

    The Directive describes the rules and regulations for all actors in the value chain, with respect to ensuring that only safe equipment for use in potentially explosive atmospheres are sold and applied. It provides regulation of how the equipment shall be constructed, produced and documented, as well as the rules for CE-labelling.

    It also contains, inter alia conformity assessment procedures (Art 13) EU declaration of conformity (Art 14) and General principles of the CE marking (Art 16)

    The Directive is relevant for the approval of landing / bunkering installations
  • Directive 2010/75/EU on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control (IED)
    The Directive, which applies to the production of hydrogen (production on an industrial scale by chemical or biological processing) (Annex I, point 4.2) contains inter alia:
    • Basic obligations of the operator (Article 11)
    • The content of permitting applications (Article 12)
    • Permitting Conditions (Article 14)
    • Emission limit values, (Article 15)
    • Monitoring requirements (Article 16)
    • Access to information and public participation (Article 24)

    The meaning of "production on an industrial scale by chemical or biological processing in Annex I section 4" has been clarified by the EU Commission, in support of transposition and implementation measures. :

    Annex I Section 4 (“chemical industry”) refers to “production on an industrial scale” and contains no quantitative capacity thresholds. The scale of chemical manufacture can vary from a few grams (of a highly specialised product), to many tonnes (of a bulk chemical product); yet both may correspond to “industrial scale” for that particular activity.

    Various criteria should be taken into account to decide whether production is “on an industrial scale”, including such factors as the nature of the product, the industrial character of the plant and machinery used, production volume, commercial purpose, production solely for own use, environmental impact. Such considerations should take account of the primary objective of the IED as expressed in Article 1 as to "prevent or, where that is not practicable, to reduce emissions into air, water and land and to prevent the generation of waste, in order to achieve a high level of protection of the environment taken as a whole", complemented by the general principle set in Article 11 (c) that "no significant pollution is caused".

    The fact that the activity is carried out for "commercial purposes" may be a strong indicator of "industrial scale", […] However, it may not be sufficient to use the “commercial purpose” of an activity as the sole determinant of "industrial scale". It may also be important to take into account the potential environmental impact of a production sequence.


    Directive 2010/75/EU established an integrated approach towards prevention and control. This integrated approach means that the permits must take into account the whole environmental performance of the plant, covering e.g. emissions to air, water and land, generation of waste, use of raw materials, energy efficiency, noise, prevention of accidents, and restoration of the site upon closure. The permit conditions including emission limit values must be based on the Best Available Techniques (BAT).
  • Directive 2014/52/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 amending Directive 2011/92/EU on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment).
    The Directives (and their subsequent amendments) define a strategic environmental impact assessment procedure. The procedure is summarized as follows: the developer may request the competent authority define what should be covered by the EIA information to be provided by the developer (scoping stage); the developer must provide information on the environmental impact (EIA report – Annex IV); the environmental authorities and the public (and affected Member States) must be informed and consulted; the competent authority decides, taken into consideration the results of consultations. The public is informed of the decision afterwards and can challenge the decision before the courts.

    In line with the EIA Directive, Production and Storage of Hydrogen falls within the projects listed in Annex II (6a and 6c -production of chemicals; and storage facilities for chemical product), for which Member States shall determine whether the project shall be made subject to an assessment or not. In some EU countries, storage of 5 tons of hydrogen or more falls within the scope of the Directives.

    The latest amendment, (Directive 2014/52/EU) introduces minimum requirements with regards to the type of projects subject to assessment, the main obligations of developers, the content of the assessment and the participation of the competent authorities and the public.
  • Directive 2011/92/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment (EIA Directive)
    The Directives (and their subsequent amendments) define a strategic environmental impact assessment procedure. The procedure is summarized as follows: the developer may request the competent authority define what should be covered by the EIA information to be provided by the developer (scoping stage); the developer must provide information on the environmental impact (EIA report – Annex IV); the environmental authorities and the public (and affected Member States) must be informed and consulted; the competent authority decides, taken into consideration the results of consultations. The public is informed of the decision afterwards and can challenge the decision before the courts.

    In line with the EIA Directive, Production and Storage of Hydrogen falls within the projects listed in Annex II (6a and 6c -production of chemicals; and storage facilities for chemical product), for which Member States shall determine whether the project shall be made subject to an assessment or not. In some EU countries, storage of 5 tons of hydrogen or more falls within the scope of the Directives.

    The latest amendment, (Directive 2014/52/EU) introduces minimum requirements with regards to the type of projects subject to assessment, the main obligations of developers, the content of the assessment and the participation of the competent authorities and the public.
  • Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment (SEA Directive)
    The Directives (and their subsequent amendments) define a strategic environmental impact assessment procedure. The procedure is summarized as follows: the developer may request the competent authority define what should be covered by the EIA information to be provided by the developer (scoping stage); the developer must provide information on the environmental impact (EIA report – Annex IV); the environmental authorities and the public (and affected Member States) must be informed and consulted; the competent authority decides, taken into consideration the results of consultations. The public is informed of the decision afterwards and can challenge the decision before the courts.

    In line with the EIA Directive, Production and Storage of Hydrogen falls within the projects listed in Annex II (6a and 6c -production of chemicals; and storage facilities for chemical product), for which Member States shall determine whether the project shall be made subject to an assessment or not. In some EU countries, storage of 5 tons of hydrogen or more falls within the scope of the Directives.

    The latest amendment, (Directive 2014/52/EU) introduces minimum requirements with regards to the type of projects subject to assessment, the main obligations of developers, the content of the assessment and the participation of the competent authorities and the public.
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  • Council Directive 98/24/EC of 7 April 1998 on the protection of the health and safety of workers from the risks related to chemical agents at work
    The requirements of this Directive apply where hazardous chemical agents are present or may be present at the workplace (Article 1.2). When applicable, the Directive imposes certain obligation on the employers
    • Determination and assessment of risk (Article 4)
    • General principles for prevention of risks (Article 5)
    • Specific protection and prevention measures (Article 6)
    • Arrangements to deal with accidents (Article 7)
    • Information and training for workers (Article 8)
  • Directive 2004/35/CE of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on environmental liability with regard to the prevention and remedying of environmental damage
    The Environmental Liability Directive (“ELD”) establishes a framework of environmental liability, based on the "polluter-pays" principle, to prevent and remedy environmental damage. The ELD places the financial consequences of certain types of harm caused to the environment on the economic operator who caused this harm. It covers: (a) “damage to protected species and natural habitats” (b) “water damage” and (c) “land damage”.

    Additionally, where imminent threats exist or when required by the competent authority operators are required to take preventive measures.

    The Directive applies to the production to Hydrogen by reference to Annex I, point 4.2 of Directive 2010/75/EU on industrial emissions
  • European Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances [CLP regulation]
    The CLP Regulation (Classification, Labelling and Packaging of substances and mixtures) entered into force on the 20th of January 2009 and replaced the two previously existing laws or legal instruments, the Dangerous Substance Directive (DSD) and the Dangerous Preparation Directive (DPD). CLP is based on the Globally Harmonized System (GHS), a set of recommendations drafted by the United Nations. The CLP Regulation is applied to substances since 2010 and to mixtures since June 2015.

    The Regulation includes hydrogen in its list of substances of hazardous substances (Part 3, Table 3.1) establishes rules for the harmonised classification and labelling of hydrogen.
  • Directive 2009/104/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2009 concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for the use of work equipment by workers at work
    The general provisions of Chapter II (Employers obligations) apply. However, this legislation applies broadly and is not to be regarded as hydrogen specific.
  • Directive 1999/92/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 1999 on minimum requirements for improving the safety and health protection of workers potentially at risk from explosive atmospheres
    Directive 1999/92/EC lays down minimum requirements for the safety and health protection of workers potentially at risk from explosive atmospheres which will apply to facilities involved in the production, storage and distribution of hydrogen. It sets out a number of specific obligations on the employer, including inter alia:

    • Prevention of and protection against explosions
    • Assessment of explosion risks
    • Special requirements for work equipment and workplaces
  • Directive 2014/68/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of pressure equipment.
    The Pressure Equipment Directive, applies to the design, manufacture and conformity assessment of pressure equipment and assemblies with a maximum allowable pressure greater than 0.5 bar.

    Technical requirements and classification according to an ascending level of hazard, depending on pressure, volume or nominal size, the fluid group and state of aggregation, as well as conformity assessment procedures are laid down and required by the Directive

    Hydrogen is a fluid which falls under Group 1. Group 1 consists of dangerous fluids (flammable, toxic and/or oxidizing). As a result, a large part of the equipment for H2 production, storage and distribution must meet the technical requirements set out in the Pressure Equipment Directive (PED).

    The Directive is relevant for the approval of landing / bunkering installations