Hydrogen Fuel Cell Legal Framework in the United States, Germany, and South Korea—A Model for a Regulation in Malaysia

As a party to the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Malaysia is committed to reduce its greenhouse gases (GHG) emission intensity of gross domestic product (GDP) by 45% by 2030 relative to the emission intensity of GDP in 2005. One of the ways for Malaysia to reduce its GHG emission is to diversify its energy mix and to include hydrogen fuel cell (HFC) in its energy mix. Since Malaysia does not have any legal framework for HFCs, it is best to see how other countries are doing and how can it be replicated in Malaysia. This paper reviews the HFC legal framework in the United States, Germany and South Korea as these countries are among those that have advanced themselves in this technology. The researchers conducted a library-based research and obtained the related materials from online databases and public domain. Based on the reviews, the researchers find that these countries have a proper legal framework in place for HFC. With these legal frameworks, funds will be available to support research and development, as well as demonstration of HFC. Thus, it is recommended that Malaysia to have a proper HFC legal framework in place in order to support the development of the HFC industry.