The University of South-Eastern Norway, (USN) and IA HySafe
invite you to the unique

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON HYDROGEN SAFETY 2027

September 28-30, 2027 – Oslo – Norway

With the endorsement of: TBD

About ICHS 2027

This twelfth International Conference on Hydrogen Safety (ICHS2027) will be held in Oslo, Norway, in 2027 under the auspices of the International Association for Hydrogen Safety (IA HySafe). [Venue and exact dates to be confirmed.]

The biennial ICHS conferences held since 2005 have attracted experts from all over the world, providing an open platform for the presentation and discussion of new findings, information and data on hydrogen safety – from basic research to applied development, and from good practice to standardisation and regulatory issues. Hydrogen is now playing an increasingly central role in the transition to clean, safe and sustainable energy systems. ICHS2027 will address industrial heat and feedstocks, commercial and domestic heat, energy storage and energy transportation, maritime applications, and decarbonised clean transport throughout regions and across continents.

The overarching themes for ICHS2027 span a wide range of hydrogen safety topics including: safety of large-scale production and supply chain infrastructure; hydrogen and hydrogen carrier (including ammonia and liquid hydrogen) behaviours; physical effects, consequence and risk analysis; incidents, accidents and near misses; hydrogen effects on materials and components; safety of energy storage; power-to-gas / gas-to-power related safety issues; safety solutions for the implementation of hydrogen technologies; risk management; best practices; regulations, codes and standards; as well as communication strategies for wider public awareness and acceptance of hydrogen. This year for the first time we also invite interest in abstracts that look to deal with the use of AI and its impact on hydrogen safety.

All contributions to ICHS2027 will be evaluated for their scientific content and their relevance to the wider uptake and deployment of hydrogen as part of the safe transition to a low-carbon energy system.

Why Norway

Norway is a fitting host for the International Conference on Hydrogen Safety. The country combines an ambitious national decarbonisation agenda, a deep industrial heritage in energy and the maritime sector, and a leading hydrogen safety research community.

Through its national hydrogen strategy and roadmap, Norway has positioned hydrogen and ammonia as central pillars of its transition to a low-emission society, supporting its legislated target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 90–95 per cent by 2050 relative to 1990. The strategy takes a technology-neutral approach to both renewable hydrogen from electrolysis and low-carbon hydrogen produced from natural gas with carbon capture and storage, prioritising the sectors where Norway has competitive advantage: energy-intensive industry, and maritime and heavy transport.

Norway is also among the global frontrunners in real-world deployment, and therefore in the operational safety challenges that accompany it. The MF Hydra, which entered service in 2023, was the world’s first liquid-hydrogen-powered ferry, and Norway is now building what are expected to be the world’s largest hydrogen-powered ferries for the demanding open-water crossing between Bodø and the Lofoten Islands. Successive funding rounds from the state enterprise Enova continue to support pioneering hydrogen and ammonia vessels, bunkering infrastructure and coastal production projects. This first-mover experience makes Norway an exceptionally relevant setting in which to examine the safety of liquid hydrogen, ammonia as a hydrogen carrier, and large-scale infrastructure under real operating conditions.

Underpinning this is one of the world’s strongest hydrogen safety research communities. Norway hosts HYDROGENi, a national Centre for Environment-friendly Energy Research coordinated by SINTEF with NTNU, IFE and more than fifty industrial partners, alongside dedicated safety programmes such as SH2IFT and SH2IFT-2 involving Gexcon, RISE Fire Research and international partners including the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology.

We invite researchers, engineers, regulators, industry practitioners and policymakers from right across the world to contribute to ICHS2027 in Oslo, and to help shape the safe global deployment of hydrogen.