Overview

The National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebooks are a joint project of the Commonwealth, state and territory energy and climate change ministers. This project has completed public consultation on two guidebooks of an anticipated series of four, this includes:

  • National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Production Facilities

  • National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Refuelling Facilities.

Current consultation on the National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Pipelines is the third guidebook in this series and covers the regulatory guidance for operation of hydrogen pipelines in Australia.

The National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Pipelines, aims to:

  • Provide industry participants with a basic level of knowledge, regarding the properties of hydrogen, as well as an overview of hydrogen pipelines, hazards and associated mitigations.

  • Identify existing regulatory obligations at the Commonwealth, state and territory level for hydrogen pipelines.

  • Provides guidance on satisfying regulatory obligations, in respect of hydrogen pipelines.

Given this, we seek your feedback on whether the National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Hydrogen Pipeline, is:

  • Accurate and correct

  • Comprehensive

  • Useable

Have your say

To have your say:

  • Download the ‘National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Pipelines’, including annexures 1, 2, 3 and 4.

  • Provide your feedback through either, or both of the following:

    • Make track-changes or comments in the Pipelines Guidebook, and / or associated annexures, and / or

    • Upload your own submission.

Submit your feedback by 5.00pm AEST, Monday, 13 April 2026.

Consultation documents

Review of the National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Pipelines Documents to include:

Previous consultations

The ‘National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook’ project has undergone several public consultations on how core legislative regimes, which apply to all manufacturing enterprises, interacts with and regulates hydrogen facilities and hydrogen industry.

 These public consultation processes included: 

  • Initial regulatory review consultation, November 2022.

  • National Hydrogen Codes of Best Practice Co-design workshops, October 2023.

Through these consultations on the core legislation, the department then developed and conducted detailed public consultation on guidance materials which were developed for specific subject areas. These are the National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebooks, specifically:

  • November 2024 - Technical and regulatory mapping underpinning the National Codes of Best Practice: Hydrogen Production and Refuelling.

  • July 2025 - Public consultation on the:

    • National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Production Facilities

    • National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Refuelling Facilities 

It is noted that these public consultations have been supplemented with multiple internal government consultation processes involving all applicable Commonwealth, state and territory regulators and departments. 

Please note, the anticipated hydrogen regulatory guidance material changed their title from ‘National Hydrogen Codes of Best Practice’ to ‘National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebooks’ in 2025. This change of title was made to more appropriately reflect the purpose and nature of the final documents.

Details and the documents released as part of these consultation processes and include:

National Hydrogen Regulatory Review – Public Consultation on National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebooks, July 2025

In July 2025 public consultation was conducted on drafts of the first two National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebooks, specifically the:

  • National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Production Facilities

  • National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Refuelling Facilities

Stakeholders were requested to evaluate the accuracy, comprehensiveness, and usability of these drafts.

National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Production Facility

National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Refuelling Facility

Technical and regulatory mapping underpinning the National Codes of Best Practice: Hydrogen Production and Refuelling, November 2024.

In November 2024 public consultation on the scope and contents of the National Codes of Best Practice Hydrogen Production and Refuelling (as they were then known) were completed. This consultation process included:

National Hydrogen Codes of Best Practice Co–design workshop materials – October - November 2023

The early stages of development of the National Hydrogen Codes of Best Practice (as they were then known) commenced with co-design workshops, attended by both industry participants and regulators. These workshops were hosted through a number of face-to-face and online sessions between October and November 2023.

1st phase review consultation of National Hydrogen Regulatory Review - December 2022

The first phase of the National Hydrogen Regulatory Review was conducted during 2022, culminating in industry and regulator consultations in December 2022. The outcomes of these consultations informed the identification of priority reform measures, including the drafting of the National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebooks.

Current stage (Stage 5)

  • Stage 5 (Current Stage)
    current

    Public Consultation on the National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Pipelines
    2 March to 13 April 2026

Previous stages

  • Stage 1 (previous stage)
    closed

    Initial regulatory review consultation

    8-18 November 2022

  • Stage 2 (previous stage)
    closed

    Co-design workshops on the National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebooks
    12-26 October 2023

  • Stage 3 (previous stage)
    closed

    Consultation on technical and regulatory mapping underpinning the National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebooks
    11 November - 8 December 2024

  • Stage 4 (previous stage):
    closed

    Public Consultation on the:
    - National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Hydrogen Production   
    - National Hydrogen Regulatory Guidebook: Hydrogen Refuelling

    23 July 2025 - 2 September 2025

Contact
National Hydrogen Regulatory Review
nationalhydrogenregulatoryreview@dcceew.gov.au