At Hazardex Live! 2023, James Steven from DNV will look at the hazards surrounding hydrogen and try to align understandings and revaluate previous assumptions about the implementation of DSEAR and UKEX.

Although volume use of hydrogen is a relatively new/emerging approach, the legislation and practices which cover the supply and use of products for potentially explosive atmospheres remains unchanged. For many, hydrogen is seen as a new area and as it differs from natural gasses it is understandable how these differences can make stakeholders uneasy.

The session will look to discuss some of the specific hazards around ignition prevention (electrical and non-electrical) when working in a hydrogen environment and how these differ from natural gas.

It will also provide details on how the introduction of UKCA and the implementation of DSEAR/UK Ex for UK products and applications interfaces with previous understanding of ATEX and what to be aware of to ensure continued compliance.

As the industry prepares for wider use of hydrogen, it is a good opportunity to align understandings and revaluate previous assumptions.  The session will also provide suggestions on blending ‘the way it is done’ with some of the current standards/expectations to ensure justifiable levels of safety can be maintained.

We will also provide a brief overview of the standardisation and joint industry projects underway supported/coordinated by DNV to support the global hydrogen industry.

James Steven

James Steven is an electrical and electronic engineer with over 20 years’ experience of dealing with hazardous environments and applications. Having worked across the consumer, maritime, oil & gas and nuclear industries has provided a wide range of experience being able to draw upon the best practices across these sectors. He now holds the role of Business Development & Growth Manager at DNV UK Ltd where he leads the Business Development and New Service/Application Development for the supply chain markets.  He has been key in extending DNV’s Hazardous area Services to the UK.