Hydrogen has emerged as an important part of the clean energy mix needed to ensure a sustainable future. Falling costs for hydrogen produced with renewable energy, combined with the urgency of cutting greenhouse-gas emissions, has given clean hydrogen unprecedented political and business momentum.
This report is also available in Japanese (日本語).
This paper from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) examines the potential of hydrogen fuel for hard-to-decarbonise energy uses, including energy-intensive industries, trucks, aviation, shipping and heating applications. But the decarbonisation impact depends on how hydrogen is produced. Current and future sourcing options can be divided into grey (fossil fuel-based), blue (fossil fuel-based production with carbon capture, utilisation and storage) and green (renewables-based) hydrogen. Green hydrogen produced through renewable-powered electrolysis is projected to grow rapidly in the coming years.
Among other findings: