Green hydrogen's secret fortune: What's propelling new wealth creation in renewable economy

ESSENTIAL TO LIFE: Hydrogen is super-abundant in the universe. It is essential to life. It is “renewable”, in the sense that it's virtually unlimited. It powers our sun, which converts hundreds of million tons of hydrogen into helium every second, which energises life on earth. The hydrogen in the sun's core will not run out in the next 5 to 6 billion years. And down here below, the drive towards “green hydrogen” has sparked immense enthusiasm, fuelled by the significant strides and momentum built at COP28, which reflects a shared commitment to creating a sustainable future.

MIRACLE FUEL: This miraculous fuel is used to refine oil, manufacture steel and fertilisers. It has the potential to power electrical grids, run factories, heat homes and propel vehicles when combined with a fuel cell.

SWISS-ARMY KNIFE OF ENERGY: Hydrogen can theoretically be used for a variety of purposes. How abundant? Two hydrogen atoms are attached to one oxygen atom to make water. Both these elements make our planet habitable. Hydrogen can fuel trucks and aircraft, drive industrial processes, and light up cities with electricity, all while emitting only minimal traces of harmless vapour.

GREEN ECONOMY: The global hydrogen market size is expected to reach $410.6 billion by 2030, a study by MarketsandMarkets. Numerous companies have pledged to significantly scale up their production of green hydrogen in the next decade. This involves utilizing solar or wind energy to fuel electrolysers, which in turn separate water into its elemental components—hydrogen and oxygen. The overarching expectation is that the continued momentum in renewable energy advancement will lead to a substantial increase in renewable energy availability and a notable reduction in the cost of power generated from green sources.

HOW ELECTROLYSERS WORK: In a nutshell, all electrolysers works by passing an electric current through H2O — water — via electrodes. This current then divides the water into its elemental components, hydrogen and oxygen. This entire process consumes energy. Ideally, if the process were 100 per cent efficient, all the energy input would be dedicated solely to water splitting.

EFFICIENCY GAINS THROUGH RESEARCH:Traditional electrolysers have, until now, generated considerable heat due to electrical resistance, similar to an electric heater at home. This heat is wasted energy; it also necessitates additional energy for cooling. Electrolysers typically require substantial cooling efforts — consuming even more energy. Therefore, reducing resistance not only increases the available energy for water splitting but also minimizes heat generation, subsequently lowering the demand for cooling.

REDEFINING ELECTROLYSER ECONOMICS: Australian startup Hysata claims it has developed a completely new type of electrolyser, featuring the world’s most efficient electrolysis cell, coupled with a simplified balance of plant, and underpinned by a design approach focused on mass manufacturability for GW-scale deployments.

"95% EFFICIENT ELECTROLYSER”: Its potentially disruptive, world-leading 95 per cent efficiency has been recognised via publication in top-tier journal Nature Communications. It is also already ahead of IRENA’s 2050 electrolyser efficiency target. The Hysata engineers, including electrolyser industry veterans, have been designing and scaling up their novel electrolyser systems. Backed by leading global investors, Hysata is moving rapidly towards manufacturing at the multi-gigawatt scale needed to address climate change. Hysata is building their first commercial-scale hydrogen electrolyser in their new manufacturing facility in Port Kembla, New South Wales, Australia.

LEVERAGING SURPLUS RENEWABLES: Leveraging surplus renewables, sourced from floating wind turbines or solar farms, is expected to bring down the cost of renewable-powered electrolysis below that of alternative methods for hydrogen production. This, in turn, is anticipated to facilitate a swift worldwide increase in the production of green hydrogen. Nevertheless, while industry analysts can discern a plausible route to enhanced hydrogen supply. Demand may not look rock solid by hydrogen has always been used in fertilisers and oil refineries.

WHAT IS GREEN HYDROGEN? Green hydrogen is emerging as the hero in the grand narrative of solving climate-related energy crises. Green hydrogen, produced using renewables such as solar, wind and hydro electric power, generates less than 1 kg of CO2 emitted to the environment for every 1kg of hydrogen produced. An employee walks away from solar panels near a hydrogen plant at Oil India Limited in Jorhat, India, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. (AP)

JOINT CLIMATE ACTION: The international community has agreed to unite to pursue joint climate action. This includes harnessing hydrogen. The excitement surrounding COP28 underscores the urgency and importance of working together in addressing the pressing issues of the current generation.

GREY VS BLUE VS GREEN HYDROGEN: “Grey” hydrogen involves the production hydrogen using fossil fuel — which generate around 12 kg of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere for every 1kg of hydrogen produced. “Blue” hydrogen, which combines this process with carbon capture, emits 3kg to 5 kg of CO2 per kg of hydrogen.

SOLUTION TO DECARBONISATION: Green hydrogen is being touted around the world as a clean energy solution to take the carbon out of high-emitting sectors like transport and industrial manufacturing. It’s considered “green” hydrogen when the energy used to produce it is renewable, like solar, water or wind energy.

HARNESSING HYDROGEN: A number of companies — including the majors like Linde, Iberdrola, Masdar, BP, Plug Power, Hydrogenics, Enel, Sinopec, FuelCell Energy, Adani Green, Bloom Energy — are developing a series of projects for the production of green hydrogen by installing electrolysers powered by renewable energy and located near consumption sites — supplying green hydrogen to customers, while minimising the need for transport infrastructure, while to the stability of the electric power system.

GREEN HYDROGEN PROJECTS: Several green hydrogen projects had been announced during the on-going COP28. In a groundbreaking move, BEEAH, based in Sharjah, UAE, has inked a deal to establish the globe's inaugural commercial-scale water-to-hydrogen plant in Sharjah. This initiative unfolds through a joint development agreement with Chinook Hydrogen, a UK pioneer in waste-to-fuel technologies, and Air Water Gas Solutions, an industrial gas company based in the US and a subsidiary of Air Water Inc., a prominent Japanese conglomerate, using the state-of-the-art technologies in industrial gases. The collaboration marks a significant leap forward in the pursuit of sustainable hydrogen production, setting the stage for pioneering advancements in environmental stewardship and technological innovation.

HYDROGEN USED IN OIL INDUSTRY: An officer checks part of a hydrogen plant at Oil India Ltd in Jorhat, India in this file photo taken on August 17, 2023. In the oil industry, hydrogen is most commonly used in petroleum refining as well as fertiliser production. The clean-burning gas is forecast to play a central role in reducing the carbon footprint of heavy industries such as steel and chemicals. Currently, most hydrogen production requires the use of fossil fuels. This won’t be the case for long.

RENEWABLE ENERGY FOR HYDROGEN PRODUCTION: Renewable energy production from wind (such as this onE in Rizal, outside Manila, Philippines), hydro electric and solar power is being scaled up across the world. Excess green power could be used to produce hydrogen through electrolysis.

UPSIDES OF GREEN HYDROGEN: Hydrogen harvested via electrolysis — splitting water — could be well on its way to becoming very practical for many industries. The electrolysis of water is usually done in special electrochemical cells powered by electricity produced from renewable sources. The biggest upside of hydrogen as a fuel: it is non-toxic.

INDIA’S ROLE: India seeks to transition from being a net importer of fossil fuel, valued at Rs7 trillion ($84 billion) annually, to a green hydrogen net producer. One study shows the subcontinent would need around 38 GW of renewable energy (at an average capacity utilisation factor of 21 per cent at a total footprint of 1,824 km², or 0.06% of India’s total land area of 3.287 million km²) to meet demand for green hydrogen. This is estimated to curb a total of 42,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. Indian company Avaada is developing state-of-the-art electrolyser manufacturing capacity to cater to the increased global demand.

CHINA LEADS IN ELECTROLYSERS CAPACITY: According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China leads both in terms of electrolysers capacity, with a cumulated capacity of almost 220 MW in 2022 and 750 MW under construction to be online in 2023, and manufacturing capacity for electrolysers, accounting for 40 per cent of global capacity today.

USE CASES FOR HYDROGEN: At present, over 90 per cent of global hydrogen finds application in three predominant industrial sectors: reducing sulfur levels in diesel through refining processes, generating methanol for fuel blending, and manufacturing ammonia for use in fertilizers and chemicals. This is about to change. DNV, a risk assurance firm, has outlined the prospective expansion of hydrogen usage across different regions and industries until the year 2050. The firm has identified and emphasised 15 potential use cases anticipated to gain prominence by the middle of the century.

MARKET: Currently, it is difficult to assess the most likely major applications of hydrogen, though prices are expected to go down with production ramp in many parts of the world. Currently, many firms which are considered as viable potential users of green hydrogen currently use very little or none of it. But given the hefty investments to retool power systems to run effectively off hydrogen, the “tipping point” may not be far off.