Five hydrogen industry associations from around the world have today called on COP26 participating nations for clarity on policy to support investment in hydrogen and unlock new collaborations for action on hydrogen to support net-zero targets.
Hydrogen is an essential element in emissions-cutting plans and decarbonising economies. Hydrogen has the potential to address the far-reaching climate change goals that have been hard to materialise; it can decarbonise multiple sectors as it can fuel transport, heat homes and power heavy industry.
Hydrogen provides the versatility required by future energy systems in a carbon constrained world as it supports efficient long-term energy storage. It also has the unique ability to be shipped and traded globally as a zero-carbon fuel, in both liquefied form and in chemical variants (such as ammonia).
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Seventy-five countries representing over half the world’s GDP have net-zero carbon ambitions and more than 30 have hydrogen-specific strategies, but significant policy commitments and investment is still required to get the global hydrogen industry to scale.
Australian Hydrogen Council CEO Dr Fiona Simon said, “With the world moving to net zero, we have no choice but to consider all potential approaches to reducing our impact on the environment. We know that hydrogen has a crucial role to play in our future energy mix and now is the time to cement our commitments into policy and regulation. We look forward to working with our global counterparts to accelerate a global hydrogen certification scheme to get the hydrogen export market off the ground.”
H2KOREA chairman Jaedo Moon said, “In order to overcome the global environmental crisis, we should transit to a hydrogen economy faster than now with the goal of realising net zero. As it is important to establish a global hydrogen supply chain, international standardisation, and trade rules in addition to technological development in preparation for it, we are widely open for global cooperation.”
Renewable Hydrogen Alliance executive director Michelle Detwiler said, “Here in the US, federal and state policymakers are finally starting to take hydrogen seriously as a pathway to economy wide decarbonisation and we will benefit greatly from the lessons learned and best practices of other countries using clean hydrogen to reduce GHG emissions and tackle climate change. Increased collaboration, climate policy mandates and investment are key to moving forward together to build the global clean hydrogen economy.
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Colorado Hydrogen Networks director of operations Brian DeBruine said, “One often overlooked essential in developing the hydrogen ecosystem is demand—developing hydrogen supply is not enough. But throughout the world, support is needed to help develop demand.”
Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association CEO Mark Kirby said, “Clean hydrogen is a key pillar to national and international net-zero targets: the faster we raise production, the sooner a global net zero can come into place. The Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association encourages COP26 participating nations to use all means—from incentives to mandates—to help clean hydrogen scale quickly and benefit from the jobs and investment the emerging industry will bring. We look forward to working with governments and global counterparts to scale this climate solution, and swiftly.”
Participating organisations calling for action at COP26 include the Australian Hydrogen Council, H2KOREA, Renewable Hydrogen Alliance, Colorado Hydrogen Network, Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association.
