Europe is pinning its green hopes on hydrogen in a plan that sees hundreds of billions euros in investment flowing into the clean technology and fueling a climate-friendly economic recovery. The goal is to increase sixfold the capacity to produce renewable hydrogen by 2024, driving down the costs of the fuel. The market for hydrogen has the potential to create thousands of jobs and could all but eliminate emissions from industry and transport, according to a roadmap adopted by the European Commission on Wednesday.
“What you need for hydrogen to be a successful energy source and storage facility in the future: you need the production to be within the price range, you need transport and storage facilities and you need the market,” said Frans Timmermans, executive vice president of the European Union’s executive arm. “With our strategy we want to stimulate all three.”
The Commission’s president, Ursula Von Der Leyen, wants the EU to build its economic rescue plan around the Green Deal strategy that aims for a stricter 2030 emission-reduction target and eliminating net greenhouse gas discharges by 2050. European heads of government are due to hold a second round of talks on a jointly-financed recovery package on July 17-18 in Brussels.
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Currently, hydrogen accounts for less than 1% of Europe’s energy consumption and is mainly used as feedstock in the chemical sector. The viability of the clean technology is improving, as the cost of renewable energy keeps falling, the price on carbon is nearing record highs and the sense of climate urgency is increasing.