Hydrogen is recognised as the fuel of the future that will revolutionise many areas of life, just as fossil fuels, oil and natural gas have done in the past. It is intended to contribute to combating climate change and to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from environmentally problematic economic sectors. However, countries investing in hydrogen technology are not only concerned with ecology. The spread of hydrogen is intended to make it possible to become independent of fossil fuel imports and to ensure energy security.

What is its secret? Hydrogen is a very efficient fuel as a lot of energy can be extracted from a small amount. Therefore, many industry experts see hydrogen as an opportunity to replace conventional fuels in energy-intensive sectors that will face difficult and costly decarbonisation in the coming years. These include long-distance transport, heavy industry (e.g. metallurgy), heating, and long-term energy storage generated from renewable energy sources (RES). For example: the surplus energy produced by wind farms at night, when energy demand is lower, can be stored as hydrogen, then transmitted as a 9-to-1 mixture with natural gas. 

Hydrogen here and now...

However, this is still a distant vision. Currently, in Europe, hydrogen accounts for less than 2% of energy and is primarily used to produce, for example, plastics and fertilisers. Moreover, most hydrogen is produced by coal converting (regasification) and by natural gas steam reforming, during which, among other things, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere anyway. Hydrogen obtained in this way is called ‘grey’. Less carbon-intensive is the production of blue hydrogen, extracted from natural gas using CCS (carbon capture and storage). It accounts for as much as 96% of hydrogen in the EU, resulting in high CO2 emissions. There is also a method of extracting hydrogen using methane pyrolysis, which produces hydrogen known as turquoise. 

However, the overriding aim is still to obtain this element in a non-emitting manner, i.e. by electrolysis – the decomposition of water into oxygen and hydrogen using electricity from renewable sources. No harmful compounds are then released into the atmosphere, which is why such hydrogen is called ‘green’. At present, however, it accounts for a small percentage of all hydrogen produced, but ultimately it is to be the only type of hydrogen produced in Europe. 

Ambitious strategies for the future

Brussels has already taken the first steps to bring the EU closer to this dream reality. On 8 July 2020, the European Commission adopted the Hydrogen Strategy, according to which the development of hydrogen production and wider industrial use is to be one element in the move towards a Green Deal. The EU strategy calls for the total share of hydrogen in the energy mix to rise to around 13-14% in 2050. 

Poland’s road to the hydrogen future

The Polish government also has similar plans, recognising hydrogen as a critical element in the energy transition. The Ministry of Climate and Environment is already working on a national hydrogen strategy. This legislation needs to be accelerated. Today there is no legal framework for the development of this technology. Although hydrogen issues are included in the Act on Electromobility and Alternative Fuels, the main focus of this document is on developing the electric vehicle sector. It should also be remembered that hydrogen is ultimately to be used in many other areas of the economy, not just transport. Therefore, a comprehensive approach and a broader view is needed, which also considers the government’s long-range plans relating to the energy transition, the development of renewable energy sources and, among other things, plans to build offshore wind farms. 

The development of such legislation will be essential to utilise the large research, scientific and technological potential that we already have in Poland. It would help to put hydrogen development on a different track. After all, Poland is already the third-largest producer of hydrogen in Europe. The trouble is that it is used primarily for industrial production, for example for fertilisers. And this is not green hydrogen but grey and blue hydrogen, which cannot just be used to power vehicles as it must first be purified to make it suitable for use in propulsion systems. Meanwhile, facilities supplying pure hydrogen are still under construction – the first PKN Orlen investment is to be launched in Trzebinia.

Hydrogen instead of petrol

A special role is attributed to hydrogen in transport. Electric vehicles, in which the highest hopes were placed until a few years ago, cannot be relied on in all cases. However, experience to date with such propulsion systems shows that electric vehicles do not pass the test in all situations, e.g., long road journeys and high vehicle weights (e.g. trucks). Attention was therefore diverted to hydrogen engines. The advantages of a vehicle using it are, besides zero-emissions naturally, its long-range and short refuelling times. 

The Polish government also recognises this trend. The Ministry of Climate and Environment plans to make the use of hydrogen as an alternative fuel in transport one of the objectives of the draft Polish Hydrogen Strategy until 2030 with a perspective to 2040. It estimates that within the next 10 years, it will be possible to start operating 2000 zero-emission hydrogen buses produced in Poland and develop refuelling stations and installations to purify hydrogen to the 99.999% purity standard. 

Although the Polish strategy has not yet been announced, more local authorities willing to base part of their transport on hydrogen vehicles are signing letters of intent with energy companies. However, at present, not a single hydrogen refuelling station is ready in the country (Lotos is currently building stations in Gdańsk and Warsaw), but only one hydrogen car has been registered. Admittedly, hydrogen buses are already being manufactured in Poland (Solaris), but they are currently being exported to other countries that are already implementing hydrogen transport (Sweden, Germany). 

Greening the railways and ... drones?

The Ministry is focusing on wheeled transport in its plans and evaluating the possibility of using hydrogen for other types of transport. It considers supporting work to bring into service the first hydrogen-powered passenger trains and freight locomotives to gradually replace their diesel counterparts on hard-to-electrify routes. 

Wider use of hydrogen may be envisaged in unmanned aerial transport. Such vehicles constitute a new route for specialised (small) transport services. The Ministry sees potential for their use in large agglomerations but also as logistical support in other sectors of the economy. 

Hydrogen for energy storage

The use of hydrogen as a fuel for transport is not the Ministry’s only plans. Its role is to be much greater and to increase Poland’s energy security. In fact, the Ministry is planning to use hydrogen as energy storage to support an energy system based on RES. Developing the use of low-carbon hydrogen technologies in the energy sector can serve to decarbonise the energy sector and diversify the structure of energy production. 

The Ministry points out that the installations enabling the conversion of electricity into hydrogen would make it possible to manage the surplus of energy coming from RES (whose share in net electricity production, according to the draft Polish Energy Policy until 2040, will reach at least 32% in 2030) and planned nuclear power plants, thanks to which hydrogen could play the role of a specific energy store. “The use of electrolysers (in P2H/P2G/P2L/P2A/P2X systems) would allow for the integration of a gas system with the power grid, and this would reduce the dependence of the Polish economy on fossil fuels and their imports,” the government argues.

Ecology and modernity are still too expensive

The biggest challenge facing all the major players in the hydrogen market is overcoming the price barrier associated with producing this fuel. It is costly to produce the most desirable green hydrogen. It is more than three times more expensive than grey hydrogen, and although its cost has been falling regularly (by more than half in the last decade), it is still around USD 6 per kilogram. It is forecast that there could be further, more significant decreases by 2030 due to improvements in technology and the development of RES so that its price could become competitive with other types of hydrogen.

Why are the costs so high? These are due to the technical considerations of the entire hydrogen production process and its storage. Hydrogen fuel must meet high purity parameters. Also problematic and expensive is the refuelling station, which requires suitable tanks. It is estimated that the cost of one is no less than PLN 4 million. 

State support required

Hydrogen technology is being developed in various models around the world. Germany wants to be the leader of the hydrogen revolution. The technology needed is being intensively developed with a large amount of public funding. The German government has held a competition for scientific and industrial projects that will allow, among other things, the production of hydrogen using energy from renewable sources. The national strategy adopted in 2020 recognises green hydrogen as the only solution in the long term, so its production will be supported. Support is to consist, for example, of exempting electrolyser operators from the RES fee. The strategy involves replacing fossil fuels with hydrogen, primarily in industry and heavy-duty transport. Government support in this area includes, for example, compensating companies for losses resulting from the use of hydrogen instead of coal in certain sectors. Transport is also to be supported through, among other things, subsidies for the purchase of hydrogen vehicles. 

Japan, also planning to become a world leader in this field, is compelled to develop this technology. Due to the lack of raw materials, it has to import more than 90 per cent of the energy used in the country. In 2017, a national strategy was adopted that primarily aims to decarbonise the economy, making Japan less dependent on fossil fuels for energy independence. Major national corporations, led by Toyota, are involved in the transformation. Within the established Hydrogen Utilisation Study Group, they are investigating the potential for large-scale use of hydrogen in transport and industry. 

Also in the USA, hydrogen technology’s development is taking place with financial support from the Department of Energy. The Americans are planning to produce hydrogen using atomic energy. 

Author: TOGETAIR Editors