Hydrogen – the energy carrier of the energy transition

EXPANSION OF RENEWABLE ENERGIES THANKS TO HYDROGEN

Today, around 85% of the final energy consumption in Europe is based on fossil fuels. To cope with the energy turnaround, very large amounts of energy have to be produced in a renewable way.

Green hydrogen needs renewable electricity as a basis. The development of hydrogen production plants will create the necessary security to make large investments in renewable energy plants such as offshore wind farms.

Hydrogen will therefore become the trigger and promoter of renewable energy production throughout Europe.

European final energy consumption (2017)
Source: IEA, Data & Statistics 2017

HYDROGEN AS A TRANSPORT AND STORAGE MEDIUM

Energy is usually not needed where it is produced and must therefore be transported and, if necessary, temporarily stored. Today, around 75% of the final energy required in Europe is transported in the form offossil fuels. At over 50%, oil and gas account for the largest share. The large natural gas storage facilities in Europe can cover the entire European energy consumption for months and act as a powerful buffer between production and consumption.

With the disappearance of these established energy sources, not only must the energy itself be provided elsewhere, also the transport of the energy to the consumer must be solved, as well as the storage of the energy. Hydrogen, unlike electricity, is well suited for storing energy and can be transported either in mobile storage containers or, like natural gas, via pipelines.

To effectively enable the storage and transportation of renewably produced energy, hydrogen must be deployed on a large scale.

Possible mode of energy transport in Europe 2050
Source: H2 Energy

DECARBONISATION OF VARIOUS SECTORS

Currently, the hydrogen cycle is focused on consumers in the road transport sector. These account for around 1/4 of the European energy consumption.

To decarbonize other sectors, H2 Energy is actively engaged in the development of further hydrogen applications. The goal is to decarbonize parts of the building sector, shipping, parts of industry and others with the help of hydrogen.