Green hydrogen (GH2 or GH₂) is

hydrogen Hydrogen is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol H and atomic number 1. It is the lightest and abundance of the chemical elements, most abundant chemical element in the universe, constituting about 75% of all baryon, normal matter ...

produced by the

electrolysis of water Electrolysis of water is using electricity to Water splitting, split water into oxygen () and hydrogen () gas by electrolysis. Hydrogen gas released in this way can be used as hydrogen fuel, but must be kept apart from the oxygen as the mixture ...

, using renewable electricity. Production of green hydrogen causes significantly lower

greenhouse gas emissions Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from human activities intensify the greenhouse effect. This contributes to climate change. Carbon dioxide (), from burning fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, oil, and natural gas, is the main cause of climate chan ...

than production of grey hydrogen, which is derived from

fossil fuels A fossil fuel is a flammable carbon compound- or hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the buried remains of prehistoric organisms (animals, plants or microplanktons), a process that occurs within geologica ...

without carbon capture. Green hydrogen's principal purpose is to help limit

global warming Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes ...

to 1.5 °C, reduce fossil fuel dependence by replacing grey hydrogen, and provide for an expanded set of end-uses in specific economic sectors, sub-sectors and activities. These end-uses may be technically difficult to decarbonize through other means such as

electrification Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. In the context of history of technology and economic development, electrification refe ...

with renewable power. Its main applications are likely to be in heavy industry (e.g. high temperature processes alongside electricity, feedstock for production of green ammonia and organic chemicals, as

direct reduction read online, part I, pp. 240; 250-254; 257. (capacity 650,000 t/year).(fr) Adolf Ledebur (trans. Barbary de Langlade revised and annotated by F. Valton), ''Manuel théorique et pratique de la métallurgie du fer, Tome I et Tome II'', t. 2, Librairie ...

steelmaking), shipping, and long-term energy storage. As of 2021, green hydrogen accounted for less than 0.04% of total hydrogen production. Its cost relative to hydrogen derived from fossil fuels is the main reason green hydrogen is in less demand. For example, hydrogen produced by electrolysis powered by

solar power Solar power, also known as solar electricity, is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Solar panels use the photovoltaic effect to c ...

was about 25 times more expensive than that derived from hydrocarbons in 2018. By 2024, this cost disadvantage had decreased to approximately 3x more expensive.

Definition

Most commonly, ''green hydrogen'' is defined as hydrogen produced by the

, using renewable electricity. In this article, the term ''green hydrogen'' is used with this meaning. Precise definitions sometimes add other criteria. The global Green Hydrogen Standard defines green hydrogen as "hydrogen produced through the electrolysis of water with 100% or near 100% renewable energy with close to zero greenhouse gas emissions." A broader, less-used definition of ''green hydrogen'' also includes hydrogen produced through various other methods that produce relatively low emissions and meet other sustainability criteria. For example, these production methods may involve nuclear energy or

biomass Biomass is a term used in several contexts: in the context of ecology it means living organisms, and in the context of bioenergy it means matter from recently living (but now dead) organisms. In the latter context, there are variations in how ...

feedstocks.

Electrolysis

Hydrogen can be produced from water by

electrolysis In chemistry and manufacturing, electrolysis is a technique that uses Direct current, direct electric current (DC) to drive an otherwise non-spontaneous chemical reaction. Electrolysis is commercially important as a stage in the separation of c ...

. Electrolysis powered by renewable energy is

carbon neutral Global net-zero emissions is reached when greenhouse gas emissions and Greenhouse gas removal, removals due to human activities are in balance. It is often called simply net zero. ''Emissions'' can refer to all greenhouse gases or only carbon diox ...

. The business consortium Hydrogen Council said that, as of December 2023, manufacturers are preparing for a green hydrogen expansion by building out the electrolyzer pipeline by 35 percent to meet the needs of more than 1,400 announced projects.

Biochar-assisted

Biochar Biochar is a form of charcoal, sometimes modified, that is intended for organic use, as in soil. It is the lightweight black remnants remaining after the pyrolysis of biomass, consisting of carbon and ashes. Despite its name, biochar is steril ...

-assisted water electrolysis (BAWE) reduces energy consumption by replacing the

oxygen evolution Oxygen evolution is the chemical process of generating diatomic oxygen (O2) by a chemical reaction, usually from water, the most abundant oxide compound in the universe. Oxygen evolution on Earth is effected by biotic oxygenic photosynthesis, pho ...

reaction (OER) with the biochar oxidation reaction (BOR). An electrolyte dissolves the biochar as the reaction proceeds. A 2024 study claimed that the reaction was 6x more efficient than conventional electrolysis, operating at <1 V, without production using ~250 mA/gcat current at 100% Faradaic efficiency. The process could be driven by small-scale solar or wind power. Cow manure biochar operated at only 0.5 V, better than materials such as sugarcane husks, hemp waste, and paper waste. Almost 35% of the biochar and solar energy was converted into hydrogen. Biochar production (via

pyrolysis Pyrolysis is a process involving the Bond cleavage, separation of covalent bonds in organic matter by thermal decomposition within an Chemically inert, inert environment without oxygen. Etymology The word ''pyrolysis'' is coined from the Gree ...

) is not carbon neutral.

Uses

IRENA maturity of hydrogen solutions 2022

There is potential for green hydrogen to play a significant role in decarbonising energy systems where there are challenges and limitations to replacing fossil fuels with direct use of electricity. Hydrogen fuel can produce the intense heat required for industrial production of steel, cement, glass, and chemicals, thus contributing to the decarbonisation of industry alongside other technologies, such as electric arc furnaces for steelmaking. However, it is likely to play a larger role in providing industrial feedstock for cleaner production of ammonia and organic chemicals. For example, in

steelmaking Steelmaking is the process of producing steel from iron ore and/or scrap. Steel has been made for millennia, and was commercialized on a massive scale in the 1850s and 1860s, using the Bessemer process, Bessemer and open hearth furnace, Siemens-M ...

, hydrogen could function as a clean energy carrier and also as a low-carbon catalyst replacing coal-derived coke. Hydrogen used to decarbonise transportation is likely to find its largest applications in shipping, aviation and to a lesser extent heavy goods vehicles, through the use of hydrogen-derived synthetic fuels such as

ammonia Ammonia is an inorganic chemical compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the chemical formula, formula . A Binary compounds of hydrogen, stable binary hydride and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinctive pu ...

and

methanol Methanol (also called methyl alcohol and wood spirit, amongst other names) is an organic chemical compound and the simplest aliphatic Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol, with the chemical formula (a methyl group linked to a hydroxyl group, often ab ...

, and

fuel cell A fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that converts the chemical energy of a fuel (often hydrogen fuel, hydrogen) and an oxidizing agent (often oxygen) into electricity through a pair of redox reactions. Fuel cells are different from most bat ...

technology. As an energy resource, hydrogen has a superior energy density (39.6 kWh/kg) versus batteries (0.15-0.25 kWh/kg for lithium batteries). For light duty vehicles including passenger cars, hydrogen is far behind other alternative fuel vehicles, especially compared with the rate of adoption of

battery electric vehicles A battery electric vehicle (BEV), pure electric vehicle, only-electric vehicle, fully electric vehicle or all-electric vehicle is a type of electric vehicle (EV) that uses electrical energy exclusively from an on-board battery pack to power ...

, and may not play a significant role in future. Green hydrogen can also be used for long-duration

grid energy storage Grid energy storage, also known as large-scale energy storage, are technologies connected to the electrical power grid that store energy for later use. These systems help balance supply and demand by storing excess electricity from variabl ...

, and for long-duration seasonal energy storage. It has been explored as an alternative to batteries for short-duration energy storage.

Green methanol

Green

is a

liquid fuel Liquid fuels are combustible or energy-generating molecules that can be harnessed to create mechanical energy, usually producing kinetic energy; they also must take the shape of their container. It is the fumes of liquid fuels that are flammable ...

that is produced from combining

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalent bond, covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in a gas state at room temperature and at norma ...

and

() under pressure and heat with

catalysts Catalysis () is the increase in reaction rate, rate of a chemical reaction due to an added substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed by the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst ...

. It is a way to reuse carbon capture for recycling. Methanol can store hydrogen economically at standard outdoor temperatures and pressures, compared to

liquid hydrogen Liquid hydrogen () is the liquid state of the element hydrogen. Hydrogen is found naturally in the molecule, molecular H2 form. To exist as a liquid, H2 must be cooled below its critical point (thermodynamics), critical point of 33 Kelvins, ...

and

that need to use a lot of energy to stay cold in their

liquid state Liquid is a state of matter with a definite volume but no fixed shape. Liquids adapt to the shape of their container and are nearly incompressible, maintaining their volume even under pressure. The density of a liquid is usually close to that ...

. In 2023 the Laura Maersk was the first container ship to run on methanol fuel. Ethanol plants in the midwest are a good place for pure carbon capture to combine with hydrogen to make green methanol, with abundant

wind Wind is the natural movement of atmosphere of Earth, air or other gases relative to a planetary surface, planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heatin ...

and

nuclear energy Nuclear energy may refer to: *Nuclear power, the use of sustained nuclear fission or nuclear fusion to generate heat and electricity *Nuclear binding energy, the energy needed to fuse or split a nucleus of an atom *Nuclear potential energy, the pot ...

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, and

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. Mixing methanol with

ethanol Ethanol (also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is an Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol, with its formula also written as , or EtOH, where Et is the ps ...

could make methanol a safer fuel to use because methanol doesn't have a visible flame in the daylight and doesn't emit smoke, and ethanol has a visible light yellow flame. Green hydrogen production of 70% efficiency and a 70% efficiency of methanol production from that would be a 49%

energy conversion efficiency Energy conversion efficiency (''η'') is the ratio between the useful output of an energy conversion machine and the input, in energy terms. The input, as well as the useful output may be chemical, electric power, mechanical work, light (radi ...

Market

As of 2022, the global hydrogen market was valued at $155 billion and was expected to grow at an average ( CAGR) of 9.3% between 2023 and 2030. Of this market, green hydrogen accounted for about $4.2 billion (2.7%). Due to the higher cost of production, green hydrogen represents a smaller fraction of the hydrogen produced compared to its share of market value. The majority of hydrogen produced in 2020 was derived from

fossil fuel A fossil fuel is a flammable carbon compound- or hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the buried remains of prehistoric organisms (animals, plants or microplanktons), a process that occurs within geolog ...

. 99% came from carbon-based sources. Electrolysis-driven production represents less than 0.1% of the total, of which only a part is powered by renewable electricity. The current high cost of production is the main factor limiting the use of green hydrogen. A price of $2/kg is considered by many to be a potential tipping point that would make green hydrogen competitive against grey hydrogen. It is cheapest to produce green hydrogen with surplus renewable power that would otherwise be curtailed, which favours electrolysers capable of responding to low and variable power levels (such as proton exchange membrane electrolysers). The cost of electrolysers fell by 60% from 2010 to 2022, though it rose 50% between 2021 and 2024.Bettenhausen, Craig
"Green hydrogen is still making gains"
''

Chemical and Engineering News ''Chemical & Engineering News'' (''C&EN'') is a weekly news magazine published by the American Chemical Society (ACS), providing professional and technical news and analysis in the fields of chemistry and chemical engineering.hydrogen production costs are forecasted to fall significantly to 2030 and 2050, driving down the cost of green hydrogen alongside the falling cost of renewable power generation.

Goldman Sachs The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City, with regional headquarters in many internationa ...

analysis observed in 2022, just prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine that the "unique dynamic in Europe with historically high gas and carbon prices is already leading to green H₂ cost parity with grey across key parts of the region", and anticipated that globally green hydrogen achieve cost parity with grey hydrogen by 2030, earlier if a global

carbon tax A carbon tax is a tax levied on the carbon emissions from producing goods and services. Carbon taxes are intended to make visible the hidden Social cost of carbon, social costs of carbon emissions. They are designed to reduce greenhouse gas emis ...

were placed on grey hydrogen. As of 2021, the green hydrogen investment pipeline was estimated at 121 gigawatts of electrolyser capacity across 136 projects in planning and development phases, totaling over $500 billion. If all projects in the pipeline were built, they could account for 10% of hydrogen production by 2030. The market could be worth over $1 trillion a year by 2050 according to Goldman Sachs. An energy market analyst suggested in early 2021 that the price of green hydrogen would drop 70% by 2031 in countries that have cheap

renewable energy Renewable energy (also called green energy) is energy made from renewable resource, renewable natural resources that are replenished on a human lifetime, human timescale. The most widely used renewable energy types are solar energy, wind pow ...

. As of late 2024 many of these projects had failed to locate sufficient funding and have been delayed or cancelled.

Projects

Australia

In 2020, the Australian government fast-tracked approval for the world's largest planned renewable energy export facility in the

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, sparsely populated regions of Western Australia, region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Indigenous Australians, Aboriginal people; wealth disparity; its ancient landscapes; the prevailing r ...

region. In 2021, energy companies announced plans to construct a "hydrogen valley" in

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

at a cost of $2 billion to replace the region's coal industry. As of July 2022, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) had invested $88 million in 35 hydrogen projects ranging from university research and development to first-of-a-kind demonstrations. By 2022, ARENA was expected to finalize two or three of Australia's first large-scale electrolyser deployments as part of its $100 million hydrogen deployment round. In 2024 Andrew Forrest delayed or cancelled plans to manufacture 15 million tonnes of green hydrogen per year by 2030. The following projects have been cancelled or "Put on hold" Port Pirie, Whyalla, Gladstone and Hunter. Overall 99% of the announced capacity of projects have not progressed beyond the concept or approval stage. “If we look back we probably reached peak hydrogen hype in 2022 with so many projects announced left and right,” Rystad analyst Nigel Rambhujun said. “A lot of them have since quietly been abandoned.” As of April 2025 there is only 1 active plant remaining under construction, all other large green hydrogen projects have been abandoned. The remaining project, ABEL, seems to have pivoted to green methanol, not hydrogen.

Brazil

Brazil's energy matrix is considered one of the cleanest in the world. Experts highlight the country's potential for producing green hydrogen. Research carried out in the country indicates that biomass (such as starches and waste from sewage treatment plants) can be processed and converted into green hydrogen (see: Bioenergy, Biohydrogen and Biological hydrogen production). The Australian company Fortescue Metals Group has plans to install a green hydrogen plant near the port of Pecém, in Ceará, with an initial forecast of starting operations in 2022. As of Q1 2025 this has not happened. In 2022, the Federal University of Santa Catarina announced a partnership with the German Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, for the production of H2V. Unigel has plans to build a green hydrogen/green ammonia plant in Camaçari, Bahia, which is scheduled to come into operation in 2023. This has not happened as of Q1 2025. Initiatives in this area are also ongoing in the states of Minas Gerais, Paraná, Pernambuco, Piauí, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul and São Paulo. Research work by the University of Campinas and the Technical University of Munich has determined the space required for wind and solar parks for large-scale hydrogen production. According to this, significantly less land will be required to produce green hydrogen from wind and photovoltaic energy than is currently required to grow fuel from sugarcane. In this study, author Herzog assumed an electricity requirement for the electrolysers of 120 gigawatts (GW). On November 20, 2023, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, announced support for the production of 10 GW of hydrogen and subsequently ammonia in the state of Piauí. Ammonia will be exported from there.

Canada

World Energy GH2's Project Nujio'qonik aims to be Canada's first commercial green hydrogen / ammonia producer created from three gigawatts of wind energy on the west coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Nujio'qonik is the Mi'kmaw name for Bay St. George, where the project is proposed. Since June 2022, the project has been undergoing environmental assessment according to regulatory guidelines issued by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. In late 2024 10 projects on the east coast had failed to raise funding, and Prince George on the west coast has been cancelled.

Chile

Chile's goal to use only clean energy by the year 2050 includes the use of green hydrogen. The EU Latin America and Caribbean Investment Facility provided a €16.5 million grant and the EIB and KfW are in the process of providing up to €100 million each to finance green hydrogen projects.

China

In 2022

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

was the leader of the global hydrogen market with an output of 33 million tons (a third of global production), of which more than 99% is made from fossil fuel, releasing CO2. As of 2021, several companies have formed alliances to increase production of the fuel fifty-fold in the next six years In 2021

Sinopec China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation, or Sinopec Group, is a Chinese oil and gas enterprise based in Chaoyang District, Beijing. The SASAC administers China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation for the benefit of State Council of the ...

aimed to generate 500,000 tonnes of green hydrogen by 2025. This has since been downgraded to 120,000 tonnes. Hydrogen generated from wind energy could provide a cost-effective alternative for coal-dependent regions like

Inner Mongolia Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of China. Its border includes two-thirds of the length of China's China–Mongolia border, border with the country of Mongolia. ...

. As part of preparations for the

2022 Winter Olympics The 2022 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXIV Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Beijing 2022 (2022), were an international winter multi-sport event held from 4 to 20 February 2022 in Beijing, China, and surrounding areas wit ...

a hydrogen electrolyser, described as the "world's largest" began operations to fuel vehicles used at the games. The electrolyser was powered by onshore wind.

Egypt

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

has opened the door to $40 billion of investment in green hydrogen and renewable technology by signing seven memoranda of understanding with international developers in the fields. The projects located in the Suez canal economic zone will see an investment of around $12 billion at an initial pilot phase, followed by a further $29 billion, according to the country's Planning Minister, Hala Helmy el-Said.

Germany

Germany invested €9 billion to construct 5 GW of

electrolyzer In chemistry and manufacturing, electrolysis is a technique that uses direct electric current (DC) to drive an otherwise non-spontaneous chemical reaction. Electrolysis is commercially important as a stage in the separation of elements from n ...

capacity by 2030.

India

Reliance Industries Reliance Industries Limited is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. Its businesses include energy, petrochemicals, natural gas, retail, entertainment, telecommunications, mass media, and textiles. Reliance is the ...

announced its plan to use about 3 gigawatts (GW) of solar energy to generate 400,000 tonnes of hydrogen.

Gautam Adani Gautam Shantilal Adani () (born 24 June 1962) is an Indian billionaire businessman who is the founder and chairman of the Adani Group, a multinational conglomerate involved in port development and operations in India. As of May 2025, Adani is ...

, founder of the

Adani Group Adani Group (, ) is an Indian Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate, headquartered in Ahmedabad. Founded by Gautam Adani in 1988 as a commodity trading business, the Group's businesses include port, sea ...

announced plans to invest $70 billion to become the world's largest renewable energy company, and produce the cheapest hydrogen across the globe. The power ministry of India has stated that India intends to produce a cumulative 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030. In April 2022, the public sector Oil India Limited (OIL), which is headquartered in eastern Assam's Duliajan, set up India's first 99.99% pure green hydrogen pilot plant in keeping with the goal of "making the country ready for the pilot-scale production of hydrogen and its use in various applications" while "research and development efforts are ongoing for a reduction in the cost of production, storage and the transportation" of hydrogen. In January 2024, subsidies for facilities to produce nearly 412,000 metric tons/year in green hydrogen were awarded. Subsidies for clean hydrogen production are much higher in the US and EU than in India. The discovered price of green hydrogen in India is US$ 4.67 (INR 397) per kg as of June 2025.

Japan

In 2023, Japan announced plans to spend US$21 billion on subsidies for delivered clean hydrogen over a 15-year period.

Mauritania

Mauritania Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a sovereign country in Maghreb, Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to Mauritania–Western Sahara border, the north and northwest, ...

launched two major projects on green hydrogen. The NOUR Project would become one of the world's largest hydrogen projects with 10 GW of capacity by 2030 in cooperation with Chariot company. The second is the AMAN Project, which includes 12GW of wind capacity and 18GW of solar capacity to produce 1.7 million tons per annum of green hydrogen or 10 million tons per annum of green ammonia for local use and export, in cooperation with Australian company CWP Renewables.

Namibia

Namibia has commissioned a green hydrogen production project with German support. The 10 billion dollar project involves the construction of wind farms and photovoltaic plants with a total capacity of 7 (GW) to produce. It aims to produce 2 million tonnes of green ammonia and hydrogen derivatives by 2030 and will create 15,000 jobs of which 3,000 will be permanent.

Oman

An association of companies announced a $30 billion project in

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

, which would become one of the world's largest hydrogen facilities. Construction was to begin in 2028. By 2038 the project was to be powered by 25 of wind and solar energy.

Portugal

In April 2021,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

announced plans to construct the first solar-powered plant to produce hydrogen by 2023. Lisbon based energy company Galp Energia announced plans to construct an electrolyser to power its refinery by 2025.

Saudi Arabia

In 2021, Saudi Arabia, as a part of the

NEOM Neom (styled NEOM; , ) is an arcology and planned city being built by Saudi Arabia in Tabuk Province. Launched in 2017 by crown prince Mohammad bin Salman, the site is at the northern tip of the Red Sea, due east of Egypt across the Gulf of A ...

project, announced an investment of $5bn to build a green hydrogen-based ammonia plant, which would start production in 2025.

Singapore

Singapore started the construction of a 600 MW hydrogen-ready powerplant that is expected to be ready by the first half of 2026.

Spain

In February 2021, thirty companies announced a pioneering project to provide hydrogen bases in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The project intended to supply 93 of solar and 67 GW of electrolysis capacity by the end of the decade.

United Arab Emirates

In 2021, in collaboration with Expo 2020 Dubai, a pilot project was launched which is the first "industrial scale", solar-driven green hydrogen facility in the Middle East and North Africa."

United Kingdom

In August 2017, EMEC, based in Orkney, Scotland, produced hydrogen gas using electricity generated from tidal energy in Orkney. This was the first time that hydrogen has been created from tidal energy anywhere in the world. In March 2021, a proposal emerged to use offshore wind in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

to power converted oil and gas rigs into a "green hydrogen hub" which would supply fuel to local distilleries. In June 2021,

Equinor Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger, Norway. It is primarily a petroleum company, petroleum company operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renew ...

announced plans to triple UK hydrogen production. In March 2022 National Grid announced a project to introduce green hydrogen into the grid with a 200m wind turbine powering an electrolyser to produce gas for about 300 homes. In December 2023, the UK government announced a £2 billion fund would be set up to back 11 separate projects. The then Energy Secretary,

Claire Coutinho Claire Coryl Julia Coutinho (; born 8 July 1985) is a British politician and former investment banker who has been Shadow Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero and Shadow Minister for Equalities since 2024. A member of the Cons ...

announced the funding would be invested over a 15-year period. The first allocation round would be known as HAR1.

Vattenfall Vattenfall is a Swedish multinational corporation, multinational electrical power industry, power company owned by the List of government enterprises of Sweden, Swedish state. Beyond Sweden, the company generates power in Denmark, Finland, Germa ...

planned to generate green hydrogen from a test

offshore wind Offshore wind power or offshore wind energy is the Electricity generation, generation of electricity through wind farms in bodies of water, usually at sea. There are higher wind speeds offshore than on land, so offshore farms generate more elect ...

turbine near

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

in 2025.

United States

The federal

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL),H.R. 3684 is a United States federal statute enacted by the 117th United States Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on Nov ...

, which became law in November 2021, allocated $9.5 billion to green hydrogen initiatives. In 2021, the

U.S. Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and energy production, the research and development of nuclear power, the military's nuclear we ...

(DOE) was planning the first demonstration of a hydrogen network in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. The department had previously attempted a hydrogen project known as Hydrogen Energy California, which was terminated in 2016. Texas is considered a key part of green hydrogen projects in the country as the state is the largest domestic producer of hydrogen and has a hydrogen pipeline network. In 2020, SGH2 Energy Global announced plans to use plastic and paper via plasma gasification to produce green hydrogen near

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. In 2021 then New York governor

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...

announced a $290 million investment to construct a green hydrogen fuel production facility. This was cancelled in October 2024. State authorities backed plans for developing fuel cells to be used in trucks and research on blending hydrogen into the gas grid. In March 2022 the governors of

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

, and

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

announced the creation of a hydrogen energy hub between the states. Woodside announced plans for a green hydrogen production site in

Ardmore, Oklahoma Ardmore is the county seat of Carter County, Oklahoma, Carter County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 24,725 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a 1.8% increase over the 2010 census figure of 24,283. The Ardmo ...

. Further necessary investment in this facility is being reconsidered by its main investor as of Q1 2025. The

Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) is a United States federal law which aims to reduce the federal government budget deficit, lower prescription drug prices, and invest in domestic energy production while promoting clean energy. It was ...

established a 10-year production tax credit, which includes a $3.00/kg subsidy for green hydrogen.

Tunisia

In Tunisia, the population is concerned about the green hydrogen plant project in the Gabès region — intended for the European market — for two main reasons: the high water consumption it entails (in a region already experiencing water stress) and the degradation of the landscape.

Public-private projects

In October 2023,

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...

announced that it had successfully performed the first test of an industrial turbine powered by 100 per cent green hydrogen generated by a 1 megawatt electrolyser. The turbine also operates on gas and any mixture of gas and hydrogen.

Government support

In 2020, the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...

adopted a dedicated strategy on hydrogen. The "European Green Hydrogen Acceleration Center" is tasked with developing a €100 billion a year green hydrogen economy by 2025. In December 2020, the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

together with RMI and several companies, launched Green Hydrogen Catapult, with a goal to reduce the cost of green hydrogen below US$2 per kilogram (equivalent to $50 per megawatt hour) by 2026. In 2021, with the support of the governments of

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, China, Germany, and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) launched its Global Programme for Hydrogen in Industry. Its goal is to accelerate the deployment of GH2 in industry. In 2021, the British government published its policy document, a "Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution," which included investing to create 5 of low carbon hydrogen by 2030. The plan included working with industry to complete the necessary testing that would allow up to 20% blending of hydrogen into the gas distribution grid by 2023. A BEIS consultation in 2022 suggested that grid blending would only have a "limited and temporary" role due to an expected reduction in the use of natural gas. The

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese government planned to transform the nation into a "hydrogen society". Energy demand would require the government to import/produce 36 million tons of liquefied hydrogen. At the time Japan's commercial imports were projected to be 100 times less than this amount by 2030, when the use of fuel was expected to commence. Japan published a preliminary road map that called for hydrogen and related fuels to supply 10% of the power for electricity generation as well as a significant portion of the energy for uses such as shipping and steel manufacture by 2050. Japan created a

hydrogen highway A hydrogen infrastructure is the infrastructure of points of hydrogen production, truck and pipeline transport, and hydrogen stations for the distribution and sale of hydrogen fuel, and thus a crucial prerequisite before a successful commerciali ...

consisting of 135 subsidized hydrogen fuels stations and planned to construct 1,000 by the end of the 2020s. In October 2020, the South Korean government announced its plan to introduce the Clean Hydrogen Energy Portfolio Standards (CHPS) which emphasizes the use of clean hydrogen. During the introduction of the Hydrogen Energy Portfolio Standard (HPS), it was voted on by the 2nd Hydrogen Economy Committee. In March 2021, the 3rd Hydrogen Economy Committee was held to pass a plan to introduce a clean hydrogen certification system based on incentives and obligations for clean hydrogen.

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

and

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

have proposed plans to include green hydrogen as a part of their climate change agenda. Namibia is partnering with European countries such as

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

for feasibility studies and funding. In July 2020, the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

unveiled the Hydrogen Strategy for a Climate-Neutral Europe. A motion backing this strategy passed the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

in 2021. The plan is divided into three phases. From 2020 to 2024, the program aims to decarbonize existing hydrogen production. From 2024-2030 green hydrogen would be integrated into the energy system. From 2030 to 2050 large-scale deployment of hydrogen would occur.

estimated hydrogen to 15% of the EU energy mix by 2050. Six European Union member states:

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, the

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

, requested hydrogen funding be backed by legislation. Many member countries have created plans to import hydrogen from other nations, especially from

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

. These plans would increase hydrogen production, but were accused of trying to export the necessary changes needed within Europe. The European Union required that starting in 2021, all new gas turbines made in the bloc must be ready to burn a hydrogen–natural gas blend. In November 2020,

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

's president presented the "National Strategy for Green Hydrogen," stating he wanted Chile to become "the most efficient green hydrogen producer in the world by 2030". The plan includes HyEx, a project to make solar based hydrogen for use in the

mining industry Mining is the extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agricultural processes, or feasibly created artificially in a la ...

Regulations and standards

In the European Union, certified 'renewable' hydrogen, defined as produced from non-biological feedstocks, requires an emission reduction of at least 70% below the fossil fuel it is intended to replace. This is distinct in the EU from 'low carbon' hydrogen, which is defined as made using fossil fuel feedstocks. For it to be certified, low carbon hydrogen must achieve at least a 70% reduction in emissions compared with the grey hydrogen it replaces. In the United Kingdom, just one standard is proposed, for 'low carbon' hydrogen. Its threshold GHG emissions intensity of 20gCO2 equivalent per megajoule should be easily met by renewably-powered electrolysis of water for green hydrogen production, but has been set at a level to allow for and encourage other 'low carbon' hydrogen production, principally blue hydrogen. Blue hydrogen is grey hydrogen with added

carbon capture and storage Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is a process by which carbon dioxide (CO2) from industrial installations is separated before it is released into the atmosphere, then transported to a long-term storage location.IPCC, 2021Annex VII: Glossary at ...

, which to date has not been produced with carbon capture rates in excess of 60%. To meet the UK's threshold, its government has estimated that an 85% carbon capture rate would be necessary. In the United States, planned tax credit incentives for green hydrogen production are to be tied to the emissions intensity of 'clean' hydrogen produced, with greater levels of support on offer for lower greenhouse gas intensities.

References

External links

Green hydrogen explainer video
from Scottish Power * {{DEFAULTSORT:Green hydrogen Emissions reduction

Definition

Electrolysis

Biochar-assisted

Uses

Green methanol

Market

Projects

Australia

Brazil

Canada

Chile

China

Egypt

Germany

India

Japan

Mauritania

Namibia

Oman

Portugal

Saudi Arabia

Singapore

Spain

United Arab Emirates

United Kingdom

United States

Tunisia

Public-private projects

Government support

Regulations and standards

See also

References

External links