{"id":77154,"date":"2025-10-15T11:09:55","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T10:09:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/?p=77154"},"modified":"2025-10-15T14:24:36","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T13:24:36","slug":"hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/","title":{"rendered":"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel&#8217;s narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>Steve Capanna is policy director and Owen Zinaman is senior advisor with <a href=\"https:\/\/cruxalliance.org\/\">Crux Alliance.<\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Just a few years ago, green hydrogen looked set to become a central pillar of the global energy transition. Governments worldwide rolled out sweeping hydrogen strategies, while companies pitched billion-dollar projects to use clean hydrogen throughout the economy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But the realities of <a href=\"https:\/\/climateprogramportal.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Pathways-to-Commercial-Liftoff_Clean-Hydrogen_December-2024-Update.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">green hydrogen costs<\/a>, exacerbated by high interest rates and supply chain constraints, have undermined these plans.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p><div class=\"clima-in-post\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\" id=\"clima-3033724380\"><div style=\"text-align:center; margin: 20px 0;\">\r\n  <div style=\"display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 8px;\">\r\n    <hr style=\"flex: 1; max-width: 80px; border: none; border-top: 1px solid #ccc; margin: 0 10px;\">\r\n    <span style=\"font-family: Open Sans, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; color: #BFBFBF; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 1px;\">Advertisement<\/span>\r\n    <hr style=\"flex: 1; max-width: 80px; border: none; border-top: 1px solid #ccc; margin: 0 10px;\">\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <div id=\"chn-in-post\"><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script defer src=\"https:\/\/ead.newint.org\/show.php?zones=chn-in-post\"><\/script>\r\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Meanwhile, the US &#8211; which had among the most ambitious suites of hydrogen policies under the Biden Administration &#8211; has reversed course, scaling back its clean hydrogen production incentive, <a href=\"https:\/\/fuelcellsworks.com\/2025\/04\/04\/energy-policy\/senators-slam-hydrogen-hub-cuts-call-doe-plan-unlawful-and-destructive\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">freezing funds<\/a> for green hydrogen hubs, and cutting the vast majority of federal hydrogen research and development funding. As a result, a number of planned projects have now been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.canarymedia.com\/articles\/hydrogen\/green-industry-trump-tax-credits\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">canceled<\/a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/03\/21\/clean-hydrogen-hype-fades-as-high-costs-dampen-demand\/\">Clean hydrogen hype fades as high costs dampen demand<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Clean hydrogen is experiencing growing pains elsewhere too, with several major production projects in Australia and Europe <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/sustainability\/climate-energy\/cancelled-postponed-green-hydrogen-projects-2025-07-23\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">scrapped<\/a> or indefinitely postponed. Demand for green hydrogen is increasingly uncertain as well, with manufacturers like steel giant ArcelorMittal backing away from plans to use green hydrogen.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Some \u2018no-regrets\u2019 uses remain&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Reading the headlines, it can seem like hydrogen has no future as a climate solution.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And yet, while green hydrogen may not be an emissions panacea, climate and energy experts are clear: it remains a crucial tool to cut carbon in some key areas of the economy.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s critical to not throw the baby out with the bathwater,\u201d says Nikita Pavlenko, programs director for fuels and aviation at the International Council on Clean Transportation. \u201cNow is the time for sober consideration of projects that supply the no-regrets uses of hydrogen necessary for long-term decarbonization, whether for the handful of industries with few alternatives or in long-haul shipping and aviation.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And for those countries that invest in green hydrogen development now, there could be economic as well as environmental rewards.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p><div class=\"clima-in-post-2\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\" id=\"clima-1717012812\"><div style=\"text-align:center; margin: 20px 0;\">\r\n  <div style=\"display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 8px;\">\r\n    <hr style=\"flex: 1; max-width: 80px; border: none; border-top: 1px solid #ccc; margin: 0 10px;\">\r\n    <span style=\"font-family: Open Sans, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; color: #BFBFBF; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 1px;\">Advertisement<\/span>\r\n    <hr style=\"flex: 1; max-width: 80px; border: none; border-top: 1px solid #ccc; margin: 0 10px;\">\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <div id=\"chn-in-post-2\"><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script defer src=\"https:\/\/ead.newint.org\/show.php?zones=chn-in-post-2\"><\/script>\r\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Not all hydrogen is created equal&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Hydrogen currently plays a niche but important role in the global economy. Nearly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.iea.org\/data-and-statistics\/charts\/global-hydrogen-demand-by-sector-in-the-net-zero-scenario-2020-2030-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">100 million metric tons<\/a> of hydrogen are produced worldwide each year, largely for use in oil refining and to make ammonia and methanol &#8211; feedstocks for fertilizers and industrial chemicals. And most of this hydrogen is produced using methane gas, contributing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.iea.org\/reports\/global-hydrogen-review-2024\/ghg-emissions-of-hydrogen-and-its-derivatives\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">roughly 2%<\/a> of global greenhouse gas emissions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"chn-block block-image\">\n\n    <figure class=\"\" uk-toggle=\"target: #simg-77158\" >\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-scaled.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-scaled.png 2560w, https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-960x596.png 960w, https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-1440x893.png 1440w, https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-480x298.png 480w\" \/>\n            <\/figure>\n\n    <div id=\"simg-77158\"  class=\"uk-modal-container\" uk-modal>\n        <div class=\"uk-modal-dialog uk-margin-auto-vertical\">\n\n            <button class=\"uk-modal-close-default\" type=\"button\" uk-close><\/button>\n\n            <div class=\"uk-modal-body\">\n\n                <figure>\n                    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-scaled.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-scaled.png 2560w, https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-960x596.png 960w, https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-1440x893.png 1440w, https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/Fig_slide_8-480x298.png 480w\" \/>\n                                    <\/figure>\n\n            <\/div>\n\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>But there are other, cleaner ways to produce hydrogen.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cBlue\u201d hydrogen still relies on natural gas but includes equipment to capture some of the carbon emissions released at the production facility. This could significantly lower on-site emissions &#8211; although not entirely.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, it would do nothing to reduce methane and CO<sub>2 <\/sub>leaks from natural gas fields or pipelines, which an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41467-021-25017-4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">established <\/a>body of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41586-024-07117-5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">evidence<\/a> suggests have been systematically underestimated and are often not accounted for in many existing regulations anyway. Put together, this means blue hydrogen is likely much more polluting than is often claimed.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s why clean energy experts view \u201cgreen\u201d hydrogen as the best option for cutting emissions.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Green hydrogen is produced via a process called electrolysis, in which electricity is used to split hydrogen from water, leaving only oxygen as a byproduct. This process can be emissions free &#8211; but only if the electrolysis is powered by new clean electricity resources that are physically deliverable on an hourly basis to the hydrogen production facility.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A narrow but necessary path for green hydrogen&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Still, scaling green hydrogen is easier said than done. Green hydrogen remains a nascent technology and costs roughly <a href=\"https:\/\/climateprogramportal.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Pathways-to-Commercial-Liftoff_Clean-Hydrogen_December-2024-Update.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">two to three times more<\/a> than conventional hydrogen produced from natural gas. Costs are expected to decline as production scales, but only if electricity costs and interest rates are kept in check &#8211;&nbsp;which, recently, has not been the case.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But there is good news: experts argue that green hydrogen will only be needed in a few specific parts of the economy.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cGiven the heavy energy losses in making hydrogen, it will almost always be cheaper and smarter to use electricity directly,\u201d says Katherine Dixon, executive director of the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP). \u201cHeat pumps are the best example: they cut energy demand dramatically compared to gas, while hydrogen for heating would multiply it.\u201d&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And as other technologies get cheaper, the number of applications where green hydrogen is a necessary decarbonization tool will only shrink.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u2018Hard-to-abate\u2019 sectors need hydrogen&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Still, in a net-zero economy, absent unforeseen technology innovations, we are going to need a lot more green hydrogen in the future &#8211; roughly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.agora-industry.org\/publications\/prioritising-hydrogen-for-the-most-effective-uses#c665\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">four to six times<\/a> more than <em>all<\/em> of the hydrogen used today, and many orders of magnitude more than current green hydrogen production.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Why? Because there remain many non-electrifiable sectors of the economy where no other viable decarbonization tool exists besides hydrogen, such as steel production, where hydrogen serves as a clean alternative to coal-based coke for processing iron ore.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cGreen hydrogen will be critical for decarbonizing applications that have thus far been referred to as \u2018hard-to-abate\u2019, such as in the chemicals or steel industries,\u201d says Julia Metz, director of Agora Industry.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Additionally, experts don\u2019t yet foresee a path for battery technology to work for long-distance shipping or long-haul flights, both highly polluting industries, so green hydrogen and fuels made from green hydrogen will likely be necessary for those uses too.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Boosting demand to support long-term investment&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Given the cost premium of green hydrogen, strong incentives will be needed to make using it in industry, aviation or shipping an economically viable choice while driving down costs for the future.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To date, countries have largely focused on policies like tax credits that encourage production of clean hydrogen or government investments in green hydrogen production and equipment manufacturing facilities.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/01\/31\/eu-backs-north-africa-hydrogen-pipeline-but-is-it-a-green-dream\/\">EU backs North Africa hydrogen pipeline, but is it a green dream?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>But scaling hydrogen requires demand-side policies as well. Indeed, we\u2019re seeing planned projects and investments stall for lack of committed buyers. Stable demand-side policies, which can include contracts for differences (government financing for the higher cost of green hydrogen), requirements for a set percentage of hydrogen consumption to be green for certain sectors, and sectoral emissions limits, can help provide that long-term investment certainty.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Absent such policies, new clean hydrogen production projects have largely proven too risky.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How green is green enough?&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Policymakers must also ensure they are only incentivizing truly clean hydrogen. Hydrogen produced with electricity largely generated by coal, for instance, can be considerably dirtier than conventional hydrogen production.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>How to measure hydrogen emissions has been the source of robust debate in the European Union (EU), US, and elsewhere. Fossil fuel companies <a href=\"https:\/\/www.canarymedia.com\/articles\/hydrogen\/is-there-any-place-for-fossil-fuels-in-the-clean-hydrogen-future\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">have argued<\/a> for more lenient standards about what counts as clean. They have also supported using hydrogen in parts of the economy that could be more easily and cheaply electrified, distracting from efforts to electrify quickly.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For a region like the EU, which is poised to be an importer as well as a producer of green hydrogen, stricter standards can help ensure truly low-carbon hydrogen production around the world.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>China, for instance, has developed its clean hydrogen production with an eye towards meeting the EU standards. China is also placing major bets on the green hydrogen market, as it represents <a href=\"https:\/\/www.woodmac.com\/news\/opinion\/the-competitive-edge-of-chinas-electrolysers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">roughly 60% of global electrolyzer production<\/a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This investment is beginning to drive down equipment costs, which could help make green hydrogen more commercially viable. It could also give China a long-term competitive edge in the global market.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Smart policies create economic opportunity&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>However, other countries with abundant, low-cost renewable energy resources are also recognizing the potential of green hydrogen as both an export opportunity and a way to reduce reliance on volatile natural gas imports.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For instance, India\u2019s Green Hydrogen Mission targets the production of 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030, and Brazil has an official goal to be the most competitive low-carbon hydrogen producer by that same year.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To fully capture the economic opportunity, new hydrogen producers will need to ensure their output meets international environmental standards while building up those domestic industries that require green hydrogen to cut emissions, ensuring more economic benefits are realized domestically.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cGovernments play a key role in driving innovation that creates economic opportunities across the value chain,\u201d says Metz of Agora Industry. \u201cBy supporting green hydrogen investment and adopting targeted industrial policies, they can strengthen resilience while advancing climate and industrial progress.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">It&#8217;s time for hydrogen sobriety&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The hydrogen bubble has burst. But despite the dire headlines, we cannot achieve global climate goals without some amount of truly clean hydrogen.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If the last few years were dominated by hydrogen hype, we need the future to be dominated neither by hype nor nihilism, but by a sober focus on designing policy to build demand for green hydrogen in the few, important sectors where it&#8217;s really needed.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let\u2019s hope the era of hydrogen sobriety has finally arrived.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Enthusiasm for green hydrogen may have faded amid high costs and supply issues \u2013 but it will be needed in sectors that cannot be easily electrified\u00a0\u00a0","protected":false},"author":196,"featured_media":77174,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,4086],"tags":[5093],"project_category":[],"membership_period":[5489],"coauthors":[5521,5524],"class_list":["post-77154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-energy","category-sponsored","tag-green-hydrogen","membership_period-forever-free"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel&#039;s narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Enthusiasm for green hydrogen may have faded amid high costs and supply issues \u2013 but it will be needed in sectors that cannot be easily electrified\u00a0\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel&#039;s narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Enthusiasm for green hydrogen may have faded amid high costs and supply issues \u2013 but it will be needed in sectors that cannot be easily electrified\u00a0\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Climate Home News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ClimateHomeNews\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-15T10:09:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-15T13:24:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Steve Capanna, Owen Zinaman\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ClimateHome\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ClimateHome\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Steve Capanna, Owen Zinaman\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Megan Rowling\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f19b68727f62276f5de0117e0582e3d6\"},\"headline\":\"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel&#8217;s narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-15T10:09:55+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-15T13:24:36+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1553,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Green hydrogen\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Energy\",\"Sponsored\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/\",\"name\":\"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel's narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-15T10:09:55+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-15T13:24:36+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f19b68727f62276f5de0117e0582e3d6\"},\"description\":\"Enthusiasm for green hydrogen may have faded amid high costs and supply issues \u2013 but it will be needed in sectors that cannot be easily electrified\u00a0\u00a0\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/files\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"Construction gets underway on Belgium's first green hydrogen plant \\\"Hyoffwind\\\" at a shipyard in Zeebrugge, Belgium, on February 18, 2025. The plant is scheduled for completion in autumn 2026. (Photo: BELGA via Reuters Connect)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/15\\\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel&#8217;s narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Climate Home News\",\"description\":\"Climate change news, analysis, commentary, video and podcasts focused on developments in global climate politics\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f19b68727f62276f5de0117e0582e3d6\",\"name\":\"Megan Rowling\",\"description\":\"Megan Rowling is the editor of Climate Home News, taking over in February 2024 after nearly two decades as a journalist with the Thomson Reuters Foundation (TRF), developing its award-winning coverage of climate change. She has written extensively on international climate politics and finance, with a focus on the developing world, for which she won a UN Correspondents\u2019 Association award in 2016. At TRF, she also led teams reporting on climate resilience and just transition. She is specialised in humanitarian crises, sustainable development and disaster risk reduction. In her early career, she worked as a business reporter for Reuters TV, BBC World and Jiji Press. During her spare time, she indulges her passions for dance (you\u2019re never too old to start ballet classes!), music, languages and wandering about in nature.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.climatechangenews.com\\\/author\\\/megan-rowling\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel's narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0","description":"Enthusiasm for green hydrogen may have faded amid high costs and supply issues \u2013 but it will be needed in sectors that cannot be easily electrified\u00a0\u00a0","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel's narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0","og_description":"Enthusiasm for green hydrogen may have faded amid high costs and supply issues \u2013 but it will be needed in sectors that cannot be easily electrified\u00a0\u00a0","og_url":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/","og_site_name":"Climate Home News","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ClimateHomeNews\/","article_published_time":"2025-10-15T10:09:55+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-10-15T13:24:36+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1707,"url":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Steve Capanna, Owen Zinaman","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@ClimateHome","twitter_site":"@ClimateHome","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Steve Capanna, Owen Zinaman","Estimated reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/"},"author":{"name":"Megan Rowling","@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f19b68727f62276f5de0117e0582e3d6"},"headline":"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel&#8217;s narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0","datePublished":"2025-10-15T10:09:55+00:00","dateModified":"2025-10-15T13:24:36+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/"},"wordCount":1553,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg","keywords":["Green hydrogen"],"articleSection":["Energy","Sponsored"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/","url":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/","name":"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel's narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg","datePublished":"2025-10-15T10:09:55+00:00","dateModified":"2025-10-15T13:24:36+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f19b68727f62276f5de0117e0582e3d6"},"description":"Enthusiasm for green hydrogen may have faded amid high costs and supply issues \u2013 but it will be needed in sectors that cannot be easily electrified\u00a0\u00a0","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-content\/files\/2025\/10\/belgium-ENERGY-ZEEBRUGGE-VISIT-HYDROGEN-PLANT-HYOFFWIND-scaled.jpg","width":2560,"height":1707,"caption":"Construction gets underway on Belgium's first green hydrogen plant \"Hyoffwind\" at a shipyard in Zeebrugge, Belgium, on February 18, 2025. The plant is scheduled for completion in autumn 2026. (Photo: BELGA via Reuters Connect)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2025\/10\/15\/hydrogen-beyond-the-hype-the-green-fuels-narrow-but-crucial-role-in-a-decarbonized-economy\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Hydrogen beyond the hype: The green fuel&#8217;s narrow but crucial role in a decarbonized economy\u00a0"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/","name":"Climate Home News","description":"Climate change news, analysis, commentary, video and podcasts focused on developments in global climate politics","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f19b68727f62276f5de0117e0582e3d6","name":"Megan Rowling","description":"Megan Rowling is the editor of Climate Home News, taking over in February 2024 after nearly two decades as a journalist with the Thomson Reuters Foundation (TRF), developing its award-winning coverage of climate change. She has written extensively on international climate politics and finance, with a focus on the developing world, for which she won a UN Correspondents\u2019 Association award in 2016. At TRF, she also led teams reporting on climate resilience and just transition. She is specialised in humanitarian crises, sustainable development and disaster risk reduction. In her early career, she worked as a business reporter for Reuters TV, BBC World and Jiji Press. During her spare time, she indulges her passions for dance (you\u2019re never too old to start ballet classes!), music, languages and wandering about in nature.","url":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/author\/megan-rowling\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77154","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/196"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77154"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77154\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77184,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77154\/revisions\/77184"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/77174"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77154"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77154"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77154"},{"taxonomy":"project_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project_category?post=77154"},{"taxonomy":"membership_period","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/membership_period?post=77154"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=77154"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}