Unlocking Hydrogen Carrier Potential of the Yangtze River in China

The Yangtze River, as the world’s largest clean energy corridor, links key economic regions and plays a crucial role in inland waterway transportation. However, few studies have comprehensively evaluated the potential of the Yangtze River for cross-regional hydrogen transport. Here, we develop a comprehensive integrated power and hydrogen supply chain (IPHSC) optimization model to evaluate the potential of cross-regional hydrogen transport via the Yangtze River. The IPHSC optimization model covers the entire hydrogen production-storage-transportation-utilization chain through cross-sector modeling of energy, transportation, water scheduling, and environmental protection. Results show that, in the 2060 carbon neutrality scenario, the deployment of 62.2 kilotons of 574 differentiated liquid hydrogen (LH2) carrier ships could enable the transportation of 5,018 kilotons (1,512 million ton-km) of hydrogen annually, meeting nearly 20% of the total electrolytic hydrogen demand across eight riverine provinces. Unlike west-to-east electricity transmission in China, the central Yangtze River region is expected to become the main hub for hydrogen exports in the future. Compared with alternative methods such as transmission lines or pipelines, LH2 carrier ships offer the lowest energy supply costs, at 3 US cents/kWh for electricity and 5 US cents/kWh for hydrogen. Additionally, a full-parameter attribution analysis of over 40 factors is conducted to assess variations in supply costs. Our study offers a thorough evaluation of the feasibility and economic benefits of hydrogen transportation via inland waterways, providing a comprehensive, multi-sectoral coupling assessment framework for regions with well-established inland waterway networks, such as Europe and the United States.