Policy & Socio-Economics

On the season premier episode the EAH hosts are joined by the Governor of New Mexico Michelle Lujan Grisham. The State of New Mexico has the opportunity to lead the United States into the hydrogen era and the Governor and her team are poised to take the opportunity to make New Mexico the strategic center of the US hydrogen economy. The Governor is joined by New Mexico Environment Department Secretary James Kenney on the show to announce the forthcoming New Mexico Hydrogen Hub Act which her administration expects to drive investment in the state job growth in the energy sector and catapult New Mexico to top of the list of states driving the hydrogen revolution.

The podcast can be found on their website.

On this weeks episode the team are talking all things hydrogen with Lorna Millington Future Networks Manager in the Safety and Network Strategy team at Cadent. On the show we discuss the role that Cadent and other gas distribution network operators (GDNOs) are playing in supporting the transition towards a low (and eventually zero) carbon gas grid through the use of hydrogen. The potential for hydrogen to support decarbonisation of heat through the gas network is one of the most exciting emerging themes for countries that have large existing gas networks and who are looking to repurpose those assets towards national net zero objectives. As a leader on hydrogen into the gas grid projects Cadent offer a wealth of knowledge around the potential opportunities and considerations for displacing natural gas with hydrogen over time. And given the chance to reduce up to 6 million tonnes of CO2 a year through using more hydrogen in the gas grid this is a show you won’t want to miss! All this and more on the show!

The podcast can be found on their website

This independent cross-party report highlights the key role that political consensus can play in helping to reduce the costs of nuclear power in the UK as well as other low carbon technologies. This political consensus has never been more important than in this ‘defining decade’ for the power sector. The report highlights that an immediate challenge facing the UK’s new build programme is agreeing with the European Commission a regime for supporting new nuclear power. Changing the proposed support package would not be an impossible task if made necessary but maintaining broad political consensus and considering the implications of delay are also important. The State Aid process is an important opportunity for scrutiny with the report demonstrating that shareholders for Hinkley Point C could see bigger returns (19-21%) than those typically expected for PFI projects (12-15%). However it is too early to conclude on the value for money of the Hinkley Point C agreement. Both the negotiation process and the resulting investment contract are important but there has been little transparency over either so far and the negotiations were not competitive. The inquiry calls for more urgency and better coordination in seizing the opportunity to reuse the UK’s plutonium stockpile.



The UK’s stockpile of separated plutonium presents opportunities to tackle a number of national strategic priorities including implementing long term solutions for nuclear waste developing new technologies that could redefine the sector laying the ground for new nuclear power and pursuing nuclear non-proliferation.  Government has identified three ‘credible solutions’ for reuse and the report recommends that it now sets clearer criteria against which to assess options and identifies budgetary requirements to help expediate the process. The report also argues that Government should do more on new nuclear technologies that could redefine the sector – such as considering smaller reactors nuclear for industrial heat or hydrogen production and closed or thorium fuel cycles. The Government’s initial response to a review of nuclear R&D a year ago by the then Chief Scientific Advisor Sir John Beddington has been welcome and it needs to build on this. In particular the UK should capitalise upon its existing expertise and past experience to focus efforts where there is most strategic value. Nulcear waste. Having failed to date the Government must urgently revisit plans for finding a site to store nuclear waste underground for thousands of years. Implementing this is a crucial part of demonstrating that nuclear waste is a manageable challenge. Despite being rejected by Cumbria County Council the continuing strong support amongst communities in West Cumbria for hosting a site is a promising sign.



On affordability the report finds that it is not yet clear which electricity generation technologies will be cheapest in the 2020s and beyond. Coal and gas could get more expensive if fossil fuel and carbon prices rise whilst low carbon technologies could get cheaper as technology costs fall with more deployment. This is the main reason for adopting an ‘all of the above’ strategy including nuclear power until costs become clearer and there is broad consensus behind this general approach.  



On security of supply the inquiry says that deployment of nuclear power is likely to be influenced more by the economics of system balancing rather than technical system balancing challenges which can be met with greater deployment of existing balancing tools. The cost of maintaining system security is likely to mean that the UK maintains at least some baseload capacity such as nuclear power to limit system costs.



On sustainability the report finds that the environmental impacts of nuclear power are comparable to some generation technologies and favourable to others although the long lived nature of some radioactive nuclear waste and the dual use potential of nuclear technology for civil and military applications create unique sustainability challenges which the UK is a world leader in managing.



It is the final report of the Future Electricity Series an independent and cross party inquiry into the UK power sector sponsored by the Institution of Gas Engineers and Managers

Hydrogen which is expected to be a popular type of next-generation energy is drawing attention as a fuel option for the formation of a low-carbon society. Because hydrogen energy is different in nature from existing energy technologies it is necessary to promote sufficient social recognition and acceptability of the technology for its widespread use. In this study we focused on the effect of initiatives to improve awareness of hydrogen energy technology thereby investigating the acceptability of hydrogen energy to those participating in either several hydrogen energy technology introduction events or professional seminars. According to the survey results participants in the technology introduction events tended to have lower levels of hydrogen and hydrogen energy technology knowledge than did participants in the hydrogen-energy-related seminars but confidence in the technology and acceptability of the installation of hydrogen stations near their own residences tended to be higher. It was suggested that knowledge about hydrogen and technology could lead to improved acceptability through improved levels of trust in the technology. On the other hand social benefits such as those for the environment socioeconomics and energy security have little impact on individual levels of acceptance of new technology.

The report was formally launched on 2nd December in Parliament at a panel debate chaired by Lord Whitty and Oliver Colvile and featured representatives from Government and Industry. The report outlines the case for investment by businesses in the energy efficiency of their buildings and operations and highlights how this could help neutralise the threat to profitability posed by increasing energy bills energy price volatility and an increasing reliance on electricity in the commercial sector. The report highlights that business in the UK have the opportunity to not only reduce energy bills but increase their competitiveness and improve worker productivity through better designed buildings.

The Czech Republic’s Hydrogen Strategy is being developed in the context of the Hydrogen Strategy for a climate neutral Europe which reflects the European Green Deal objective of climate neutrality by 2050. The objective of the Strategy is thus to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in such a way that the economy shifts smoothly to low-carbon technologies.

This is associated with two strategic goals:

• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions
• Stimulate the economic growth

To achieve these four specific goals have been set:

• Volume of low-carbon hydrogen production
• Volume of low-carbon hydrogen consumption
• Infrastructure readiness for hydrogen transport and storage
• Progress in R&D and production of hydrogen technologies

The Hydrogen Strategy is based on four pillars:

• Low-carbon hydrogen production
• Low-carbon hydrogen use
• Hydrogen transport and storage
• Hydrogen technologies

These pillars are interlinked – production and consumption must be well-balanced to achieve economic use of the respective technologies otherwise any imbalance will be offset by imports from abroad. Each of the pillars is linked to exactly one strategic goal.

Policy for Heat: Transforming the System urges Government to implement an ambitious long-term decarbonisation strategy for the heat sector before it’s too late in new inquiry report. The report builds on the work of Part 1 in the Future Heat Series which compared recent decarbonisation pathways and analyses to identify and highlight key policy mechanisms and transitions that are needed in order to decarbonise heat for buildings by 2050. Chaired by Shadow Energy Minister Jonathan Reynolds MP and Conservative MP Rebecca Pow (and also previous MP and member of the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee Dan Byles MP until he stood down at the General Election) the report is written by cross-party think tank group Carbon Connect. The report was published in Parliament at a cross-party debate on Wednesday 14th October. Sponsored by Energy & Utilities Alliance (EUA) and the Institution of Gas Engineers and Managers (IGEM) the report is the second in a cross-party and independent inquiry series.  

On this weeks episode the team are talking all things hydrogen with Jigar Shah the President of Generate Capital and Co-host of the Energy Gang podcast. Jigar Shah has a well earned reputation as one of the most influential voices in the US clean energy market having pioneered no-money down solar with SunEdison and led the not for profit climate group the Carbon War Room. Since its founding in 2014 Generate Capital the company has provided $130 million of funds to a leading fuel cell provide Plug Power meanwhile in October 2019 Jigar declared hydrogen to be the ultimate clean electricity enabler. On the show we ask Jigar why he thinks Hydrogen is becoming interesting for investors today what business models he feels are exciting and offer the most attractive niches for hydrogen technology businesses whilst getting his side of the story on that time he met Chris at a conference…..All this and more on the show!

The podcast can be found on their website

The team are joined by Dr. Jenifer Baxter of the Institution for Mechanical Engineers (IMECHE). Dr. Baxter is based in the UK and is the Chief Engineer at IMECHE. We often focus heavily on the business cases and development models at the heart of the hydrogen economy here at EAH. On this episode we bring the technical discussion to the forefront and speak with Dr. Baxter about the technical advantages and the challenges that hydrogen presents as an essential part of the path to decarbonizing the future. The team's conversation is a can't miss exploration of a wide range of potential applications for hydrogen technologies that brings a new and essential perspective to the podcast. Don't miss out on EAH's newest episode where we get the engineer's perspective on the future of hydrogen!

The podcast can be found on their website

On this week's episode of Everything About Hydrogen the team are celebrating the show's one year anniversary with Randy MacEwen the CEO of Ballard Power Systems. On the show the team ask Randy to explain the stunning rise of hydrogen over the last 12-24 months how the use cases for hydrogen are evolving and how the growing capitalisation of listed businesses like Ballard is driving a change in the investor base across the hydrogen & fuel cell sector. We also dive into the future for Ballard where the challenges and focuses for the business lie while the team reflect on what has been a very intense year for the show and the hydrogen industry. All this and more!

The podcast can be found on their website

The EAH Team takes a break from standard format on this special episode of Everything About Hydrogen to discuss some of the geopolitical factors and considerations driving the evolution of global hydrogen markets.

The podcast can be found on their website

2020 has been a year for the history books! Some good most of it not so good; but 2020 has been a boom year for the future of hydrogen technologies. Patrick Chris and Andrew do their level best on this episode to talk about all the stories and the highlights of 2020 in under 50 minutes. Have a listen and let us know if we missed anything in our penultimate episode of 2020!

The podcast can be found on their website

This article aims to present the potential of energy transition in insular systems for social and economic transition and development when planned and implemented appropriately with the active involvement of local communities. To this end the example of Sifnos Energy Community is examined and presented as a pilot case. It proves that energy transition apart from its obvious energy conservation and climate necessity can provide a strong contribution to the development of remote areas and the remedying of crucial issues especially in insular communities such as unemployment low standards of living isolation and energy supply security. Energy transition on Sifnos has been undertaken by the Sifnos Energy Community (SEC) with the target to achieve 100% energy independency through effective and rational projects. The major project is a centralized hybrid power plant consisting of a wind park and a pumped hydro storage system. It was designed to fully cover the current electricity demand and the anticipated forthcoming load due to the overall transition to e-mobility for the transportation sector on the island. Through the exploitation of the excess electricity production with the production of potable water and hydrogen energy transition can facilitate the development of new professional activities on the island and reduce the local economy’s dependence on tourism. Additionally a daily link to the neighboring larger Cyclades islands can be established with a hydrogen powered-passenger vessel ensuring the secure and cheap overseas transportation connection of Sifnos throughout the whole year. The overall energy transition process is executed with the active involvement of the Sifnos citizens ensuring wide public acceptance and the minimization of the projects’ impacts on the natural and human environment. At the same time the anticipated benefits for the insular communities are maximized highlighting the energy transition process on Sifnos as a new sustainable development pattern. For all this effort and the already achieved results Sifnos has been declared as one of the six pilot islands of the European Community’s initiative “Clean Energy for EU Islands”.

Hydrogen will become a key player in transitioning toward a net-zero energy system. However a clear pathway toward a unified European hydrogen infrastructure to support the rapid scale-up of hydrogen production is still under discussion. This study explores plausible pathways using a fully sector-coupled energy system model. Here we assess the emergence of hydrogen infrastructure build-outs connecting neighboring European nations through hydrogen import and domestic production centers with Western and Central European demands via four distinct hydrogen corridors. We identify a potential lock-in effect of blue hydrogen in the medium term highlighting the risk of longterm dependence on methane. In contrast we show that a self-sufficient Europe relying on domestic green hydrogen by 2050 would increase yearly expenses by around 3% and require 518 gigawatts of electrolysis capacity. This study emphasizes the importance of rapidly scaling up electrolysis capacity building hydrogen networks and storage facilities deploying renewable electricity generation and ensuring coherent coordination across European nations.

Many energy system optimization studies show that hydrogen may be an important part of an optimal decarbonisation mix but such analyses are unable to examine the uncertainties associated with breaking the ‘locked-in’ nature of incumbent systems. Uncertainties around technical learning rates; consumer behaviour; and the strategic interactions of governments automakers and fuel providers are particularly acute. System dynamics and agent-based models and studies of historical alternative fuel transitions have furthered our understanding of possible transition dynamics but these types of analysis exclude broader systemic issues concerning energy system evolution (e.g. supplies and prices of low-carbon energy) and the politics of transitions. This paper presents a hybrid approach to assessing hydrogen transitions in the UK by linking qualitative scenarios with quantitative energy systems modelling using the UK MARKAL model. Three possible transition pathways are explored each exploring different uncertainties and possible decision points with modelling used to inform and test key elements of each scenario. The scenarios draw on literature review and participatory input and the scenario structure is based on archetypal transition dynamics drawn from historical energy system transitions reflecting insights relating to innovation system development and resistance to change. Conclusions are drawn about appropriate policy responses.

The following report is a research piece outlining the potential pathways for decarbonisation of Scottish Industries. Two main pathways are considered hydrogen and electrification with both resulting in similar costs and levels of carbon reduction.

Initial assessment of Scotland’s opportunity to produce green hydrogen from offshore wind

Summary of Key Findings

• Scotland has an abundant offshore wind resource that has the potential to be a vital component in our net zero transition. If used to produce green hydrogen offshore wind can help abate the emissions of historically challenging sectors such as heating transport and industry.
• The production of green hydrogen from offshore wind can help overcome Scotland’s grid constraints and unlock a massive clean power generation resource creating a clean fuel for Scottish industry and households and a highly valuable commodity to supply rapidly growing UK and European markets.
• The primary export markets for Scottish green hydrogen are expected to be in Northern Europe (Germany Netherlands & Belgium). Strong competition to supply these markets is expected to come from green hydrogen produced from solar energy in Southern Europe and North Africa.
• Falling wind and electrolyser costs will enable green hydrogen production to be cost-competitive in the key transport and heat sectors by 2032. Strategic investment in hydrogen transportation and storage is essential to unlocking the economic opportunity for Scotland.
• Xodus’ analysis supports a long-term outlook of LCoH falling towards £2/kg with an estimated reference cost of £2.3 /kg in 2032 for hydrogen delivered to shore.
• Scotland has extensive port and pipeline infrastructure that can be repurposed for hydrogen export to the rest of UK and to Europe. Pipelines from the ‘90s are optimal for this purpose as they are likely to retain acceptable mechanical integrity and have a metallurgy better suited to hydrogen service. A more detailed assessment of export options should be performed to provide a firm foundation for early commercial green hydrogen projects.
• There is considerable hydrogen supply chain overlap with elements of parallel sectors most notably the oil and gas offshore wind and subsea engineering sectors. Scotland already has a mature hydrocarbon supply chain which is engaged in supporting green hydrogen. However a steady pipeline of early projects supported by a clear financeable route to market will be needed to secure this supply chain capability through to widescale commercial deployment.
• There are gaps in the Scottish supply chain in the areas of design manufacture and maintenance of hydrogen production storage and transportation systems. Support including apprenticeships will be needed to develop indigenous skills and capabilities in these areas.
• The development of green hydrogen from offshore wind has the potential to create high value jobs a significant proportion which are likely to be in remote rural/coastal communities located close to offshore wind resources. These can serve as an avenue for workers to redeploy and develop skills learned from oil and gas in line with Just Transition principles.

The World Energy Transitions Outlook preview outlines a pathway for the world to achieve the Paris Agreement goals and halt the pace of climate change by transforming the global energy landscape. This preview presents options to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C and bring CO₂ emissions closer to net zero by mid-century offering high-level insights on technology choices investment needs and the socio-economic contexts of achieving a sustainable resilient and inclusive energy future.



Meeting CO₂ reduction targets by 2050 will require a combination of: technology and innovation to advance the energy transition and improve carbon management; supportive and proactive policies; associated job creation and socio-economic improvements; and international co-operation to guarantee energy availability and access.



Among key findings:

• Proven technologies for a net-zero energy system already largely exist today. Renewable power green hydrogen and modern bioenergy will dominate the world of energy of the future.
• A combination of technologies is needed to keep us on a 1.5°C climate pathway. These include increasingly efficient energy production to ensure economic growth; decarbonised power systems that are dominated by renewables; increased use of electricity in buildings industry and transport to support decarbonisation; expanded production and use of green hydrogen synthetic fuels and feedstocks; and targeted use of sustainably sourced biomass.
• In anticipation of the coming energy transition financial markets and investors are already directing capital away from fossil fuels and towards other energy technologies including renewables.
• Energy transition investment will have to increase by 30% over planned investment to a total of USD 131 trillion between now and 2050 corresponding to USD 4.4 trillion on average every year.
• National social and economic policies will play fundamental roles in delivering the energy transition at the speed required to restrict global warming to 1.5°C.

This preview identifies opportunities to support informed policy and decision making to establish a new global energy system. Following this preview and aligned with the UN High-Level Dialogue process the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) will release the full report which will provide a comprehensive vision and accompanying policy measures for the transition.

The Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) has developed an internationally peer-reviewed model of the UK’s national energy system extending across power heat transport and infrastructure. The Energy System Modelling Environment (ESME) is a policy neutral system-wide optimisation model. It models the key technology and engineering choices taking account of cost engineering spatial and temporal factors.

Key points:

• A system-wide perspective informed by modelling is highly relevant because complex energy systems are made more inter-dependent by emissions reduction objectives
• Efforts to cut emissions are substitutable across a national energy system encompassing power heat transport and infrastructure.
• Energy systems are subject to key decision points and it is important to make the right choices in major long lived investments
• Policy makers should place policy in a system-wide context.

The ETI’s current ESME-based analysis of the UK energy system shows that

• Decarbonisation can be achieved affordably (at around 0.6% of GDP) provided that the most cost effective technologies and strategies to reduce emissions are deployed
• A broad portfolio of technologies is needed to deliver emissions reductions with bio-energy and carbon capture and storage of particular system-wide importance

Policy makers can use energy system modelling to inform market and policy design increase understanding of pathways (including the impacts of ‘real world’ constraints and inertia in deploying technology) and identify key ‘contender’ technologies with particular system-wide value.

Outline

This is the eighth annual Progress Report to the Scottish Parliament required by Scottish Ministers under the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009. It assesses Scotland’s progress in achieving its legislated targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

Overall greenhouse gas emissions reduced by 3% in 2017 compared to a 10% fall in 2016. The fall was again led by the power sector due in large part to Scotland’s first full year of coal-free electricity generation. Recent performance in other sectors shows only incremental improvement at best and unless emissions reductions are delivered economy-wide Scotland is at risk of missing its new interim target of a 56% reduction in emissions by 2020.

Key findings

Setting a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions target for 2045 represents a step-change in ambition for Scotland.

The Scottish Parliament’s 2030 target to reduce emissions by 75% will be extremely challenging to meet. It must be backed up by steps to drive meaningful emissions reductions immediately.

Scotland’s Programme for Government 2019-20 alongside other recent policies sent a clear signal that the Scottish Government is taking its more ambitious targets seriously but there is much more to do.

Scotland’s ability to deliver its net-zero target is contingent on action taken in the UK and vice versa.

This brief explores recent momentum on hydrogen and evaluates potential implications for subsidies for fossil fuel-based hydrogen given the government's commitments on fossil fuel subsidies.

Spending on hydrogen has the potential to significantly influence the direction taken by the world’s energy systems. In December 2020 Canada unveiled a national hydrogen strategy following the announcement of a strengthened climate plan. The strategy emphasized both blue and green hydrogen. As the government considers whether to provide subsidies for hydrogen we recommend government:

• Ensure that any subsidies for hydrogen are in line with the government’s commitments to phase out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies by 2025 and meet net-zero by 2050.
• Thoroughly evaluate the potential efficiency of subsidies for hydrogen against robust social environmental and economic criteria. • Improve transparency by publicly reporting on direct spending and tax expenditures for hydrogen production.
• Follow international best practices being set by Canada’s peers. For example Germany and Spain have laid out hydrogen strategies prioritizing green hydrogen.

Based on IISD's analysis subsidies for hydrogen based on natural gas without significant levels of carbon capture and storage (CCS) should not be eligible for government assistance. Subsidies for blue hydrogen should only occur if blue hydrogen can meet the same level of environmental performance (including emission intensity) and is at or below the cost of green hydrogen.

This brief is one of three International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) policy briefs in its Recovery Through Reform series which assesses how efforts to achieve a green recovery from COVID-19 in Canada rely on—and can contribute to—fossil fuel subsidy reform.

Hydrogen has been identified as a potential energy vector to decarbonise the transport and chemical sectors and achieve global greenhouse gas reduction targets. Despite ongoing efforts hydrogen technologies are often assessed focusing on their global warming potential while overlooking other impacts or at most including additional metrics that are not easily interpretable. Herein a wide range of alternative technologies have been assessed to determine the total cost of hydrogen production by coupling life-cycle assessments with an economic evaluation of the environmental externalities of production. By including monetised values of environmental impacts on human health ecosystem quality and resources on top of the levelised cost of hydrogen production an estimation of the “real” total cost of hydrogen was obtained to transparently rank the alternative technologies. The study herein covers steam methane reforming (SMR) coal and biomass gasification methane pyrolysis and electrolysis from renewable and nuclear technologies. Monetised externalities are found to represent a significant percentage of the total cost ultimately altering the standard ranking of technologies. SMR coupled with carbon capture and storage emerges as the cheapest option followed by methane pyrolysis and water electrolysis from wind and nuclear. The obtained results identify the “real” ranges for the cost of hydrogen compared to SMR (business as usual) by including environmental externalities thereby helping to pinpoint critical barriers for emerging and competing technologies to SMR.

Since the COP 21 meeting in Paris in December 2015 there has been a growing realisation that with the long-term objective that the energy system should be approaching carbon-neutrality by 2050 continuing to burn significant quantities of fossil-derived natural gas will not be sustainable. If existing natural gas infrastructure is to avoid becoming stranded assets plans to decarbonise the gas system need to be developed as a matter of urgency in the next three to five years given the typical life expectancy of such assets of 20 years or more. One of the options to decarbonise gas is “power-to-gas”: production of hydrogen or renewable methane via electrolysis using surplus renewable electricity. This Energy Insight reviews the status of power-to-gas and makes an assessment of potential future development pathways and the role which it could play in decarbonising the energy system.



Link to document on the OIES website

The report “Hydrogen for Net Zero” presents an ambitious yet realistic deployment scenario until 2030 and 2050 to achieve Net Zero emissions considering the uses of hydrogen in industry power mobility and buildings. The scenario is described in terms of hydrogen demand supply infrastructure abatement potential and investments required and then compared with current momentum and investments in the industry to identify the investment gaps across value chains and geographies.

The report is based on the technoeconomic data of cost and performance of hydrogen technologies provided by Hydrogen Council members and McKinsey & Company as well as the Hydrogen Council investment tracker which covers all large-scale investments into hydrogen globally.

Link to their website

The use of hydrogen energy and the associated technologies is expected to increase in the coming years. The success of hydrogen energy technology (HET) is however dependent on public acceptance of the technology. Developing this new industry in a socially responsible way will require an understanding of the psychology factors that may facilitate or impede its public acceptance. This paper reviews 27 quantitative studies that have explored the relationship between psychological factors and HET acceptance. The findings from the review suggest that the perceived effects of the technology (i.e. the perceived benefits costs and risks) and the associated emotions are strong drivers of HET acceptance. This paper does though highlight some limitations with past research that make it difficult to make strong conclusions about the factors that influence HET acceptance. The review also reveals that few studies have investigated acceptance of different types of HET beyond a couple of applications. The paper ends with a discussion about directions for future research and highlights some practical implications for messaging and policy.