Policy & Socio-Economics

Electricity access deficits remain acute in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) where more than 600 million people lack reliable supply. Green hydrogen produced through renewablepowered electrolysis is increasingly recognized as a transformative energy carrier for decentralized systems due to its capacity for long-duration storage sector coupling and near-zero carbon emissions. This review adheres strictly to the PRISMA 2020 methodology examining 190 records and synthesizing 80 peer-reviewed articles and industry reports released from 2010 to 2025. The review covers hydrogen production processes hybrid renewable integration techno-economic analysis environmental compromises global feasibility and enabling policy incentives. The findings show that Alkaline (AEL) and PEM electrolyzers are immediately suitable for off-grid scenarios whereas Solid Oxide (SOEC) and Anion Exchange Membrane (AEM) electrolyzers present high potential for future deployment. For Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) the levelized costs of hydrogen (LCOH) are in the range of EUR5.0–7.7/kg. Nonetheless estimates from the learning curve indicate that these costs could fall to between EUR1.0 and EUR1.5 per kg by 2050 assuming there is (i) continued public support for the technology innovation (ii) appropriate flexible and predictable regulation (iii) increased demand for hydrogen and (iv) a stable and long-term policy framework. Environmental life-cycle assessments indicate that emissions are nearly zero but they also highlight serious concerns regarding freshwater usage land occupation and dependence on platinum group metals. Namibia South Africa and Kenya exhibit considerable promise in the early stages of development while Niger demonstrates the feasibility of deploying modular community-scale systems in challenging conditions. The study concludes that green hydrogen cannot be treated as an integrated solution but needs to be regarded as part of blended off-grid systems. To improve its role targeted material innovation blended finance and policies bridging export-oriented applications to community-scale access must be established. It will then be feasible to ensure that hydrogen

Emissions from fossil fuel extraction conveyance and combustion are among the most significant causes of air pollution and climate change leading to arguably the most acute crises mankind has ever faced. The transition from fossil fuel-based energy systems to hydrogen is essential for meeting a portion of global decarbonization goals. Hydrogen offers certain features such as high gravimetric energy density that is required for heavy-duty shipping and freight applications and chemical properties such as high temperature combustion and reducing capabilities that are required for steel chemicals and fertilizer industries. However hydrogen that leaks has indirect climate implications stemming from atmospheric interactions that are emerging as a critical area of research. This study reviews recent literature on hydrogen’s global warming potential (GWP) highlighting its indirect contributions to radiative forcing via methane’s extended atmospheric lifetime tropospheric ozone formation and stratospheric water vapor formation. The 100-year GWP (GWP100) of hydrogen estimated to range between 8 and 12.8 underscores the need to minimize leakage throughout the hydrogen supply chain to maximize the climate benefits of using hydrogen instead of fossil fuels. Comparisons with methane reveal hydrogen’s shorter atmospheric lifetime and reduced long-term warming effects establishing it as a viable substitute for fossil fuels in sectors such as steel cement and heavy-duty transport. The analysis emphasizes the importance of accurate leakage assessments robust policy frameworks and advanced infrastructure to ensure hydrogen realizes its potential as a sustainable energy carrier that displaces the use of fossil fuels. Future research is recommended to refine climate models better understand atmospheric sinks and hydrogen leakage phenomena and develop effective strategies to minimize hydrogen emissions paving the way for environmentally sound use of hydrogen.

Green hydrogen produced through renewable energy sources is emerging as a pivotal element in global energy transitions. Despite its potential public acceptance remains a critical barrier to its large-scale implementation. This study aims to identify the socio-political and demographic determinants of public acceptance of green hydrogen. Using advanced variable selection methods including ridge lasso and elastic net regression we analyzed perceptions of climate change trust in government policies and demographic characteristics. The findings reveal that individuals prioritizing climate change over economic growth perceiving its impacts as severe and recognizing it as South Korea’s most pressing issue are more likely to accept green hydrogen. Trust in the government’s climate change response also emerged as a key factor. Demographic characteristics such as younger age higher income advanced education smaller family size and conservative political ideology were significantly associated with greater acceptance. These results highlight the importance of raising public awareness about the urgency of climate change and enhancing trust in government policies to promote societal acceptance of green hydrogen. Policymakers should consider these factors when developing strategies to advance the adoption of green hydrogen technologies and foster sustainable energy transitions.

Within energy system analysis there is discourse regarding the role and economic benefits of nuclear energy in terms of overall system costs. The reported findings range from considerable drawbacks to substantial benefits depending on the chosen models scenarios and underlying assumptions. This article addresses existing gaps by demonstrating how subtle variations in model assumptions significantly impact analysis outcomes. Historically uncertainties associated with nuclear energy costs have been well documented whereas renewable energy costs have steadily declined and have been relatively predictable. However as land availability increasingly constrains future renewable expansion development is shifting from onshore to offshore locations where cost uncertainties are greater and anticipated cost reductions are less reliable. This study emphasizes this fundamental shift highlighting how uncertainties in future renewable energy costs could strengthen the economic case of nuclear energy within fully integrated sector-coupled energy systems especially when the costs of all technologies and weather conditions are set in the moderate range. Focusing specifically on Denmark this article presents a thorough sensitivity analysis of renewable energy costs and weather conditions within anticipated future ranges providing a nuanced perspective on the role of nuclear energy. Ultimately the findings underscore that when examining total annual system costs the differences between scenarios with low and high nuclear energy shares are minimal and are within ±5 % for the baseline assumptions while updated adjustments reduce this variation to ±1 %.

Achieving net-zero emissions requires major changes across a nation’s economy energy and land systems particularly due to sectors where emissions are difficult to eliminate. Here we adapt two global scenarios from the International Energy Agency—the net-zero emissions by 2050 and the Stated Policies Scenario—using an integrated numerical economic-energy model tailored to Australia. We explore how emissions may evolve by sector and identify key technologies for decarbonisation. Our results show that a rapid shift to near-zero emissions electricity is central to reducing costs and enabling wider emissions reductions. From 2030 onwards carbon removal through land management and engineered solutions such as direct air capture and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage becomes critical. Australia is also well-positioned to become a global supplier of clean energy such as hydrogen made using renewable electricity helping reduce emissions beyond its borders.

Export-oriented green-hydrogen projects (EOGH2P) are being developed in regions with optimal renewableenergy resources. Their reliance on economies of scale makes them land-intensive and object of spatial planning policies. However the impact of spatial planning on the development of EOGH2P remains underexplored. Drawing on the spatial planning and megaproject literatures the analysis of planning documents and expert interviews this paper analyzes how spatial planning influences the development of EOGH2P in Chile Namibia and South Africa. The three countries have developed different spatial planning approaches for EOGH2Ps and are analyzed by employing a comparative case-study design. Our findings reveal that Namibia pursues a restrictive approach South Africa a facilitative approach whereas Chile is shifting from a market-based to a restrictive approach. The respective approaches reflect different political priorities and stakeholder interests and imply diverse effects on the development of EOGH2Ps in terms of their number size shared infrastructure socioenvironmental impact and acceptance. This study underscores the need for well-designed spatial planning frameworks and provides insights for planners and stakeholders on their potential effects.

The effects of climate change and reliance on fossil fuels in the Alps highlight the need for energy sufficiency improved efficiency and renewable energy deployment to support decarbonization goals. Hydrogen has gained attention as a versatile zero-emission energy carrier with the potential to drive cleaner energy solutions and sustainable tourism in Alpine regions. This study shares findings from a hydrogen survey conducted within the Interreg Alpine Space AMETHyST project which included questionnaires and roundtable discussions across Alpine territories. The survey explored hydrogen’s role in decarbonizing the Alps gathering insights from local stakeholders about their knowledge expertise needs and targets for hydrogen solutions. It also mapped existing hydrogen initiatives. Results revealed strong interest in hydrogen implementation with many territories eager to launch projects. However high investment and operational costs along with associated risks are key barriers. The absence of clear local hydrogen strategies and of a comprehensive regulatory framework also poses significant challenges. Incentivization schemes could facilitate initiatives and foster local hydrogen economies. The most promising application areas for hydrogen in the Alps are private and public mobility sectors. The residential sector particularly in tourist accommodations also presents potential. Regardless of specific uses developing renewable energy capacity and infrastructure is essential to create green hydrogen ecosystems that can store excess renewable energy from intermittent sources for later use.

Hydrogen (H2) used as feedstock (i.e. as raw material) in chemicals refineries and steel is currently produced from fossil fuels thus leading to significant carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. As these hard-to-abate sectors have limited electrification alternatives H2 produced by electrolysis offers a potential option for decarbonising them. Existing modelling analyses to date provide limited insights due to their predominant use of sector-specific static non-recursive and non-open models. This paper advances research by presenting a dynamic recursive open-access energy model using System Dynamics to study long-term systemic and environmental impacts of transitioning from fossil-based methods to electrolytic H2 production for industrial feedstock. The regional model adopts a bottom-up approach and is applied to the EU across five innovative decarbonisation scenarios including varying technological transition speeds and a paradigm-shift scenario (Degrowth). Our results indicate that assuming continued H2 demand trends and large-scale electrolytic H2 deployment by 2030 grid decarbonisation in the EU must accelerate to ensure green H2 for industrial feedstock emits less CO2 than fossil fuel methods doubling the current pace. Otherwise electrolytic H2 won’t offer clear CO2 reduction benefits until 2040. The most effective CO2 emission mitigation occurs in growth-oriented ambitious decarbonisation (− 91 %) and Degrowth (− 97 %) scenarios. From a sectoral perspective H2 use in steel industry achieves significantly greater decarbonisation (− 97 %). However meeting electricity demand for electrolytic H2 (700–1180 TWh in 2050 for 14–22.5 Mtons) in growth-oriented scenarios would require 25 %–42 % of the EU’s current electricity generation exceeding current renewable capacity and placing significant pressure on future power system development.

The EU targets 10 Mt of green hydrogen production by 2030 but has not committed to targets for 2040. Green hydrogen competes with carbon capture and storage biomass and imports as well as direct electrification in reaching emissions reductions; earlier studies have demonstrated the great uncertainty in future costoptimal development of green hydrogen. In spite of this we show that Europe risks little by setting green hydrogen production targets at around 25 Mt by 2040. Employing an extensive scenario analysis combined with novel near-optimal techniques we find that this target results in systems that are within 10% of cost-optimal in all considered scenarios with current-day biomass availability and baseline transportation electrification. Setting concrete targets is important in order to resolve significant uncertainty that hampers investments. Targeting green hydrogen reduces the dependence on carbon capture and storage and green fuel imports making for a more robust European climate strategy.

Hydrogen plays a key role in decarbonising hard-to-abate sectors like aviation steel and shipping. However producing pure hydrogen requires significant energy to break chemical bonds from its sources such as gas and water. Ideally the energy used for this process should match the energy output from hydrogen but in reality energy losses occur at various stages of the hydrogen economy—production packaging delivery and use. This results in needing more energy to operate the hydrogen economy than it can ultimately provide. To address this passive power sources like latent thermal energy storage systems can help reduce costs and improve efficiency. These systems can enable passive cooling or electricity generation from waste heat cutting down on the extra energy needed for compression liquefaction and distribution. This study explores integrating latent thermal energy storage into all stages of the hydrogen economy offering a cost and sizing approach for such systems. The integration could reduce costs close the waste-heat recycling loop and support green hydrogen production for achieving NetZero by 2050.