The government has been urged to support the installation of 10GW of electrolysers by 2035 to drive down the cost of producing green hydrogen using renewable power.
Renewable UK said deploying the first 5GW of electrolyser capacity by 2030 could lower costs by around three quarters and make green hydrogen cost competitive with, or even cheaper than, blue hydrogen extracted from methane.
The trade association called on ministers to publish a strategy setting out how green hydrogen can be transformed from “a niche technology to the central pillar of the UK’s energy system”. It said the strategy should include a roadmap out to 2050 and a plan for delivering the first gigawatt of electrolyser capacity.
“We can use electrification to decarbonise domestic cars and a good proportion of people’s homes,” the organisation stated in a new report. “But in other sectors, such as freight transport on land and sea, and for heat in the gas networks and industrial processes, electrification will be challenging.
“Reducing emissions from these sectors requires molecules not electrons. Renewable hydrogen is the zero-carbon molecule that can deliver decarbonisation in these sectors and, as such, it is vital that its development is supported and brought forward as soon as possible.”
RenewableUK said the conventional method for producing hydrogen – steam methane reformation (SMR) – has serious flaws: “The SMR method of hydrogen production is a highly carbon intensive process – for every ton of hydrogen, ten tonnes of carbon dioxide are produced.
“Using fossil fuels to create hydrogen therefore necessitates the use of carbon capture technologies (CCS) to reduce emissions. However, CCS is currently only around 80 to 90 per cent efficient, meaning it still releases a significant portion of the carbon dioxide and will add significant cost.”
By contrast: “Renewable hydrogen can make our energy system more flexible by offering alternative offtake for power production from renewables where grid capacity or oversupply creates constraints. Presently at times of high wind generation, and low demand, National Grid ESO constrains off wind generation to maintain system stability on some areas, particularly Scotland.
“With renewable hydrogen production coupled to the electricity system, this spare capacity can be used to produce hydrogen. This hydrogen can then be stored for long periods, and/or be delivered to the growing market of hydrogen demand cases in other sectors.”
Barnaby Wharton, director of future electricity systems at RenewableUK, said: “Renewable hydrogen is the next big global industry in the decades ahead. The UK is well placed to lead this new industry, with plentiful renewable resources and world leading hydrogen companies.
“We can drive down costs fast, replicating our spectacular success in offshore wind cost reduction, offering consumers cheaper energy. We can’t let this opportunity slip through our fingers if the UK wants to stay at the cutting edge of innovation in renewable energy, with all the economic benefits that will bring.
“We’re urging government to come on board with us by setting out a strategy to secure a multi-billion-pound prize which will create tens of thousands of jobs around the country, especially in areas which need levelling up, as a key part of the UK’s green economic recovery”.