Author: Arnes Biogradlija

Hydrogen

Spain’s strategic push into hydrogen infrastructure just secured a significant €32.5 million grant from Brussels, with Asturias emerging as a key node in the nation’s evolving hydrogen backbone, anchoring the Runners Via de Plata and Cantábrico corridors. At the recent “Enagás H₂ Technical Day,” CEO Arturo Gonzalo underscored that this funding, part of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), demonstrates Brussels’ growing confidence in Enagás’ technical roadmap. He emphasized that momentum across the sector is accelerating: regulatory frameworks are tightening, infrastructure planning is maturing, and enabling technologies are proving viable at scale. Regulatory & Economic Context Spain’s hydrogen ambitions are nested within…

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Green Hydrogen

The European Commission faces growing pressure to address allegations that it indirectly financed climate lawsuits against German companies. This controversy is reigniting broader tensions between Brussels’ climate agenda and Europe’s industrial competitiveness. The Economic Council of the CDU has called for a full investigation, urging Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to clarify whether funds under her tenure supported legal actions by climate activists targeting the private sector. At the center of the storm is a series of press reports suggesting EU-linked financial channels may have supported lawsuits aimed at accelerating climate enforcement through the courts, potentially weaponizing regulation against…

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hydrogen

HyTerra’s Nemaha Project in Kansas has entered a critical new phase with the company confirming expansion of its drilling program to three firm wells, supported by early signs of a viable natural hydrogen and helium system. The Blythe 13-20 well, completed on time and budget, is the most recent development, with mud gas readings and geological data reinforcing initial findings from the earlier Sue Duroche 3 well. The decision to add a third well, McCoy 1, reflects growing confidence in a play that remains high-risk but potentially transformative for the emerging natural (white) hydrogen market. Deep Drilling, Deeper Expectations Drilled…

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hydrogen

Spain’s Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) has released €524 million in aid to five renewable hydrogen projects, boasting a combined electrolyser capacity of 425 MW and targeting 55,200 tonnes of annual green hydrogen output. While the figures are impressive, expert assessments reveal a growing disconnect between funding ambitions and the regulatory and logistical framework needed to make these industrial-scale projects economically viable. State Aid Meets Stagnant FrameworksThe selected projects—Green H2 Los Barrios, Asturias H2 Valley, Bilbao and Cartagena Large Scale Electrolyzers, and Ver-Amonia—benefit from IPCEI (Important Projects of Common European Interest) status, allowing them to…

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Hydrogen

Replacing global hydrogen production with green alternatives would demand the entire output of the U.S. electrical grid. This stark reality underscores a fundamental truth Joseph Romm, physicist and former U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) official, has emphasized for two decades: hydrogen’s crippling inefficiency as an energy carrier makes it unfit for mass decarbonization. WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW Romm’s initial DOE work in the 1990s involved boosting hydrogen R&D, driven by apparent advances in fuel cell technology and political momentum. Early promises—like onboard gasoline reformers enabling hydrogen vehicles without new infrastructure—proved illusory. “Arthur D. Little said they’d crack on board reforming.…

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CO₂ Storage

In a year when Europe is under increasing pressure to accelerate climate action, the Northern Lights CO₂ storage project—Norway’s high-profile bid to commercialize carbon capture and storage (CCS)—is preparing to launch operations. Hailed as a cornerstone for Europe’s future CCS market, the project is set to begin storing industrial emissions beneath the North Sea this summer. But beneath the surface, analysts warn of mounting logistical constraints, underwhelming capacity, and ballooning costs that challenge the project’s promise as a scalable climate solution. A Pioneering Project Under Pressure Northern Lights, backed by oil majors Equinor, Shell, and TotalEnergies, and funded in part…

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Hydrogen

Air Products’ staggering $1.7 billion quarterly loss, driven primarily by a $2.3 billion write-down on abandoned hydrogen projects, serves as a stark wake-up call for an industry grappling with the chasm between ambition and economic reality. This retreat, including the cancellation of a green liquid hydrogen plant in New York and a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) project in California under new CEO Eduardo F. Menezes, starkly contrasts the Hydrogen Council’s 2024 report touting over 1,500 announced global hydrogen projects representing $680 billion in potential investment through 2030, with a record $75 billion reaching Final Investment Decision (FID). This dissonance is…

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