According to industry experts speaking at the Post event, the Asia-Pacific region has the scope and ability to become a hydrogen superpower, but doing so would need collaboration between nations due to their diverse energy environments.
Summer Chen, energy and low carbon transition expert at the global consultancy Environmental Resources Management (ERM), stated during the event that the nations in the Asia-Pacific area “complement each other.”
The two countries that suffer the most with energy security and self-sufficiency are South Korea and Japan, two of the biggest hydrogen importers worldwide. However, the two nations take the lead in the use of hydrogen, leading the world in the production of fuel cell cars that are exported to Australia and Europe. A collaboration agreement on liquefied hydrogen transportation technologies has also been inked by South Korea and Norway.
Australia has the ability to compete with China in the production of hydrogen and be a significant provider and exporter of hydrogen in the Asian market since it has an extensive supply of fossil fuels and renewable energy sources. However, Chen said that it would have to acquire fuel cell cars from nations like Japan and Korea.
Due to its fast-growing potential for renewable energy, China already produces and consumes the most hydrogen in the world. According to information from March provided by the National Development and Reform Commission, the nation now produces about 33 million tonnes of hydrogen annually, while having a 40 million tonnes yearly capability.
Despite the fact that less than 10% of China’s total hydrogen output is green hydrogen, Chen claims that the nation leads the world in water electrolyzer technology due to its efficiency and price competitiveness. Chen estimates that the cost of producing green hydrogen in China is 7,000 yuan per kilowatt-hour, which is less than half the cost in European nations.
According to Yuki Yu, the founder of Energy Iceberg, a consultancy that specializes in China’s energy market, over 90% of the hydrogen generated in China today is still the so-called grey hydrogen created from fossil fuels, with the bulk being produced through coal gasification.
Additionally, Chen said that China’s ability to participate in international hydrogen markets will be constrained by the country’s need for its domestically generated hydrogen, which will likely have to be stored in China owing to high local demand.
China has the potential to become the greatest market for green hydrogen in the world, despite the country’s objective of peaking carbon dioxide emissions before 2030. China is still the world’s largest producer of coal. According to Yu, this is created by converting water into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable power, which can result in zero emissions.
China presently has 274 green hydrogen projects, according to an Energy Iceberg study. Though many are anticipated to go online by 2025, more are now in the planning phases than in operation.
Gas and power utilities, industrial gas firms, national and international oil corporations, as well as gas and power utilities, need to be present, according to Fortune Oil’s Jones. “In the future of hydrogen energy, I envision more participants and a more diverse supply.”
