Close Menu
Energy NewsEnergy News
  • NEWS
    • Breaking News
    • Hydrogen
    • Energy Storage
    • Grid
    • SMR
    • Projects
    • Production
    • Transport
    • Research
  • SPOTLIGHT
    • Interviews
    • Face 2 Face
    • Podcast
    • Webinars
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Reviews
    • Events
  • REGIONAL
    • Africa
    • Americas
    • Asia
    • Europe
    • Middle east
    • Pacific
  • COMMUNITY
  • ABOUT
    • Advisory Board
    • Contact us
    • Report Your News
    • Advertize
    • Subscribe
LinkedIn X (Twitter) YouTube Facebook
Trending
  • Hydrogen’s Uneven Ascent: Market Momentum Meets Structural Barriers
  • Inner Mongolia’s $750M Hydrogen Gambit: Testing China’s Liquid Infrastructure Strategy
  • Idaho Hosts U.S. First Sodium-Cooled Extra-Modular Reactor as Aalo Targets AI-Powered Energy Future
  • Germany’s Northern Grid Expands Storage Capacity as Eco Stor Deploys 103.5-MW BESS in Schuby
  • Future Proof Shipping’s Hydrogen Barges Generate 2,000-3,000 Tonne CO2 Savings Despite Economic Challenges
  • India-Japan Hydrogen Declaration Builds Cross-Border Supply Chains Amid Record-Low Ammonia Pricing
  • Mexico’s 2.2 Million Tonne Green Methanol Project Secures FEED Contract as Fixed-Price Structure Mitigates Development Risk
  • Grid Inertia Crisis Drives Flywheel Technology Adoption as Renewable Penetration Accelerates
LinkedIn X (Twitter) YouTube Facebook
Energy NewsEnergy News
  • NEWS
    • Breaking News
    • Hydrogen
    • Energy Storage
    • Grid
    • SMR
    • Projects
    • Production
    • Transport
    • Research
  • SPOTLIGHT
    • Interviews
    • Face 2 Face
    • Podcast
    • Webinars
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Reviews
    • Events
  • REGIONAL
    • Africa
    • Americas
    • Asia
    • Europe
    • Middle east
    • Pacific
  • COMMUNITY
  • ABOUT
    • Advisory Board
    • Contact us
    • Report Your News
    • Advertize
    • Subscribe
Energy NewsEnergy News
Home Home - Analysis
hydrogen

Hydrogen’s Uneven Ascent: Market Momentum Meets Structural Barriers

Arnes BiogradlijaBy Arnes Biogradlija03/09/20253 Mins Read
Share
LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email WhatsApp Telegram

Global hydrogen markets are expanding at a rapid clip, with projections suggesting the sector could reach $410 billion by 2030, up from roughly $155 billion today. Much of this growth rests on policy-driven momentum—particularly in the EU, Japan, and South Korea—where hydrogen strategies are tightly woven into decarbonization pathways. Yet the trajectory is anything but linear, as structural barriers continue to blunt scale-up efforts.

A critical challenge lies in the cost equation. Despite falling renewable electricity prices, green hydrogen production remains two to three times more expensive than fossil-based hydrogen. Electrolyzer costs, hovering at $900–1,200/kW, must fall significantly if the sector is to hit the International Energy Agency’s cost-parity scenarios for the 2030s. Deployment numbers suggest progress but remain marginal: installed electrolyzer capacity stood at just 1 GW in 2022, a fraction of the 100–200 GW required by the end of the decade to align with net-zero roadmaps.

Transport and storage provide another friction point. While pipelines offer the most cost-effective bulk option, conversion infrastructure is largely absent. Liquid hydrogen transport, though technically feasible, suffers from a 30–40% energy penalty, undermining its efficiency case. Ammonia and LOHC carriers provide alternatives but introduce additional conversion costs and safety concerns. The absence of harmonized technical standards further complicates cross-border trade ambitions, particularly between Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.

Policy incentives are attempting to bridge these gaps. The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act’s $3/kg production tax credit has triggered a surge of project announcements, with over 10 Mtpa of clean hydrogen capacity now in the pipeline. In Europe, the Hydrogen Bank and Contracts for Difference schemes aim to reduce offtake risk by guaranteeing price stability. Yet analysts caution that subsidy-driven expansion risks overshooting demand, as downstream sectors—steel, refining, shipping—remain hesitant to commit to long-term contracts without clearer signals on carbon pricing and regulatory timelines.

Industrial demand, which accounts for 90 Mt of current hydrogen consumption, remains concentrated in refining and ammonia production, both heavily dependent on grey hydrogen. The pivot to green variants requires not only cost-competitiveness but also retrofitting existing facilities—investments that many firms are reluctant to undertake absent policy compulsion. In steelmaking, pilot projects in Sweden and Germany highlight technical viability but underscore the financing gap: capital costs are up to 40% higher than blast furnace alternatives, with uncertain payback horizons.

Emerging markets present both opportunity and uncertainty. Countries with abundant renewables—such as Chile, Morocco, and Australia—position themselves as export hubs. However, the lack of established hydrogen trade routes raises the risk of stranded assets. Japanese and Korean import plans remain cautious, tied closely to ammonia co-firing in power plants rather than wholesale hydrogen adoption.

The sector’s momentum is therefore best read as a tension between ambition and inertia. Scaling supply is technically feasible but economically fragile; demand-side uptake is technologically proven but commercially hesitant. Without synchronization between production scale-up, infrastructure build-out, and end-user adoption, the hydrogen economy risks developing in fragments rather than as a coherent global market.

hydrogen
Share. LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email

Related Posts

Hydrogen

Inner Mongolia’s $750M Hydrogen Gambit: Testing China’s Liquid Infrastructure Strategy

03/09/2025
Modular Reactor

Idaho Hosts U.S. First Sodium-Cooled Extra-Modular Reactor as Aalo Targets AI-Powered Energy Future

02/09/2025
Energy Storage Battery

Germany’s Northern Grid Expands Storage Capacity as Eco Stor Deploys 103.5-MW BESS in Schuby

02/09/2025
hydrogen

Future Proof Shipping’s Hydrogen Barges Generate 2,000-3,000 Tonne CO2 Savings Despite Economic Challenges

02/09/2025
hydrogen

India-Japan Hydrogen Declaration Builds Cross-Border Supply Chains Amid Record-Low Ammonia Pricing

02/09/2025
Hydrogen Methanol

Mexico’s 2.2 Million Tonne Green Methanol Project Secures FEED Contract as Fixed-Price Structure Mitigates Development Risk

02/09/2025
hydrogen

Hydrogen’s Uneven Ascent: Market Momentum Meets Structural Barriers

03/09/2025
Hydrogen

Inner Mongolia’s $750M Hydrogen Gambit: Testing China’s Liquid Infrastructure Strategy

03/09/2025
Modular Reactor

Idaho Hosts U.S. First Sodium-Cooled Extra-Modular Reactor as Aalo Targets AI-Powered Energy Future

02/09/2025
Energy Storage Battery

Germany’s Northern Grid Expands Storage Capacity as Eco Stor Deploys 103.5-MW BESS in Schuby

02/09/2025

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest news from the hydrogen market subscribe to our newsletter.

LinkedIn X (Twitter) Facebook YouTube

News

  • Inteviews
  • Webinars
  • Hydrogen
  • Spotlight
  • Regional

Company

  • Advertising
  • Media Kits
  • Contact Info
  • GDPR Policy

Subscriptions

  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Sponsored News

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest news from EnergyNewsBiz about hydrogen.

© 2025 EnergyNews.biz
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms
  • Accessibility

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.