Up to 42% of EU’s hydrogen consumption in 2025 may come from ports

Up to 42% of the predicted 53 million tonnes (or 1,764 TWh) total EU hydrogen demand in 2050, or 22 million tonnes (or 730 TWh), might be found in port regions.

The Clean Hydrogen Partnership, a public-private cooperation for the research and development of fuel cell and hydrogen energy technologies in Europe, did a study for them that emphasises this point. Noting that in order to fulfil its 2030 renewable hydrogen ambitions, the EU needs to dramatically speed up the deployment of infrastructure for hydrogen production, terminals, import, conversion, storage, transport, and consumption in port ecosystems,

According to the report, the demand for hydrogen in European port regions should be primarily driven by industries and the global maritime transport sector, which will account for 42% and 31% of overall demand in port areas, respectively, in 2050.

According to the study, the largest hydrogen demand cluster, which includes Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Northern Germany, will be heavily dependent on the importation of green and blue hydrogen (between 40% and 80% of total hydrogen consumption), primarily from North Africa (Morocco, Egypt, Algeria), the Middle East (Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar), and even farther afield (for example, such as Australia). According to the paper, some intra-European hydrogen exports and imports (such as those from Spain to France) can also be anticipated.

The Clean Hydrogen Partnership also noted that the study by Deloitte Belgium has a unique feature in that the specific findings for each of the 427 European seaports and inland ports examined in relation to the future demand for hydrogen, the supply, the relative reduction of CO2 equivalent, and the infrastructure needed for each period (2030, 2040, and 2050) and the forecast scenarios are freely accessible via a dynamic online dashboard that is included with the repository.

According to Clean Hydrogen Partnership, the dashboard gives each port authority and other members of the economic port community precise information on the potential for hydrogen consumption in each port ecosystem and on the relative reduction of CO2,