The government of the United Kingdom has announced funding in the millions of pounds for low-carbon hydrogen production. It comes as a part of a funding package that amounts to 90 million pound package that comes from an even bigger 500 million pound innovation fund. Even still there is concern that there are too many environmental challenges when it comes to taking hydrogen production to a larger scale. Yet others say that the price is going down, and hydrogen might finally become a staple of energy infrastructure.
The Funding
Funding that is the United Kingdom is 28 million pounds, or $36.47 million for five projects focused on hydrogen production. The program is known as Hydrogen Supply, it will focus on five projects that they say are in the demonstration phase. The government has described as two low-carbon hydrogen plants. One is in the northwest of England and the other is near Aberdeen, Scotland. In addition to the money, there is a new a program that aims to use offshore wind power to produce hydrogen through electrolysis.
Support for Hydrogen
The European Union has described hydrogen as an energy carrier with great potential for clean, efficient power in applications that are not only stationary but portable and for transport. A benefit of using hydrogen fuel cells is that the only release when you burn it are water and warm air. This is according to the US Department of Energy's Alternative Fuels Data Center. Toyota and Honda have even released hydrogen fuel cell models.
Environmental Challenges
Still, despite all the positivity surrounding hydrogen, large-scale production remains supplied by fossils fuels according to the International Energy Agency. This is because they are the dominant source of power to this day. They state that hydrogen production is roughly responsible for 830 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year while some argue that once the hydrogen market is viable it will power itself. This is a good argument, but up until now hydrogen has been exceedingly expensive.
The Cost of Hydrogen
Currently hydrogen is much more expensive than other fuel sources, but according to the specialists at MoneyPug, which is used to compare energy prices, the cost of hydrogen is set to decrease. This makes it a perfect time for the UK government to invest in the industry, it has its chance to take off. Technologies that facilitate the production of hydrogen ease about 20 percent of the planet's CO2 by the year 2050.
Future of Hydrogen
The opportunity for the hydrogen industry is important. Brexit is official and it will be a lot more difficult for the United Kingdom to produce renewable energy because the country relies on foreign workers and materials from other EU countries. Generation of hydrogen-using renewable sources like wind are becoming increasingly pivotal. The UK, in fact, is a leader of the wind industry. Hydrogen hasn't traditionally been a competitor to how much can be produced with wind, hydro, or even solar in the UK.
The government of Britain announcing that they will invest in hydrogen could be a turning point. The world is anxious to see how the market will proceed with proper investment, including whether it can be efficient concerning fossil fuels and the cost of hydrogen production.
The World Economic Forum has said that a hydrogen revolution could be on the horizon. There hasn't been much money invested in the hydrogen industry and they are predicted that the cost of hydrogen will go down. That could mean with subsidies like the ones offered by the United Kingdom, the hydrogen industry could grow beyond its initial cost and reliance on fossil fuels.
While there is no one-stop-show for our energy and climate woes, investing in the propagation of hydrogen will lead to cleaner energy. Hydrogen is just one piece of the pie. We need it to be cheaper but we also need it to work in tandem with wind, solar, and other sources of renewable energy. Many see the United Kingdom's investment as a sign that the industry will indeed grow to provide clean power at an affordable price.
