A new study has detailed how hydrogen energy can make up around one-fifth of the total energy mix by 2050, helping to keep global warming below two degrees Celsius.
The report was commissioned by the Hydrogen Council, a coalition formed earlier this year featuring the CEOs of automotive and energy giants including Shell, Air Liquide, General Motors, Statoil, BMW and Toyota. Entitled Hydrogen, Scaling up, it provides a roadmap for the expansion of the sector. By 2030, 10 to 15 million cars and 500,000 trucks could be hydrogen-powered. Overall, total demand could increase tenfold to almost 80EJ (around 22,000TWh) by 2050, according to the study.
Seven particular areas were identified by the council where hydrogen energy can play a key role:
- Enabling large-scale renewable energy integration and power generation
- Distributing energy across sectors and regions
- Acting as a buffer to increase energy system resilience
- Decarbonising transportation
- Decarbonising industrial energy use
- Helping to decarbonise building heat and power
- Providing clean feedstock for industry