There is no doubt that we have seen setbacks in the hydrogen mobility sector in recent years. While this ‘age of realism’ has still seen a seven-fold increase in committed capital for hydrogen projects reaching final investment decision (FID) in the past four years1, sceptics question the role of hydrogen outside sectors where no viable alternatives currently exist, such as in the production of ammonia or sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
This is particularly evident in Germany: once making strong steps towards being Europe’s leading adopter of hydrogen mobility, with a willingness to build out the minimum viable network for light-duty hydrogen vehicles, strong policy incentives, and generous funding for heavy-duty hydrogen vehicles and HRS, the cancellation of funding and crash of greenhouse gas (GHG) quota prices over the past year have made the business case for hydrogen mobility increasingly challenging and risky. Inevitably, this has led to a loss in momentum which the sector (and indeed, the planet) does not have time for.
Now is a crucial time to reexamine the need for hydrogen in decarbonising our heavy-duty transport systems, and what we need to do now to enable its implementation.
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