Committee report published on the role of hydrogen in achieving Net Zero

The Science and Technology Select Committee has published its report on the role of hydrogen in achieving Net Zero

Download the full report here

Conclusions and recommendations

Hydrogen’s potential contribution to Net Zero

1. To meet the 2050 Net Zero target, decisions need to be urgently taken by the Government, which will help define hydrogen’s place in the UK’s overall decarbonisation strategy. These decisions should be integrated across Government, in policy areas such as those identified in the Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution. Decisions on hydrogen should be made in an international context and take into consideration the approaches of other countries both in terms of lessons to be learned and collaborations to be pursued. The Government should, in the next two months, outline a series of decision points between now and 2050 that will determine the role of hydrogen in the UK, in each policy area identified in the Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution. This should be accompanied by an outline of the scientific and technological progress that needs to be made to allow hydrogen to play its part in our energy system. (Paragraph 18)

2. Hydrogen has several distinctive features as a low-carbon gaseous fuel and could contribute to the UK’s energy system, including through improving resilience and energy security. Whilst in some applications hydrogen is less efficient compared to alternative low-carbon technologies, the wider energy system benefits of deploying hydrogen must be acknowledged, and we welcome the Government’s whole systems approach in its Hydrogen Strategy. Consideration should be given to broader benefits, such as system resilience and national security, as well as price competitiveness as a fuel, in implementing the Hydrogen Strategy. (Paragraph 31)

Hydrogen production

3. The Government has chosen at this stage to support the development of both green and blue hydrogen. We heard that the initial adoption of blue hydrogen will be cheaper than green hydrogen, and ready to use in certain niche industrial settings sooner. However, several analysts have argued that green hydrogen will become cheaper than blue hydrogen over time. (Paragraph 44)

4. There is uncertainty about the extent to which blue hydrogen can play a role in a Net Zero economy in the mid to long term, even if it may be cheaper and ready to deploy in certain industrial settings sooner than green hydrogen, as some industrial users already possess the necessary infrastructure. The Government should not be dependent on either blue or green hydrogen alone in the short-term. The Government’s decision to continue using blue hydrogen should be dependent on the standard CO₂ capture rate reaching 95% by 2030 and in excess of 99% well in advance of 2050. In its response to this Report the Government should set out its expectations of how much CO₂ could be captured in hydrogen production and which industrial settings it sees as being ready to utilise blue hydrogen prior to 2050. (Paragraph 55)

5. Carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) technology should be an area of priority research interest for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and a strategic priority for UK Research and Innovation. (Paragraph 56)

6. Several countries are prioritising green hydrogen in their hydrogen strategies, and it seems likely that international interest in demonstrably low-carbon hydrogen, including green hydrogen, will continue to grow. This offers an opportunity for the UK to become a leader in green hydrogen production and development. The Government needs to provide more clarity in its updates to market on the hydrogen strategy, with a view to guaranteeing significant green hydrogen development over the next decade. In its response to this Report, the Government should set out how it intends to support the development in the UK of green hydrogen projects at scale during this decade, to ensure that green hydrogen can be produced in the UK and so it can become cost-competitive with blue hydrogen. This should include additional efforts to reduce the cost of electrolysers. (Paragraph 65)

7. The Government should set a 2030 target for green hydrogen production to ensure that full-scale development of green hydrogen is incentivised to take place in the short- term and to make it more likely that the UK develops a green hydrogen production capacity. The Government should be clear whether any targets it sets are for capacity to produce, or are an expectation of how much hydrogen the UK expects to produce and use. The Government should also indicate when grey hydrogen production will be phased out. (Paragraph 66)

Hydrogen applications

8. Energy storage for electricity generation is widely recognised as an important component of the Net Zero economy, and there are several potential technologies available for energy storage. Hydrogen has unique features as a means of energy storage, since as a clean-burning gas it can be transported through existing infrastructure and stored safely for long periods of time, if necessary. We welcome the Government’s recognition of the potential role of hydrogen as an important means of energy storage. The Government should continue to provide the necessary policy support and infrastructure for grid-scale energy storage technologies. Findings from hydrogen energy storage trials should be recorded and shared between trials to ensure that as much is learned as possible. (Paragraph 75)

9. Hydrogen can undoubtedly help key UK industrial sectors decarbonise. There is a widespread recognition of the importance of regulatory reform and an effective business model in incentivising a switch to low-carbon hydrogen use. We welcome the Government’s use of industrial clusters to trial the use of hydrogen. The Government must design and establish effective mechanisms to capture and learn the lessons from these trials and demonstrably apply the lessons from the industrial clusters to be set up by 2025 to those which will be in operation by 2030. (Paragraph 87)

10. Passenger battery electric vehicles for road transport have established a seemingly unassailable lead over other green alternatives, meaning that it looks likely that hydrogen will play in the near future, at most, a small part in decarbonising passenger cars. (Paragraph 94)

11. Whilst there is lower round-trip efficiency compared to electrification, hydrogen vehicles have the advantage of shorter refuelling times and longer ranges. This therefore makes hydrogen a potentially viable alternative to electrification for HGVs, but widespread adoption of hydrogen in HGVs can only be achieved with an

assurance that hydrogen will be widely available across the country. Whilst other countries have given commitments to hydrogen refuelling stations, the UK has been more reticent to date. More trials for heavy goods vehicles, beyond those already announced and forthcoming as part of the Zero Emission Road Freight demonstration programme, need to take place in the next five years to ensure that a firm decision can be made on the role of hydrogen in HGVs in time to develop the infrastructure needed to deliver carbon emission reductions. Trials could be localised to minimise the initial infrastructure requirements. Any early adoption of hydrogen HGVs is likely to require subsidy by the Government to overcome the higher cost for the operators. (Paragraph 101)

12. We welcome the trials of hydrogen buses which are taking place in the UK. The Government should continue to support such trials and come to a rapid view of the contribution that hydrogen-fuelled buses can make. Trials should consider the implications for other applications such as HGVs, and the decisions the trials will help to inform. (Paragraph 103)

13. Hydrogen has a modest but potentially critical role to play in decarbonising the rail network, where electrification is not suitable or cannot be delivered in time to contribute towards meeting Net Zero. Whilst trials and demonstration projects are underway in hydrogen trains, there is no clear plan to develop the role of hydrogen in this sector. Some countries, such as Austria and Germany, are already using hydrogen trains. In response to this Report, the Government should set out the lessons it has learned from the use of hydrogen trains overseas and how it will use this information in trials of hydrogen trains in the UK. In response to this Report, the Government should set out the lessons it has learned from the use of hydrogen trains overseas and how it will use this information in trials of hydrogen trains in the UK. (Paragraph 109)

14. The Government must identify, with industry, the train lines where it is unlikely that electrification will be viable before 2050 and start trials of hydrogen trains on these lines in the next five years. (Paragraph 110)

15. Hydrogen has an important role to play in decarbonising shipping and aviation, but parts of the transport industry want more clarity from Government about the intended role of hydrogen since there are significant infrastructure requirements and substantial costs that need to be met. There are also significant infrastructure requirements associated with hydrogen deployment in aviation and shipping but the likely ‘winner’ from amongst the potential low-carbon technologies in these sectors has yet to emerge and the choice will be internationally, rather than domestically, determined. In its response to this Report, the Government should set out its strategy for participation in international fora to shape a global outcome on the role of hydrogen in shipping and aviation. (Paragraph 119)

16. The Government should use its influence internationally, following its leadership of COP26 and involvement in Mission Innovation, to set standards and timelines for decisions on the role of alternative fuels and hydrogen within aviation and shipping. In these areas the Government should seek to lead the development of standards that can be adopted internationally. (Paragraph 120)