16.02.2024
Source: Energy & Management Powernews
Two thirds of the hydrogen consumed worldwide is of fossil origin, green hydrogen is still a niche product. This is shown by Teamconsult's H2 market radar.
In its ongoing market observations, the Berlin-based energy consultancy Teamconsult counts 92 hydrogen production plants with a total capacity of 125 MW in north-western Europe (as of January 2024). According to a Teamconsult spokesperson, the database, which the consultants are constantly updating, currently contains over 260 projects in north-western Europe for the production of green and blue hydrogen. The latter is produced from the steam reforming of natural gas. The CO2 released in the process is captured and stored (carbon capture and storage, CCS). However, over 90 percent of these projects are aimed at the production of green hydrogen, according to Teamconsult.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global hydrogen consumption in 2022 was 95 million tons. The majority of this hydrogen was consumed in traditional sectors such as industry or refineries. In contrast, consumption in new applications - such as fuel or high-temperature applications - was still in its infancy.
Almost two thirds of the hydrogen consumed in 2022 was produced from fossil sources, Teamconsult continued. The production of blue hydrogen in 2022 amounted to less than 1 million tons worldwide, mainly produced in Canada and the USA. In contrast, the production volume of green hydrogen was less than 0.1 million tons. In its consumption and production figures, Teamconsult refers to the most recent year available to the IEA - in this case 2022.
Electrolyser capacity worldwide at 1,000 MW in 2023
The Berlin-based energy consultants also evaluated the latest edition of the global "IEA Hydrogen Production Database", which refers to the year 2023. According to this database, electrolysis capacities with an output of 1,000 MW were in operation worldwide last year. Taking into account the projects for blue hydrogen, this figure rises to 1,600 MW. The approximately 200 projects that have already received approval or are under construction could lead to the production of around 5 million tons of low-emission hydrogen per year by 2027, writes Teamconsult in its market radar.
In addition to its own production of hydrogen, the EU plans to import a further 10 million tons of green hydrogen per year by 2030. However, as Teamconsult notes, there are currently no projects that could supply these quantities of hydrogen and are geographically close to the European market. The market observers are referring to the current project announcements in the MENA region. According to this, only 0.6 million tons of green hydrogen are currently being produced in the MENA region each year. This amount could increase to 6.2 million tons per year by 2030. However, this would only be the case if all announced projects were realized.
Teamconsult sees the greatest growth momentum in the project pipelines in Europe, North & South America and Southeast Asia/Oceania. In contrast, the Middle East and Africa are still lagging somewhat behind, although these regions in particular would actually offer favorable conditions for the production of green hydrogen.
The H2 market radar
Teamconsult publishes around ten to twelve market radars per year with different focal points - for example on the LNG market, the mobility market and the energy market in general. Two to three of these relate to the hydrogen market. On February 12, the market observers presented the sixth edition of their H2 market radar. They collect the data for north-western Europe in their own database, which is fed from publicly accessible sources such as press releases. Teamconsult obtains the data relating to the global hydrogen market from the IEA.
The current edition of the H2 market radar from February 12 is available for download on Teamconsult's website.
Author: Davina Spohn
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