Fostering a hydrogen economy almost from scratch will present numerous technology challenges. It will also be time consuming and expensive. State support will be vital to ensure that innovation continues, infrastructure is built out and orders for fuel cell vehicles come in.
In Europe, support is being divvied out at a state level and with guidance from the European Commission. In July this year, the Commission revealed its strategic road map for a hydrogen society on the Continent. Everything from transportation, industrial activities and domestic energy can be supported by hydrogen, it says, which will be a vital means of achieving the European Union’s commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050.
As part of her State of the Union address on 16 September, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, spoke about plans to create “hydrogen valleys” across Europe. These
