Driving towards a genuine green hydrogen economy
Renewable hydrogen is of interest to many different stakeholders - manufacturers, public authorities, private individuals, hauliers, etc. - and business sectors, primarily industry and heavy mobility. That is why we now talk about implementing the "hydrogen economy", to which ENGIE is making an active contribution. For the last five years, we have been focusing on pilot projects, with the aim of stepping up to an industrial scale as quickly as possible. 2022 is a year of acceleration, as projects are commissioned, implemented, or signed: the Group is actively involved in almost 100 green hydrogen projects, at different stages of maturity and across ten different countries.
The often-unprecedented solutions these projects enable us to offer address complex and ambitious technical challenges. One such example is the Reuze project in Dunkirk, northern France, run in partnership with Infinium™. The project aims to decarbonise the port's industrial production and generate synthetic fuels for sea and air transport (by combining green H2 with CO2).
We also have important goals for green hydrogen on the international stage. Like in South Africa, for example, where our Rhyno project in partnership with Anglo-American, aims to replace the diesel used in mining trucks with green hydrogen, or in the Netherlands, with the major HyNetherlands project, for which ENGIE will be responsible for coordinating, developing, delivering and maintaining the industrial-use green hydrogen production plant, powered by offshore wind farms. And many other projects besides.
Our partners are a key success factor in the hydrogen transition
ENGIE can count on trusted partners, with the same Net Zero Carbon goals, as it creates new production, operation and distribution channels for renewable hydrogen. We are also supported by regional authorities, which see this energy carrier as a real boost for economic growth and employment opportunities, and to help decarbonise the services sector and industry. This is particularly true because it can be generated close to renewable electricity production plants (wind and solar farms, biogas units, etc.) and to its place of end use.
Making green hydrogen competitive to create tomorrow's ecosystems
Stepping up to an industrial scale and, in so doing, reducing production costs, calls for market acceleration. Green hydrogen can only be produced in an economically viable way by ultimately cutting loose from public funding. It is estimated that a price of between €1.5 and €2/kilo will enable green hydrogen to replace grey hydrogen. For this to be possible, several conditions must be met: available, affordable renewable energy sources, a stable European regulatory system, and simpler processes to ensure that subsidies are awarded more quickly (Innovation Fund, IPCEI, etc.).
ENGIE's growing renewable energy capacity and detailed knowledge of its value chains enable us to take part in the emergence of a sustainable green hydrogen production sector. As we advance hand in hand with our customers, we are committed to supporting ambitious investment decisions and developing new projects.
"ENGIE is fully committed to working alongside its public and private partners to create tomorrow's hydrogen ecosystems."
Valérie Ruiz Domingo, Group Hydrogen Vice President