Texas Poised to Become Leader in Hydrogen Production, Energy and Policy Leaders Say

The Challenge

Hydrogen’s potential as a significant power source was on full display at the Hydrogen Roundtable event. However, widespread adoption remains a challenge. The reason: quite simply, hydrogen costs too much.

“Hydrogen is too expensive for most of the applications today, so we need to drive down the cost,” Hebner said.

Wilson, from the Hydrogen Council, thinks the cost of hydrogen will fall sharply over the next few years. By 2030, the council predicts that hydrogen will be a viable competitive low-carbon option across 22 major applications that make up 15% of annual global energy demand.

Bringing down the cost of hydrogen needs to be a collective effort, Hebner said, between academia, industry and government. Events like the roundtable are meant to bring all the players together to start the conversation that will help solve these problems.

Researchers can take hydrogen to the next level by developing advanced materials, enhancing vehicle drivetrain design and finding new ways to transport and store hydrogen that are more efficient and less costly.

Industry enthusiasm for hydrogen will lead to the development of new applications, Hebner said. The presence of major industry players at the Hydrogen Roundtable shows that the excitement is there, as do the continued development of projects like Toyota’s Mirai hydrogen fuel cell vehicle.

Government can speed up the timeline of hydrogen adoption through direct subsidies, the speakers said. Because of major subsidies, countries in Europe and Asia have taken an early lead in hydrogen innovation, said Jack Broodo president of feedstocks, energy and climate change at Dow. For Texas and the U.S. in general to become a hydrogen leader will require a similar level of government commitment.

“It’s going to take the wherewithal of the American public standing behind this, or we’ll quit before we get started because it will be too expensive,” Broodo said.