← External Forces: Climate & Resource (all topics)
Green hydrogen adjacency
What it is
Industrial gas companies are natural participants in green hydrogen - they already produce, compress, store, transport and sell hydrogen, and understand the safety and logistics involved
The difference is that green hydrogen is made by electrolysis from renewable power rather than by steam methane reforming
Impact on industries
- Reuses existing capability in gas handling, distribution and long-term contracting, so participation needs no new business model
- Take-or-pay and on-site contract structures transfer neatly to hydrogen, which is how electrolyser capex becomes financeable
- Demand remains largely prospective and depends on policy support, refinery and fertiliser mandates rather than current commercial economics
- Green hydrogen costs well above grey, so adoption waits on electrolyser costs and cheap power rather than supply capability
- Nearest-term demand is captive - refineries and fertiliser plants substituting grey hydrogen, not new applications