2024-06-11 06:30:33
Europe, which has set itself ambitious targets for the production of green hydrogen by 2035, will have to face global competition in this sector of activity, particularly from China.
France has set itself the objective of producing, by 2030, 6,5 GW hydrogen by electrolysis. At the European level, many projects are emerging to ramp up the production of MEP (proton exchange membrane) electrolysers, an efficient but expensive technology. While China is mass producing alkaline electrolysers, which are less efficient because they take longer to start up, but are less expensive.
Today, out of the 132 European projects applying for European funds allocated by the European Hydrogen Bank, 20 projects use Chinese electrolysers. A relatively low figure, but one that alerts the old continent to the need to be attentive, for avoid, as is currently happening with solar or batteriesto see Chinese products infiltrating European hydrogen production systems.
In fact, China’s hydrogen strategy differs significantly from the European strategy on the subject. While most of the world’s hydrogen is produced using technologies with a high impact in terms of CO2 emissions, Europe has set itself targets to rapidly increase the production of green hydrogen, from electrolysers powered by electricity produced in a carbon-free manner. In France, for example, the hydrogen production by electrolysers powered by nuclear electricity falls completely within this framework.
China, which now produces a third of the world’s hydrogen, does so mainly through highly carbon-intensive processes. In 2020, 62% of Chinese hydrogen was obtained through the use of coal, 19% from natural gas, and only 1% from electrolysers powered by renewable energy. 1% is the proportion of green hydrogen also produced in most countries around the world.
Finally, the ability to produce green hydrogen massively by electrolysis depends on the availability of renewable electricity. However, the Chinese strategy for producing green hydrogen is spread out over a longer period of time compared to the European strategy. In Europe, the objective is to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, with the milestone, in particular, of the use of 60% of green hydrogen by industry by 2035. very ambitious goalwhich is not known whether it is achievable. On the other hand, it is obvious that it will be very complicated to achieve… For its part, China has an ambition over a longer period of time. The country wants to produce 15% of its hydrogen in a renewable manner by 2030, then 80% by 2060The Chinese objective is therefore less ambitious in the short term.
What are the levers to achieve these objectives? Mainly the price of the hydrogen produced, which will depend on the technologies used. For green hydrogen, the cost of the electrolysers is the variable to take into account. Chinese electrolysers cost less than their European equivalents, because the technologies are not the same, even if the rest of the installation is more expensive on the Chinese side.
Then, the efficiency of the electrolysers. On this point, the devices produced in Europe are more efficient.
Finally, and this is where the chasm that separates Europe from Chinathe availability of renewable energy. China now has a high-performance and complementary solar and wind farm, thanks in particular to its immense surface area and unmatched resources in terms of wind and sunshine. This is what, today, suggests a greater capacity for China to produce large quantities of green hydrogen in the decades to come.
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