Finances News Hebdo: What is green hydrogen used for and what does this emerging industry consist of?
Adil Gaoui: Green hydrogen is above all hydrogen produced with green resources, in other words renewable. Solar panels, wind turbines, hydraulic energy from dams or ocean waves, etc., are all renewable energies. It is an energy carrier that can eventually replace other energy sources qualified as embodied energy, such as coal and hydrocarbons. Hydrogen is an industrial sector in its own right, because beyond the gas produced, a whole industrial activity accompanies the implementation of the hydrogen industry. Namely, the production of specific tanks that can accommodate hydrogen in storage. The production of fuel cells, allowing the transformation of hydrogen into electrical energy, is itself a real lever for the development of the H2 sector. Hydrogen engines are a real workhorse for all car manufacturers who have each chosen to produce pure hydrogen gas engines or engines running on liquid hydrogen, or even engines burning hydrogen for traction. cars. Other solutions also exist, such as hybrid vehicles using hydrogen in combination with other hydrocarbons. As for stationary uses, several building electrification projects have emerged in the urban environment. With regard to agricultural environments, hydrogen offers the opportunity to supply electricity to areas not supplied by electric cables.
FNH: How can hydrogen fit into the national energy strategy to reduce the carbon footprint in particular? Does our country have the necessary means and resources to meet this challenge?
A. G. : Morocco has all the assets to become a global H2 industry pioneer. It has indeed taken a valuable option by subscribing several years ago to the photovoltaic industry. Solar power plants in Ouarzazate and elsewhere, alongside wind power stations, give Morocco a major advantage of having a green renewable resource to produce hydrogen gas at the foot of these stations and thus solve the major problem of storing excess energy. produced and discarded in the absence of storage solutions. The Kingdom is thus seen today by all our European neighbors as a potential supplier of green H2. The European Union thus wishes to duplicate what Japan is already doing with Australia by producing Australian green H2 that can be exported to Japan.
FNH: In its roadmap for the development of green hydrogen, the Ministry of Energy indicated that the world market for this sector is today an industrial market. Tell us why?
A. G. : The particularity of hydrogen is its tendency to unshakeably link the energy sector to the industry sector. Being an energy carrier, hydrogen transports energy and allows it to be stored before its conversion into electrical energy, for example. This energy, along the way, will regulate industrial markets that no longer have the choice of conversion to green, imposed by the climate changes that have upset the planet. We talk regarding H2 industry instead of H2 energy. To focus, for example, on the automotive sector, the arrival of hydrogen vehicles on the market is conditioned by the implementation of hydrogen charging stations. These same stations are conditioned by the installation of H2 production units which supply them.
FNH: On November 22, 2022, the Sovereign ordered a “Morocco offer” in the green hydrogen sector. What might this offer, which identified Morocco among the six nations with the greatest potential to produce this energy material, look like?
A. G. : His Majesty, may God assist him, has always anticipated the positioning of the Kingdom at the forefront of the world, all sectors combined. This had already been demonstrated by solar/wind vision. In order to make the most of this H2 industry, the Kingdom should position itself at all levels. First, as an exporting producer of H2 by pipeline (gas pipelines) or by short-sea (close sea transport). Then, in parallel, Morocco might enrich its industry by setting up a local H2 industry producing H2 tanks, fuel cells or even H2 engines. This dynamic might be intensified by the installation of H2 service stations supplying intra-city and inter-city urban transport. To finally open up to green H2 mobility for individuals. All crowned by specific work on the autonomy of buildings and industrial installations electrified by green hydrogen.
FNH: Green hydrogen is undoubtedly a capital-intensive industry that requires substantial investment. How can these infrastructures be financed on a large scale in Morocco?
A. G. : Like what was done at the very beginning of the hydrogen industry around the world (USA, EU, Japan), the State financed pilot projects to show the way and trace the trajectory for private investors. . The European Union has created a specific H2 fund FCH JU Fuel-Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking) bringing together aid to finance large H2 pilot projects. In parallel with the creation of this fund, a European association Hydrogen Europe was created in order to manage this funding and duplicate the experiences accumulated over the years. The Kingdom has also signed H2 partnerships with Germany, Portugal and other nations that might provide funding. In particular for the case of hydrogen production in Morocco and export to these partner countries. Major international manufacturers have also announced their intention to install H2 production units in Morocco, with the project of exporting the hydrogen produced internationally.
FNH: A study recently carried out by the European Investment Bank, in collaboration with the African Union and the International Solar Alliance, attests that Africa has enormous potential for the production of green hydrogen, which might reach 50 million tonnes each year by 2035. How do you read it?
A. G. : It is a question of putting the African sun and wind in pipes or cisterns in order to export them internationally. Again, hydrogen is an industry. Let’s not limit Africa to a mere producer and exporter. This industry must benefit the African end user. The development of hydrogen, beyond its simple production, consists of the installation of industrial units for tanks, engines, fuel cells and why not combine it with the space industry. Remember that H2 is primarily used to propel rockets into space!
FNH: 5 years ago, you created the Moroccan Association for Hydrogen and Sustainable Development. What is its purpose and what is its contribution to the ecosystem today?
A. G. : AMHYD (Moroccan Association for Hydrogen and Sustainable Development) was created in September 2018. The objective being the establishment of an H2 (hydrogen) and FC (fuel cell) ecosystem with the aim of structure the entire hydrogen energy sector, mainly for sustainable mobility and energy storage. AMHYD is the only non-European member of Hydrogen Europe. We are currently participating in a project led by the Spanish Enagas and comprising a consortium of 22 members to make the island of Majorca hydrogen self-sufficient. Several international partnerships have emerged with the Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and French hydrogen associations.
And other academic collaborations, such as El Centro Nacional del Hidrogeno in Spain, TroisRivières University (UQTR) in Quebec, Hassania School of Public Works (EHTP), International University of Rabat (UIR), etc. We have created the Moroccan Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Institute (IMHYPAC) whose missions are focused on:
• The multiplication of the popularization and training of H2 technologies, through periodic regional events for sustainable and low-carbon mobility in Morocco and Africa, for young people and the adults;
• Carrying out relevant studies on the H2/FC sector in Morocco and Africa by providing the necessary support and expertise on the economic, legal, insurance and training aspects;
• And the promotion of R&D.
AMHYD is committed to its members who support hydrogen technologies in Morocco and Africa (industrialists, researchers, elected officials, public authorities, etc.) to have a structure for consultation and action whose objective is first of all to:
• Promote exchanges and allow the expression of opinions or recommendations;
• Seek overall coherence at the national level;
• Propose initiatives that will help the Kingdom become one of the leaders in hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in Africa and the Mediterranean regions;
• Multiply the popularization and training of H2 technologies, through periodic events for sustainable and low-carbon mobility in Morocco and Africa;
• And of course, stimulate and support relevant H2/FC actions in general by providing the necessary support and expertise on the economic, legal, insurance and training aspects.
