Oxford – Clean Hydrogen Roadmap September, 2023

The Oxford Institute for Energy Studies (OIES) has been studying the role of hydrogen in the energy transition since 2020. There has been a growing global interest in hydrogen within the energy industry. OIES launched a Hydrogen Research Programme in April 2022 to explore the potential of clean hydrogen on a larger scale and develop business cases for a hydrogen economy. The focus has shifted from small-scale pilot projects to attracting private sector investment with the support of government decarbonization policies. This paper aims to summarize the key themes that have emerged from the research so far and provide a framework for further study. The initial research in 2020 concluded that hydrogen would play a role in decarbonizing the energy system, but its impact may be more limited than initially anticipated. Recent publications by the Hydrogen Council, which promotes the role of hydrogen, show a shift towards a more realistic view of hydrogen's potential. The six key themes addressed in this paper are: hydrogen's competition with other decarbonization alternatives, the reliance on government policies to drive the business case for clean hydrogen, understanding the emissions associated with hydrogen investments, considering the full value chain and geopolitics of hydrogen, minimizing the expensive transportation of hydrogen, and focusing on storage as an essential part of the value chain. By addressing each of these themes, the paper aims to draw conclusions and chart a reasonable path forward in utilizing hydrogen as a clean energy solution.