A Welsh government consultation on its future hydrogen policy is open until 16 May.
The consultation sets out the Welsh Government’s ‘preferred policy’ to maximise the potential for hydrogen in Wales.
A statement in the Senedd in 2022 recognised that hydrogen, if sustainably manufactured and deployed, may provide one of the few ways to decarbonise heavy industry through fuel switching, and to reduce emissions in hard-to-abate modes of transportation, notably in heavy goods vehicles, aviation and shipping. It also highlighted hydrogen’s use as a storage medium. It said it “may also have a limited role as a replacement for natural gas in heating solutions”.
The statement said it is important that any proposal for hydrogen considers its carbon intensity and impact relative to alternative options and that policy objectives must not shift Wales’s net-zero responsibilities and emissions out of Wales, or disincentivise investment in its energy and industrial sectors. Also “It is equally imperative that investment in hydrogen does not disincentivise other established and proven low-zero greenhouse gas emission technologies, or inadvertently prolong our dependence on fossil fuels”.
Respond to the consultation here