The potential is there, and for a rewarding career, only if the challenges ahead can be overcome.
In the push for renewable energy resources to meet carbon emission targets and climate goals, offshore and onshore wind and solar energy are often cited as being the main thrusts in achieving net zero and replacing traditional hydrocarbons. One other area of green energy that is being often in the same conversation is hydrogen. While still in its infancy, even compared to wind and PV, hydrogen represents a clean energy alternative that is attractive for several reasons, but also faces challenges along the way to reach it’s potential. Once these challenges are faced, the hydrogen industry will represent a great opportunity and a rewarding career for anyone already working in the energy sector, or those looking to start their career.
Types of hydrogen
Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, being present in 75% of all matter. Most of the hydrogen we see currently in use is produced from fossil fuels, particularly natural gas, and it can also be produced from renewal resources, like wind, solar, and geothermal resources. Hydrogen itself can be classified into many categories, and the naming convention is guided by colours, even though it is an invisible gas; these are typically blue, grey, and green hydrogen, the most common forms. But there are other ‘colours’ which are currently in use, all defined by the type of process used and its source of extraction:
Grey
While it’s the most common, cheapest, and doesn't generate greenhouse gas emissions during the extraction process from natural gas using steam reformation, the carbon emissions created during that process are not captured but released into the air.
Blue
Using the same extraction process as grey, blue hydrogen captures the emissions and stores them to significantly reducing pollution.
Green
Green hydrogen produces no emissions whatsoever, as it is extracted via electrolysis of water from renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar. This splits the hydrogen into its most basic elements, hydrogen and oxygen, releasing no emissions into the atmosphere. The major drawback is that it is more expensive to produce, resulting in its limited use so far until the cost of production comes down.
Pink
Pink hydrogen is also produced via electrolysis but is its source is powered by nuclear energy.
Black and Brown
Black and brown hydrogen comes from coal and lignite respectively, and while it is the cheapest to produce, the trade-off is that it’s the most harmful to the environment.
Turquoise
Methane pyrolysis is used to produce hydrogen and solid carbon, and is dependent on the thermal process being powered with renewable energy.
Yellow
Uses solar power exclusively during the electrolysis process.
White
Found during the fracking process in underground deposits, white hydrogen is naturally occurring. Due to the contention of fracking activities, it is still in its infancy, but the potential for a clean energy enabler remains significant.
Benefits of Hydrogen
There are many positives to be taken from the use of hydrogen as a renewable energy, the most prominent being the tremendous potential it holds for a completely carbon free via green hydrogen. Some of the other major benefits hydrogen brings are:
Due to its gaseous form, it is light as opposed to oil, and so can be stored and transported more easily.
Hydrogen production can be easily retrofitted and repurposed into existing infrastructure. This would include gas transportation and gas storage facilities.
Hydrogen itself doesn’t generate any pollution. Many of the hydrogen extraction processes do not cause greenhouse gas emissions (water is the only by-product of the process).
It can be used to produce other gases, as well as liquid fuels.
It has a higher energy density than batteries so it can be used for long-distance and heavy-goods transport.
It can be applied to many industrial and transportation sectors. Currently used within the chemical industry, in refineries, as part of a mix of gases in steel production, in heat and power generation, as well as limited use as fuel within transportation.
While the potential for hydrogen is immense, there are a number of factors and challenges in the way that prevent it advancing further as the number one choice as a renewable energy. Global hydrogen production currently stands at around 75 MtH2/yr as pure hydrogen and an additional 45 MtH2/yr as part of a mix of gases. This is only the equivalent to 3% of global final energy demand, and in comparison, represents the annual energy consumption of Germany. [1]
Challenges Ahead
Until the hydrogen sector matures successfully, it needs to overcome significant barriers that are barriers to its growth potential.
Cost
Blue hydrogen costs more than double to produce than that of current fossil fuels. Green hydrogen, which is the most environmentally friendly of all hydrogens, can cost up to 5 times as much. These costs, which will inevitably come down, need to reduce faster in the short term to attract investors and stakeholders for the long term. While hydrogen can use current gas pipelines for transportation to a point, this is an expensive problem for countries without the infrastructure already in place.
Market Demand
Due to hydrogen being produced in such small quantities compared to other renewable energies, it creates little or no market, so the consumer pays a higher price because of low demand.
Infrastructure
As mentioned previously, hydrogen can use current gas pipelines for transportation, but will prove to be an expensive investment for countries without the infrastructure in place. This also includes conversion and liquefaction units, as well as storage plants.
Transparency
Hydrogen varies depending on where it is sourced from, so some are more beneficial to carbon reduction than others. This needs to be made clearer to the buyer on ethical grounds, stating if the hydrogen used is environmentally sourced or not.
Global Policy
The majority of countries around the world still do not have a specific hydrogen development strategy – including those that have formed significant hydrogen consumption markets.
Resource Impact
Electrolysis, used in the hydrogen extraction process, uses a lot of water. This could have a profound effect on countries that already have water scarcity problems. Producing hydrogen from renewable energy resources also requires significant land for both the renewable energy site and the hydrogen infrastructure on top of that. This could raise further environmental, social, and ecosystem issues.
Preparing for Growth
Despite the challenges ahead, hydrogen is experiencing growth. As of 2024, the market size exceeded USD 6.49 billion, and it is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 31% from 2024 to 2032. By 2030, the global green hydrogen deployment is expected to reach 150 GW – approximately 63,750 tons per day [2]. According to research, renewable energies could supply a substantial part of the European energy mix in 2050, of which hydrogen could account for up to 20%, notably 20-50% of energy demand in transport and 5-20% in industry.
The hydrogen sector offers a significant economic opportunity for countries and companies willing to and already investing in it, and it will require a highly skilled workforce to facilitate all aspects of its value chain.
Preparing the Workforce
Like any large project, the initial stages in creating hydrogen facilities and infrastructure will be spent designing, installing, and commissioning hydrogen production facilities, or retrofitting existing infrastructure.
The skills required to enable the hydrogen economy are quite similar to those already in place around process industries. Like any area of the renewable energy market, demand for science, technology, engineering, mathematics, digital, and data science skills will be high. Management skills related to project, process, asset, production, delivery, and more, will always be in high demand. This points towards a potential talent shortage in energy, which is a key concern for the upcoming hydrogen economy. Therefore, recruiters and companies will be targeting existing engineers and project managers currently employed in the energy industry who are looking to transition to Hydrogen, as well as new engineering graduates, as they will be the highly sought-after skilled workers of choice.
Anyone thinking of transitioning into the hydrogen sector would be advised to:
Learn more about the industry and network with key industry personnel and enablers.
Identify key skills, knowledge, and experience that can be transferred to the hydrogen sector.
Upskill any skillset they feel short on via training and education, such as health and safety or environmental policy (be it externally or within their current employment).
Focus on specific training within the hydrogen sector, such as engineering, purification, electrolysis, storage, transportation, policy, and education.
Summary
The evolution of hydrogen does have a bright future as there are many drivers to enable sizable growth: decarbonization goals, advancing production technologies to help enhance efficiency while reducing costs, government initiatives, and the 45V tax credit in the U.S. to promote green hydrogen. While still in its relative infancy, hydrogen faces a number of hurdles which it must – and can – overcome, in order for its use to take off in earnest and for it to maximise its true potential and help towards a net-zero future.
Finding a career in hydrogen represents an exciting and rewarding future, and demand for skilled professionals will only increase as technology, investment, and its true promise becomes more apparent. Whether you're just starting your career or looking to advance, there’s a place for you in this vital and growing field. To get ahead of the curve, Register your CV with Orion Group today and take the first step towards a career where your expertise will be utilised for a greener future. Together, we can help you find the perfect opportunity to advance your career and contribute to a more sustainable world.
