Hydrogen is the most abundant gas in our universe, though its availability in its elemental form on earth is infinitesimally small. As we begin to understand its potential to mitigate climate change by acting as a reservoir of energy storage, deciphering cost-effective ways to generate, store and transport green hydrogen is amongst the top priorities for the world in the immediate future.
Around 75% of all mass in the universe is made up of hydrogen and 90% of all atoms in the universe are hydrogen atoms. Despite its abundance, harnessing its vast potential has remained elusive for mankind, at least until recently. Ever since its discovery, scientists have been experimenting to unlock the versatility of Hydrogen. Even so, it wasn’t until the mid-20th century that we started looking at it as a clean and very efficient fuel source, when experimented with Hydrogen fuel cells for the Apollo missions. The potential of Hydrogen as an alternative to fossil fuels has been acknowledged and grown manifold since. Furthermore, if produced using green energy, Hydrogen can contribute to global decarbonisation and mitigating climate crisis. According to a McKinsey analysis, hydrogen could contribute to more than 20% of annual global emissions reductions by 2050. As of May 2023, more than 1,000 large-scale hydrogen projects have already been announced globally, amounting to USD 320 billion in direct investments.
