In recent years, new-found interest in the hydrogen
economy from both industry and academia has
helped to shed light on its potential. Hydrogen
can enable an energy revolution by providing much
needed flexibility in renewable energy systems. As
a clean energy carrier, hydrogen offers a range
of benefits for simultaneously decarbonizing the
transport, residential, commercial and industrial
sectors. Hydrogen is shown here to have synergies
with other low-carbon alternatives, and can enable
a more cost-effective transition to de-carbonized
and cleaner energy systems. This paper presents
the opportunities for the use of hydrogen in key
sectors of the economy and identifies the benefits
and challenges within the hydrogen supply chain for
power-to-gas, power-to-power and gas-to-gas supply
pathways. While industry players have already
started the market introduction of hydrogen fuel
cell systems, including fuel cell electric vehicles and
micro-combined heat and power devices, the use of
hydrogen at grid scale requires the challenges of clean
hydrogen production, bulk storage and distribution to
be resolved. Ultimately, greater government support,
in partnership with industry and academia, is still
needed to realize hydrogen’s potential across all
economic sectors.