SDG7 and green hydrogen: a solution for the energy of the future
Nov 12, 2024
Sustainable
Hydrogen is a clean and sustainable energy that is already a real alternative to traditional energy sources.
Spain is one of the countries that is most committed to hydrogen as a new energy vector for its application in multiple uses. Mobility is one of them.
Since 2014, commercial vehicles have been using hydrogen as a fuel, which has encouraged the growth of hydrogen refuelling stations around the world.
In Spain, the Hydrogen Roadmap approved by the Spanish Government contemplates the implementation of a network with a minimum of 100 hydrogen stations by 2030. Currently there are only six, located in Madrid, Seville, Zaragoza, Huesca, Albacete and Puertollano although, for the time being, they are not for public use.
The last one was inaugurated in Madrid last January and is dedicated to long-range fuel cell electric vehicles. This hydrogen station has been promoted thanks to the collaboration of leading companies from different sectors, such as Enagás -through the start-up Scale Gas-, Toyota España, Urbaser, Carburos Metálicos, Sumitomo Corporation España and the Spanish Confederation of Service Station Entrepreneurs (CEEES).
In Spain, the Hydrogen Roadmap approved by the Spanish Government contemplates the implementation of a network with a minimum of 100 hydrogen stations by 2030
It will supply hydrogen to a fleet of 12 Toyota Mirai vehicles, distributed among the different collaborating companies. The refuelling process is equivalent to that of a traditional propulsion model – less than 5 minutes – and offers a maximum power output of 155 hp, and a range of around 550 km.
Projects such as this demonstrate the viability of hydrogen as a valid energy source for day-to-day use, and contribute to achieving the target set by the Government for 2030.
Although hydrogen vehicles have been officially approved for more than ten years, the ideal scenario is to power these vehicles with green hydrogen, which is produced by using renewable energies that extract it from water.
In this way, these vehicles represent a great alternative to achieve zero-emission vehicles and offer other advantages for the user: refuelling times similar to fuel, they do not need a plug socket in the garage, they offer higher levels of autonomy, and less dependence on the battery.
Today, 11,000 hydrogen cars are on the road worldwide, half of them in California. There are three models of hydrogen cars available to all citizens: the Toyota Mirai, the world’s first mass-produced dedicated fuel cell electric vehicle; the Hyundai Nexo; and the Honda Clarity.
The challenge now is to combine forces and develop more projects so that this hydrogen comes from renewable sources
In addition to cars, all types of vehicles use this source of motive power because of its many advantages: it is an unlimited source of energy, it can be obtained in a sustainable way and it is easy to store and transport. As a curiosity, it should be noted that its development in mobility was first focused on rockets and spacecraft. Today, there are all kinds of hydrogen vehicles: boats, trucks, vans, bicycles, motorcycles and scooters, forklift trucks, etc.
In addition to mobility, hydrogen is also used in the industrial sector for energy supply in the operation of production plants, as a raw material in industrial processes and for the air conditioning of homes and buildings, among others.
The challenge now is to combine forces and develop more projects so that this hydrogen comes from renewable sources, which will be key to achieving climate neutrality and a 100% renewable electricity system in Spain, no later than 2050.