Italy commits to renewable hydrogen: millions in investments and key projects up to 2050
Dec 13, 2024
Innovative
Tackling climate change by reducing CO2 emissions and creating more liveable and efficient cities is a priority today. It is also about overcoming dependence on fossil fuels, integrating clean technologies and changing people’s mobility habits.
In this regard, transport is one of the most energy-intensive and polluting sectors, not only in our country but in Europe as a whole. In fact, it is responsible for a quarter of the continent’s CO2 emissions.
Transport accounts for a quarter of Europe’s CO2 emissions
Initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions include specific measures for this sector through a firm commitment to sustainable mobility. Mobility requires a wide range of technological solutions to meet the targets set at national and European level.
The European Green Deal aims to reduce CO2 emissions from transport by 90% by 2050. This is a step towards making Europe a climate-neutral economy and also towards the goal of zero pollution.
Renewable molecules, and hydrogen in particular, will be essential. This is underlined by REPowerEU, which envisages that 25% of renewable hydrogen consumption in Europe will be for transport by 2030.
By 2030, 25% of Europe’s renewable hydrogen consumption shall be for transport
A solution for decarbonising land, sea and air transport.
Hydrogen will play a key role in decarbonising land, sea and air transport.
On land and for large car fleets, renewable hydrogen is already a real alternative. It will play a more important role in heavy transport, where electrification is difficult (due to battery size and recharging time).
In its Hydrogen Roadmap for 2030, Spain has set targets in this area:
This renewable gas will therefore be the answer to meeting the target of 1% of non-biological renewable fuels in the automotive sector by 2030, as set out in the REDIII Directive. Based on 2023 data, this 1% corresponds to 98,000 tonnes of renewable hydrogen.
In the maritime sector, renewable hydrogen could decarbonise 80% of today’s international shipping, according to the report A Pathway to Decarbonise the Shipping Sector by 2050.
Other targets have also been set that will contribute to its gradual decarbonisation:
And in the aviation sector, according to the latest Bloomberg Energy Outlook, aviation will be the world’s largest hydrogen-consuming mobility sector by 2050, accounting for around 25% of global demand. The European regulation ReFuelEU Aviation commits this segment to using 2% sustainable fuels in aviation by 2025, rising to 70% by 2050. This will make it possible to achieve the target of an 80% reduction in emissions intensity.
LNG is currently a solution for the decarbonisation of heavy transport, especially maritime and road transport, where electrification is not possible. This is also the case for trains, in this case thanks to bio-LNG.
LNG is a solution for the decarbonisation of heavy transport, especially maritime and road transport, where electrification is not possible
Its use makes it possible to eliminate SOx emissions, reduce NOx emissions by 90% and reduce CO2 emissions by 20-30% compared to traditional marine fuels. In Spain alone, it will allow a reduction in emissions equivalent to replacing more than one million internal combustion vehicles with electric ones, and improve air quality by reducing up to 2 Mt of CO2 by 2030.
Our country is a leader in the decarbonisation of maritime transport, having quadrupled the supply of LNG to ships in the last two years, avoiding the emission of 74,000t CO2.
For hydrogen to become a real alternative for mobility, the infrastructures that link the supply (where it is produced) with the points of consumption, in this case the means of transport that need it, will be key.
Spain will be part of the first European hydrogen corridor, named H2med, together with Portugal, France and Germany
Spain is already working on this. Our country will have the Spanish Hydrogen Backbone, promoted by Enagás as the provisional hydrogen transmission network operator (HTNO), and will be part of the first European hydrogen corridor, named H2med, together with Portugal, France and Germany. Both projects will be crucial for the development of a competitive hydrogen market and for Spain and Europe to become leaders in sustainable mobility.