Clean Hydrogen: Building Block of a New Geopolitical Landscape

Hydrogen and derived fuels (such as hydrogen-based ammonia and methanol) are currently enjoying renewed political and business momentum, based on the declining cost of renewable electricity and surging interest in deep decarbonization, as more and more countries rally behind net zero emission targets by mid-century. This chapter presents an overview of the geopolitical dimensions of hydrogen as a clean energy carrier. To that end, it first reviews the technical characteristics, different production methods and areas of application of hydrogen. Next, the chapter examines whether and how hydrogen and derived fuels could become globally traded energy commodities, and which countries are poised to become the hydrogen superpowers of the future. Finally, this chapter identifies six areas where hydrogen might shape geopolitics in the coming years: technology dominance, geo-economic competition, the future of petrostates, new interdependencies, carbon lock-in, and global governance