If you’ve lost track of what the “new normal” is supposed to be by now, you’re in good company. At Enapter, we’ve never been the ones to go with the flow anyway, so we’ve said adieu to normal entirely in 2021 and fully embraced the flip-flopping changes, rapid development, highest of highs and forehead-scratching challenges that this predictably unpredictable year has brought.

And just like last year, we’re sharing some of the most interesting green hydrogen reads we’ve come across that reflect this wild journey into decarbonisation and where it could be taking us next.

We hope you made it through 2021 in one piece – and also that the many pieces below provide enjoyable reading as you ramp down for the holidays.

The price is right

One of the key barriers to the widespread rollout of green hydrogen is famously its cost compared to less-than-green alternatives.  In 2021, this narrative started to break down:

• A global trade commodity
  This nice overview article from the IISD lays out a roadmap for moving green hydrogen from a niche player to a competitive global trade commodity.
• Cheaper than grey
  High gas prices recently mean making green hydrogen in Europe can be cheaper than making grey or blue hydrogen!
• Mass producing electrolysers
  Green hydrogen isn’t the only upcoming commodity – Enapter’s mass-production strategy also envisions electrolysers as products, with big cost-reduction benefits.
• Sub-$2/kg green H2 already possible
  This much-touted figure for green hydrogen becoming cheaper than grey has many forecasted arrival dates but may now be possible in the best solar locations.
• Beating the blue
  New research contends that green hydrogen outcompetes blue hydrogen both on financial cost and (little surprise) C02 emissions.

Now trending

Huge changes are underway in the green hydrogen industry, and these below are just a tiny taster:

• Big oil, green hydrogen?
  While the oil industry’s preference for hydrocarbon-based blue hydrogen is clear, this rather optimistic article spells out how big oil could drive green hydrogen development.
• Homegrown EU H2
  Massive green hydrogen projects are being planned around the world, but it seems it will be cheaper to produce hydrogen in the EU than ship it here. We might also add “easier”.
• Ammonia tailwind
  2021’s unlikely champion for green H2, Australian mining billionaire Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest, aims to run the first ship on green-hydrogen derived ammonia in 2022.
• Smart, sustainable microgrids
  Microgrids are vital for reliable energy autonomy and increasingly draw on green H2 – our smart microgrid whitepaper shows how they can reach their full potential.
• Artificial Intelligence of Things
  Aside from marrying two buzzwords, Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) technologies hold a whole lot of promise for accelerating the rollout of green hydrogen. 
• Hydrogen for the home
  Residential use of green hydrogen in energy storage is one of its more questioned yet most widespread applications. More in this German-language home H2 article.

The year in Enapter news

We thought 2020 was a big year for Enapter... Then came 2021:

• Enapter Campus groundbreaking
  September brought the big day when we finally launched the construction of our Enapter Campus mass production, office and R&D site in Saerbeck.  
• Winning the Earthshot Prize
  We were honoured to be awarded the #FixOurClimate Earthshot Prize founded by HRH Prince William. Read about it in this National Geographic Earthshot article.
• The Multicores are coming!
  Steinbeis Innovation Center siz energie+ placed the first order for the AEM Multicore, our megawatt-scale electrolyser built around 420 AEM Electrolyser cores.
• €47.8 Million raised
  To finance our growth, we had two successfully-placed capital increases in 2021, issuing new shares in March (German article) and October (English).
• Scaling up integration
  This is not strictly news but perhaps one of Enapter’s most important 2021 messages – integration partners will be one of the keys to scaling up the rollout of green hydrogen.

Green Hydrogen at COP26