Hydrogen

ChatGPT generated panoramic image of an empty hydrogen fueling station in Austria with barriers indicating closure

From Austria to California: Why Hydrogen Fuel Stations Aren’t Breaking Even

Austria’s recent announcement that it would shutter its entire network of hydrogen fueling stations caught many industry observers off guard. But for those closely tracking the economics, Austria’s exit wasn’t surprising at all. The stations faced persistently low vehicle numbers, low throughput, and mounting operating losses. This stark withdrawal illustrates … [continued]

ChatGPT generated panoramic image of a European hydrogen bus parked in front of a large, under-construction refueling station with red safety barriers

Hydrogen vs. Battery Buses: A European Transit Reality Check

Two more hydrogen bus trial failures crossed my screen this morning, so I thought I’d share. Both are in Europe, but while one is in the capital of the EU, the other is across the Channel in the heart of the United Kingdom’s oil and gas industry. While I’m at … [continued]

ChatGPT generated panoramic image of a stage with actors walking off, hydrogen for energy props left behind — an allegory for the collapsing performance

Green Hydrogen For Energy Was A Story We Told Ourselves

Bruno Latour once said technology doesn’t succeed because it works. It succeeds because enough people act like it does. For nearly a decade, that’s exactly what happened with green hydrogen as an energy carrier. The story was so compelling, the coalition so wide, the urgency so real, that for a … [continued]

ChatGPT generated panoramic image of a hydrogen station with Canadian money raining down on it from a cloudy sky - visual metaphor for wasted subsidies

British Columbia Pays HTEC Millions For Another Hydrogen Station Nobody Needs

HTEC just opened another hydrogen fueling station in British Columbia. It sits gleaming and underused in the Lower Mainland, one more high-cost monument to a transportation future that never arrived. It’s an infrastructure project aimed at a market that doesn’t exist, serving vehicles that aren’t being driven, with fuel no … [continued]

ChatGPT generated panoramic conceptual image of a hydrogen molecule dissolving into smoke or dissipating in front of major oil company logos

BP’s Exit Is Part Of A Broader Collapse In Hydrogen For Transportation Among Majors

BP quietly dissolved its low-carbon mobility team recently, and almost no one noticed. No flashy press release. No somber CEO video explaining a pivot to shareholder value. Just an internal memo, a few reassigned employees, and the slow realization that the company was backing away from its hydrogen transport dreams. … [continued]

ChatGPT generated panoramic image of a SMR reactor rusting in the rain, beside an unused and dirty hydrogen pump and a hydrogen van covered in cobwebs

Bavarian SMRs & Hydrogen Vans: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

First Hydrogen Corp, a Canadian firm with more ambition than balance sheet, has now turned its sights on Germany — arguably the worst possible place to mix hydrogen hype with small modular nuclear reactors. The company, known mostly for a hydrogen van prototype and a team structure with more CEOs … [continued]

ChatGPT generated panoramic image of an Innovation Fund piggy bank spilling money into a hydrogen storm drain

Ontario Doubles Down On Hydrogen For Energy As Countries Leave Table

Ontario’s love affair with hydrogen was always going to be an expensive fling. But now it’s turning into a full-blown marriage—despite all the warning signs from older, wiser jurisdictions that have already filed for divorce. The province is doubling the Hydrogen Innovation Fund to $30 million, a tidy sum that … [continued]

ChatGPT generated image of a Norwegian hydrogen facility with the flag at half mast and a permanently closed sign

Norway’s New Industrial Policy Pivots Away From Hydrogen For Energy

In 2020, Norway jumped into hydrogen like it was the next North Sea oil rush. The government released a national hydrogen strategy full of ambitions and buzzwords, envisioning a country where blue and green hydrogen would decarbonize ships, factories, maybe even homes. In 2021, they doubled down with a hydrogen … [continued]