But why should countries look into hydrogen in general? Here are some advantages:

• It can be produced in a completely climate-neutral way
• It can be extracted from electricity as well as converted back into electricity
• It connects major sectors such as mobility, heat supply and electricity
• It can replace coal and natural gas
• It can be used as a coolant, fuel and heating agent 
• Burns cleanly and releases only water and energy without CO2

Looking at Belgium specifically, it is a country that is committed to clean energy solutions such as green hydrogen. On the 29th of October 2021, the federal government adopted its first hydrogen strategy, based on the proposal of Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten. A year later, in October 2022, Belgium validated this strategy in order to use hydrogen to make certain applications climate neutral. Additionally, the Belgian government has announced plans to create up to 160 kilometers of hydrogen transport pipelines by 2026 and invest around €400m to ensure that the connection to Germany’s hydrogen pipeline is sped up. The reason for this bilateral deal is to link the important hydrogen supplies of Belgium with the strong demand in Germany, who is now relatively immature when it comes to hydrogen infrastructures. A plan that would be the beginning of “hydrogen cooperation” within Europe.

By focusing on green hydrogen, Belgium is playing a key role in the European Commissions’s plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 and becoming a climate-neutral continent by 2050. Unfortunately, Belgium does not produce enough hydrogen to sustain this goal. Instead, it imports the majority of it from abroad. Well established corporations, like DEME, are also showing their support by investing in green hydrogen projects overseas in order to secure enough import to Europe while the local production grows. Similarly, many other Belgian companies have set urgent goals of reducing their emissions by adapting their infrastructures to green hydrogen, or by expanding their range of offers with more climate neutral solutions. This has led the government to realize that they won’t be able to make it alone and that producing locally instead of importing will in the end be more cost-efficient. This is why, the federal government is investing in effective collaboration with corporations. Thanks to these rising public-private partnerships, Belgium is considered a Hub for green hydrogen. Companies, individuals and government bodies have high hopes of success for Belgium.

However, despite the visible efforts, the country still has a long way to go before reaching its goals. As of now, most hydrogen produced in Belgium is gray hydrogen, which emits significant amounts of carbon dioxide. Another issue to point out is the considerable amount of renewable energy that is needed for its production, and the great energy loss associated. Massive investments for infrastructures are still needed to facilitate the transportation of such small and hard to store molecules. Therefore, further discussion and reflection on the subject have to be collectively done, and efforts from all parties have to increase even more in order to win the race of green hydrogen. 

Below, you will find a five-step plan that helps contribute to the Belgian Economy’s ambition to grow the Role of Hydrogen.