Pillsbury, the first law firm to launch a practice team dedicated to all things hydrogen, has launched the only public resource tracking the development of hydrogen projects worldwide, accessible at www.TheHydrogenMap.com.

“With governments and enterprises worldwide increasingly prioritising decarbonisation goals, we are laser-focused on helping clients capitalise on the enormous opportunities that the ongoing energy transition presents,” said partner Sheila Harvey, who serves as firmwide Energy Industry Group leader at Pillsbury and co-leads the firm’s Hydrogen practice.

Hydrogen practice group co-leader Mona Dajani, who also heads the firm’s Energy & Infrastructure Projects and Renewable Energy teams, adds: “Demand for energy is driving significant innovation in the hydrogen space. Green hydrogen projects, which combine renewable power sources with hydrogen production, are unlocking new possibilities for regions previously constrained by weak grid connections and transmission bottlenecks, and marking a crucial step in the development of the green hydrogen business case.”

The proprietary Pillsbury map concentrates on ‘green’ and ‘blue’ hydrogen projects – production facilities that meet low-carbon thresholds by using either zero-carbon sources such as renewables or nuclear power or by capturing, storing or reusing carbon emissions produced by fossil fuel-based hydrogen production methods – with more than 200 projects already included. This data set will expand over time, with existing entries updated as projects progress and the potential to add more information to help readers find projects of interest to them.

Some notable findings based on Pillsbury’s research include:

• While 57 hydrogen projects (26 per cent of those tracked) are currently operational, 58 others will be in development by the end of 2021, and the construction of another 92 is scheduled to begin in the next decade.
• Global growth is thus far being driven by Western Europe and Asia Pacific, with these regions accounting for more than 83 per cent of known low-carbon hydrogen projects, but hydrogen projects in the U.S. are on the rise.
• Green hydrogen projects – which generate hydrogen using zero-carbon sources such as renewables or nuclear power – currently dominate the market, with 52 operational projects.
• A hydrogen production facility being built at the Tabangao refinery in Batangas, Philippines, is slated to be the first to generate blue hydrogen, in which hydrogen is produced using fossil-fueled sources but the resulting carbon emissions are captured, stored or reused.

Pillsbury energy partner and Deputy Energy Industry Group leader, Elina Teplinsky, said low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia production are key to decarbonising the hard-to-decarbonise sectors like transportation, industry and buildings.

“This map will be a helpful tool for a broad audience of policymakers, industry participants and investors, sustainability analysts, advocates and journalists tracking the development of low-carbon hydrogen projects and encourage dialogue between those parties to further accelerate adoption of this transformational technology,” she said.