Hydrogen: a vehicle emissions reduction alternative?

The current narrative around vehicle electrification typically covers battery cost, raw materials, weight, driving range, or charging infrastructure – all battery electric vehicle issues. There is rarely any discussion around the use of hydrogen as an alternative means of achieving vehicle emission targets. Why this apparent lack of interest?

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Some of the world’s leading vehicle markets have already committed to, and in some cases legislated, a timeline for the phaseout of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. Additionally, in many markets, the transition to battery electric vehicles (BEVs) over hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) is being incentivised to accelerate the shift towards zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs).

While these measures effectively guarantee a future for BEVs, their adoption has recently encountered the proverbial bump in the road. Despite global sales reaching 10 million units in 2023 for a share of just over 11%, this growth was lower in terms of both forecast and unit sales growth than in 2022. This has been attributed to a lack of affordable BEVs in most markets except China, the removal of incentives in several key markets, and shortcomings in public charging infrastructure. At the same time, PHEVs reversed a declining trend to increase their share of the global plug-in market (BEV + PHEV) from 27,2% to nearly 30%, likely a confirmation of ongoing customer concerns regarding public charging and range. This has resulted in the postponement or cancellation of some BEV projects and delayed the switching of some factories from ICE to BEV production.

Against this background, the question needs to be asked: what has happened to the use of hydrogen as an alternative to BEVs? After initially being touted as one of the viable alternatives to achieving zero vehicle emissions, and offering similar refuelling times and range to ICE vehicles, less than a handful of hydrogen-fuelled vehicles are currently on sale. Before exploring the reasons for this, it’s helpful to understand the different types of hydrogen-powered vehicles – hydrogen internal combustion engines (HICE) and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs).