A study conducted by the EHU-University of the Basque Country highlights that achieving a sustainable green hydrogen economy will require both technological advances and policies that balance environmental protection, economic competitiveness and social responsibility
Edited by Jon Erramun Arrue-Karazo
A research group at the University of the Basque Country (EHU) has assessed the environmental, economic and social sustainability of international green hydrogen supply chains, highlighting the need to balance economic competitiveness with environmental protection and social responsibility.
The EHU’s SUPREN research group is leading the European project UnLOHCked, which explores the challenges of transporting and storing green hydrogen. One promising solution involves liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHCs), which enable hydrogen to be stored in organic liquids and transported using existing oil and gas infrastructure.
The study, conducted by researcher Irene Rey under the supervision of Professor Ion Agirre and Professor Victoria Laura Barrio, analyses different international supply chains connecting renewable energy-producing countries, such as Namibia, Saudi Arabia, Norway and Spain, with consumer markets including Germany, the Netherlands, Japan and Italy. It also incorporates a social risk assessment, an aspect that has received comparatively little attention in previous research.
The findings identify hydrogen production and its subsequent release from the carrier liquid as the most critical stages, owing to their high energy requirements. The researchers also conclude that no single supply chain configuration delivers optimal results across all three dimensions: environmental, economic and social sustainability.
The study highlights the importance of considering geopolitical and social implications when developing future green hydrogen trade routes, particularly to avoid reproducing inequalities between resource-exporting countries in the Global South and industrialised economies in the Global North.
The research provides valuable insights for the design of future international green hydrogen corridors, emphasising that technological innovation must be accompanied by policies that ensure environmental benefits, economic viability and social equity.
More here.