MASH UP: Marine solar-to-hydrogen / Unlimited Potential

Creating a truly sustainable hydrogen economy is conceptually simple: use surplus renewable energy to produce H2, ammonia (NH3), methanol, etc. (“energy to X”), and sell into existing global supply chains. Offshore renewable energy, starting with solar and wind, is an obvious option for many of ADB’s member countries due to the upward scalability. Ocean “energy to X” can be thought of as a mining industry which is circular rather than linear, and which is truly sustainable and renewable. The “secret” to competitive hydrogen production costs is in the form of advanced market commitments from buyers which anchor the upstream investment in renewable energy and hydrogen production, similar to traditional LNG export development. Based on current system costs, 1000 MW of marine-solar to hydrogen should be possible with much less than $ 5 billion investment (walkin' around money for people like Bezos, Buffet, and Gates). The countries and industrial partners who “go big” on green hydrogen will own the future.