“The rumors of my death are greatly exaggerated”
- Mark Twain Clean hydrogen

The clean hydrogen industry has been a victim of overhyping. At its zenith in 2022, the low-carbon fuel was the do-everything molecule that was set to revolutionize transport, heavy industry, power and more. But as the challenge of costs met industry realities, interest fizzled, leaving the perception that the clean hydrogen experiment has failed. But that’s an overreaction, too.

The Hydrogen Council recently released its Global Hydrogen Compass 2025 report and highlighted how much investment is going into the emerging industry. $110 billion worth of investment is committed across more than 500 projects across the world, all of which are post-final investment decision. 6 million tonnes per annum of capacity is committed, including 1 million already operating. The challenges is finding demand willing to pay the green premium.

The International Energy Agency released its Global Hydrogen Review in September and highlighted who the offtakers are. While nearly two-thirds are traditional industries, like chemicals and industry, 40% comes from emerging use cases. Hydrogen for methanol and ammonia fuel, particularly for shipping, are the top two. While steel and jet fuel are small but growing users.