The end of ?All Electric“? Germany’s hydrogen strategy commented

The decision of the Federal German government to adapt The hydrogen strategy to current needs was echoed intensively in European media.?

The influential German daily “Die Welt” took it on front page. In general the strategy is seen as the turning point for the German industrial policy saying goodbye to “all electric” whilst delivering on climate goals. Indeed, it might be seen in the future as the historical milestone to bring Germany back to its industrial strength.?

Hydrogen could additionally help to reduce the mass of financial damage of 4,25 billion € in 2022 produced by non-existing storage capacities and a dysfunctional electricity grid.?

I have the honour to be quoted in relation to keeping the European Union competitive vis-a-vis the US and inflation reduction act. The part of the article reads:

The CEO of the European Hydrogen Association therefore proposes initiating an “EU Tax Credit Club” for hydrogen taxation at European level. This would be an "appropriate response to the US tax credits," Chatzimakakis said. Background: The USA has announced tax incentives in its so-called Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in order to also attract hydrogen investors. Comparable subsidies are not available in the European Union, since tax legislation is the responsibility of the member states. A “tax club” of several EU member states could circumvent the problem.

More importantly the comment of Daniel Wetzel describes how the German government finally managed to emancipate from requests of NGOs banning hydrogen from many sectors (e.g. mobility or heating):

End of all-electric dreams

The national hydrogen strategy marks a turning point in energy policy. For a long time, this was driven by the idea of a completely electrified society, the “all electric society”. Everything should be operated with green electricity: Industry, heating, cars, air conditioning, carbon neutral fuels and gases were considered superfluous by the protagonists of this idea. Wind turbines and solar systems would supply the country 100%. Now the federal government has put an end to these electric dreams. In the recent past, “All Electric” was the mental blueprint of the federal government's energy transition planners. Non-governmental organizations had propagated the case of electricity generation, supported it with "studies" and implemented it in government plans via governmental state secretaries who were friends. Hydrogen? Was only considered a life-prolonging measure by the fossil gas lobby. E-fuels from?hydrogen? A trick by the auto industry to save the internal combustion engine. In many regulations and quotas, every non-electrical energy variant was made more expensive, disadvantaged and forbidden - no matter how climate-friendly it was. Concepts from the “Agora Energiewende” think tank were only willing to concede a niche role to hydrogen again. The hydrogen policy consisted of ban fantasies, where the gas is not allowed to be used anyrywhere. The peak of this development was the case of Secretary of State and former "Agora"-boss Patrick Graichen when he gave the municipalities the task of planning the demolition of the gas grid. Now Graichen is gone, limiting the influence of Agora and other climate groups on the government. This leaves room for pragmatism and realism: Green electricity cannot do everything. Energy is better transported and stored in gaseous form, in the form of hydrogen. The gas network for this already exists, thank God they weren't ripped out of the ground. Bans on use are not planned. With the hydrogen strategy, the government has emancipated itself from the ideological non-governmental organizations.