As always, the devil’s in the details. The production of hydrogen in the Latrobe Valley uses coal gassification:
Even if totally green electricity were available to the producers, the gassification process releases copious greenhouse gases. That required carbon offsets in the pilot phase and would need carbon capture to work in the commercial phase. Carbon capture at the level needed is pie in the sky stuff. Has it even worked successfully at an experimental level? Green hydrogen via electrolysis would be a less risky proposition when it comes to combatting climate change but only if the vast amount of electricity required comes from renewable sources.
Quote: Hydrogen was extracted from Latrobe Valley coal and a mixture of biomass at a newly constructed plant located at AGL’s Loy Yang Complex in the Latrobe Valley through gasification and refining. Carbon offsets were purchased to mitigate emissions from the pilot. In the commercial phase, carbon dioxide would be captured during this process and stored deep underground in a process known as carbon capture and storage (CCS).
Even if totally green electricity were available to the producers, the gassification process releases copious greenhouse gases. That required carbon offsets in the pilot phase and would need carbon capture to work in the commercial phase. Carbon capture at the level needed is pie in the sky stuff. Has it even worked successfully at an experimental level? Green hydrogen via electrolysis would be a less risky proposition when it comes to combatting climate change but only if the vast amount of electricity required comes from renewable sources.