GREEN HYDROGEN TECHNOLOGY

At first, we need to know the basic concept of Green Hydrogen and how we can define it meeting
a certain criteria. Hydrogen is a source of energy in the world since ages but the concept of Green
Hydrogen makes it more environmental friendly.

There are basically two approaches to define Green Hydrogen:

The origin of the energy required to generate the hydrogen and the sustainability of the
feedstock needed

In this case the use of renewable energy or feedstock is a condition for producing green hydrogen,
and the amount of green hydrogen produced can be determined by the share of renewable energy
or feedstock used or by a threshold.

Greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions associated to the hydrogen produced

Green hydrogen is hydrogen from renewable sources with an allocated associated GHG emissions
intensity of zero ( Life cycle analysis(LCA) approach) produced in a plant where the average
emissions intensity of the non-zero-GHG hydrogen production ( LCA approach) of the past 12
months does not exceed the emissions intensity of the normal process (SMR of natural gas). Any
biomass used shall fulfil with the sustainability requirements according to the Renewable Energy
Directive.

Harvesting Green Hydrogen

Electrolysers used for green hydrogen production can operate dynamically and require only
seconds to be able to operate at maximum capacity. As such, they can be easily paired with
renewable assets (hydropower, solar and wind). Three main electrolyser technologies are used or
being developed today. Alkaline (ALK) electrolysers have been used by industry for a long time.
Proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysers are commercially available today and are rapidly
gaining market grip as among other factors, they are more flexible compared to others. Solid oxide
electrolysers hold the potential of providing improved energy efficiency but are still in
development and, unlike ALK and PEM, work at high temperatures. Moreover, hydrogen can be
stored for long periods in large tanks in order to be sold for industrial applications, integrated into
the gas network or used to power fuel cells. For a region’s capacity to produce electricity from
renewable sources has a direct impact on the cost of harvesting Green hydrogen. Hydrogen from
renewable electricity could create a new downstream market for renewable power. It has the
potential to reduce renewable electricity generators exposure to power price volatility risk, in
instances where part or all generation is sold to electrolyser operators through long-term
agreements. This possibility depending on market configuration and regulations. Hydrogen offers
added possibilities to find high quality renewable energy resources, including those located far
from end-user demand. Once produced, hydrogen (like liquefied natural gas) can be transported
as a global commodity unrestrained by grid connections.

Hydrogen from renewable electricity is most likely to achieve cost-effectiveness through high
electrolyser utilization rates combined with low-cost renewable electricity for example in our case
Hydropower. The cost of electricity from hydropower if worked properly and well generated can
be one of the cheapest around the world with all the resources we contain here in Nepal. In the
medium to long term, hydrogen could become a way to transport and distribute renewable energy
over long distances, especially in those areas where the electricity grid has insufficient capacity or
when it is too impractical or expensive to build. Regions and countries with abundant and cheap
renewable energy sources could produce hydrogen for transport to regions with either limited
potential or higher costs of renewable power generation. Transport of renewable energy via
hydrogen could be established at different scales, from local to international.

To summarize, for a region like Nepal having abundant renewable resources to play with, Green
Hydrogen Harvesting could be beneficial for the Nation economic wise. Also, it could unlock paths
for new reforms in the field of technology. For a time now, I have pursued interest on the subject
and I would also like to work further, expanding my expertise in the area by a mixture of research
and valuable guidance.