University of Twente Student Theses
Green Hydrogen Future : Comparative Analysis of Belgian and Dutch Government Strategies for Industrial Adoption
Vandaele, Willem (2024) Green Hydrogen Future : Comparative Analysis of Belgian and Dutch Government Strategies for Industrial Adoption.
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| Abstract: | Green hydrogen made of renewable energy, has a pivotal role in decarbonising the industry. Besides, green hydrogen is already used as a feedstock in the industry for the manufacturing of chemicals, refineries, steel production, etc. The interest in (green) hydrogen is growing and several countries launched a hydrogen strategy. Despite the increasing attention, green hydrogen is still struggling to take off significantly and is yet considered a niche or protective space. Effective protection consists of three elements – shielding, nurturing and empowerment (SNE) – which are defined in the SNE framework. This framework enables the identification of shortcomings and characteristics of effective protection which can help to pave a socio-technical transition pathway within the broader Multi-Level Perspective (MLP) for green hydrogen into both the manufacturing regime and the energy regime. The hydrogen strategies of Belgium and the Netherlands are chosen based on their frontrunner role regarding green hydrogen and are considered an extreme case. A thematic analysis of the governmental strategies is complemented by industrial stakeholders' perceptions extracted from semi-structured interviews with a focus on the SNE characteristics and the socio-technical transition pathways. The Belgian and Dutch hydrogen strategy mainly envisioned a transformation pathway compromising an undeveloped green hydrogen niche while pressure from the Green Deal occurred leading to an adjustment into the direction of the green hydrogen development path and reorienting the innovative activities of incumbent actors. This pathway is desired by industrial stakeholders as well. Despite the pressure of the Green Deal, ineffective protection can be identified for both countries. Firstly, inadequate shielding is noticed by low and misallocated funding. Secondly, the key aspects of nurturing are present, however further improvement is noted. Lastly, the Renewable Energy Directive III tends to have a disempowering effect on the green hydrogen niche. These remarks demand an integral approach to obtain effective protection of the green hydrogen niche and facilitate regime integration. The green hydrogen niche impacts the manufacturing and energy regime differently: in the manufacturing regime, green hydrogen is desired to be the main share of feedstock. In this regime, fertiliser and refinery companies seem to have a huge influence on the emergence of the green hydrogen economy. Within the energy regime, green hydrogen only tends to be a part of the energy mix according to the stakeholders of both countries and should be complemented with other technological solutions. The main differences between Belgium and the Netherlands lie in the higher local green hydrogen production potential, more financial resources, more agreements (but less in-depth) and a more developed status of hydrogen acceptance in the case of the Netherlands. Belgium prioritises electricity while the Netherlands seeks for green hydrogen to solve grid congestion issues. These two front-running countries regarding hydrogen demonstrate the need for effective protection to increase the chances of a successful implementation of hydrogen into the industrial regimes. This is a pivotal step toward a carbon-neutral society and to ensure a sustainable future. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Programme: | Environmental and Energy Management MSc (69319) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/102723 |
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