Forum Topics Hydrogen: the ASX stocks
Pelican
Added 3 years ago

Found this article to be a good read, it provides a balanced perspective on the opportunities and challenges with green hydrogen.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-03699-0

(Disclosure: ASX:HGEN held IRL and on SM)

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slymeat
Added 4 years ago

Things seem to be happening with Hydrogen and aviation.

https://stockhead.com.au/energy/liquid-ammonia-is-the-carbon-free-fuel-of-choice-for-aviation-h2

Storing Hydrogen as liquid Ammonia seems a win. Lighter weight and similar storage to aviation fuel. A great way for Carbon-free flight.

It’s good to see that Hydrogen as a fuel is still progressing.

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slymeat
Added 4 years ago

I see a future with electric vehicles that have smaller batteries (hence less weight) and a Hydrogen fuel cell. To me, that seems to be the best of both worlds.

Longer range combined with filling up in a few minutes—using a process we are all currently familiar with—plus hopefully the ability to plug in and recharge as well. So can recharge the batteries for free from home solar.

https://www.moneymag.com.au/hydrogen-the-next-big-thing-on-the-stock-market

A notable statement in this very short article is:

”Investors would be wise to study up on green hydrogen and be on the lookout for the great investment opportunities that will definitely become available in this space.”


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Strawman
Added 4 years ago

I'm less bullish on Hydrogen than most.

Saul Griffith (someone who has directly worked in the field and commercialised some impressive hydrogen technology) makes a great case against it here

In short, while it has certain niche applications, it cant compete with electricity due to the the energy wasted in production, conversion & transportation. Things like shipping and other areas, and in certain geographies -- sure. But for most of our needs, it's far less competitive than just using the energy we generate directly.

Improved efficiencies in production may change that, but even then you run up against fundamental thermodynamic limitations.

That's not to say you don't invest in it, but i do think the addressable market assumptions tend to be overly optimistic.

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Strawman
Added 4 years ago

I hear all that @slymeat, and let me reiterate that I'm not saying it's not an important technology and shouldn't be pursued.

My only point is that in many applications it is simply inferior to electric power, and that the addressable market is often overstated.

In the video I shared Saul absolutely says it has it's use cases, but will more likely play a secondary role. Especially in Australia where we are highly advantaged by virtue of our geography.

At any rate, the new energy economy will require a combination of approaches and technologies, so no one approach offers a silver bullet.

I'd very much recommend his books The Big Switch and Electrify for a deeper dive.

So there's no real disagreement here, just adding a bit of nuance.

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barney
Added 4 years ago

Agree with this, and add that it should not be thought about for a replacement of gas supplies especially in domestic applications. Mostly as there are now considerably better/ more efficient alternatives such as heat pumps for preventing all our northern hemisphere neighbours from freezing in winter.

The other problem with hydrogen is it presents significant safety concerns for usage in homes for heating due to its chemical properties. The cost of mitigating this risk will culminate to higher cost for consumers and inefficient operations.

For reference the Hindenburg was filled with hydrogen. They probably should not have included a smoking room in the design.



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slymeat
Added 4 years ago

Not exactly a post about Australian Hydrogen stocks, but I felt this an appropriate forum for this information that hopefully will attract investment into Australian Hydrogen stocks.

Germany certainly seems to be getting serious on the hydrogen front. And especially Green Hydrogen - where green energy is used to extract Hydrogen from water by electrolysis.

I do like the name of the project—H2ercules.

https://www.h2-view.com/story/e3-5bn-project-to-create-1500km-hydrogen-backbone-pipeline-for-germany/

A progressive country like Germany getting serious about Hydrogen, should cause the world to sit up and take notice.

Hazer Group (ASX:HZR) is interested in this project, so hopefully their Hazer process is involved somehow.

The distribution pipeline is intriguing, they are saving money by converting existing natural gas pipelines to carry Hydrogen. That is something Australia could also consider - we do have many kms of natural gas pipelines that could be used. The need for a distribution network is one of the big obstacles to adopting Hydrogen fuel cells. This could be an answer!

Containing Hydrogen at non-cryogenic temperatures is a particular problem due to the small size and energetic state of Hydrogen molecules. I do hope the German 1500km pipeline is utilising Graphene in its construction. Just because I know Graphene can serve that role and I like Graphene.

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