Although natural hydrogen is produced via various physical phenomena taking place in the Earth's subsurface, notably fluid-rock interactions, the discoveries have all been accidental, limited in investigation, and only harnessed in Mali. As such, natural hydrogen is a potential new source of clean hydrogen which can play a significant role in Europe to meet the objectives set out in the Fit-for-55 Package and REPowerEU plan.
In the future, the potential of natural hydrogen accumulations in the subsurface should be determined and exploited in Europe in a safe and sustainable way to complement other routes of hydrogen production. Indeed, natural hydrogen may contribute to limiting greenhouse gas emissions, raw materials, water resources, and land use as compared to other types of hydrogen production, hereby strengthening the EU energy independency while accelerating the implementation of the hydrogen energy economy and thus the net-zero energy transition. Nevertheless, current needs are to develop methods and workflows to efficiently explore this resource, increase public support, and evaluate economically viable industrial solutions.
Project results are expected to contribute to the following outcomes:
- Strengthened European leadership in the exploration of natural hydrogen to identify and evaluate reserves and seek industrial production;
- Improved understanding of the occurrence and the resource potential
