IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/appene/v396y2025ics0306261925009791.html

Overcoming hurdles and harnessing the potential of the hydrogen transition in Germany

Author

Listed:
  • Maketo, Lydia
  • Ashworth, Peta

Abstract

Green hydrogen has become a core element of Europe's energy transition to assist in lowering carbon emissions. However, the transition to green hydrogen faces challenges including the cost of production, availability of renewable energy sources, public opposition, and the need for supportive government policies and financial initiatives. While there are other alternatives for producing low-carbon hydrogen, for example blue hydrogen, German funding favours projects that involve hydrogen production via electrolysis. Beyond climate goals, it is anticipated that a green hydrogen industry will create economic benefits and a wide-range of collaborative opportunities, with key international partnerships increasing energy security if done appropriately. Germany, a leader in green hydrogen technology, will need to rely on imports to meet long-term demand due to limited renewable energy capacity. Despite the current obstacles to transitioning to green hydrogen it is felt that ultimately the benefits of this industry and reducing emissions will outweigh the associated costs of production. This study analyses the hydrogen transition in Germany by interviewing 37 European experts guided by the research question: What are the key perceived barriers and opportunities influencing the successful adoption and integration of hydrogen technologies in Germany's hydrogen transition?

Suggested Citation

  • Maketo, Lydia & Ashworth, Peta, 2025. "Overcoming hurdles and harnessing the potential of the hydrogen transition in Germany," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 396(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:396:y:2025:i:c:s0306261925009791
    DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2025.126249
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261925009791
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.apenergy.2025.126249?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Squadrito, Gaetano & Maggio, Gaetano & Nicita, Agatino, 2023. "The green hydrogen revolution," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 216(C).
    2. Rossana Scita & Pier Paolo Raimondi & Michel Noussan, 2020. "Green Hydrogen: the Holy Grail of Decarbonisation? An Analysis of the Technical and Geopolitical Implications of the Future Hydrogen Economy," Working Papers 2020.13, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    3. Balcombe, Paul & Speirs, Jamie & Johnson, Erin & Martin, Jeanne & Brandon, Nigel & Hawkes, Adam, 2018. "The carbon credentials of hydrogen gas networks and supply chains," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 1077-1088.
    4. Lorraine Whitmarsh & Dimitrios Xenias & Christopher R. Jones, 2019. "Framing effects on public support for carbon capture and storage," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 5(1), pages 1-10, December.
    5. Li, Yanfei & Taghizadeh-Hesary, Farhad, 2022. "The economic feasibility of green hydrogen and fuel cell electric vehicles for road transport in China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    6. Al-Qahtani, Amjad & Parkinson, Brett & Hellgardt, Klaus & Shah, Nilay & Guillen-Gosalbez, Gonzalo, 2021. "Uncovering the true cost of hydrogen production routes using life cycle monetisation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 281(C).
    7. Zachary P. Cano & Dustin Banham & Siyu Ye & Andreas Hintennach & Jun Lu & Michael Fowler & Zhongwei Chen, 2018. "Batteries and fuel cells for emerging electric vehicle markets," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 3(4), pages 279-289, April.
    8. Carola Braun & Christine Merk & Gert Pönitzsch & Katrin Rehdanz & Ulrich Schmidt, 2018. "Public perception of climate engineering and carbon capture and storage in Germany: survey evidence," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(4), pages 471-484, April.
    9. Zainal, Bidattul Syirat & Ker, Pin Jern & Mohamed, Hassan & Ong, Hwai Chyuan & Fattah, I.M.R. & Rahman, S.M. Ashrafur & Nghiem, Long D. & Mahlia, T M Indra, 2024. "Recent advancement and assessment of green hydrogen production technologies," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 189(PA).
    10. John Andrews & Bahman Shabani, 2014. "The role of hydrogen in a global sustainable energy strategy," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Energy and Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 3(5), pages 474-489, September.
    11. Azadnia, Amir Hossein & McDaid, Conor & Andwari, Amin Mahmoudzadeh & Hosseini, Seyed Ehsan, 2023. "Green hydrogen supply chain risk analysis: A european hard-to-abate sectors perspective," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    12. Alessandro Franco & Caterina Giovannini, 2023. "Routes for Hydrogen Introduction in the Industrial Hard-to-Abate Sectors for Promoting Energy Transition," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(16), pages 1-23, August.
    13. Emile Cammeraat & Antoine Dechezleprêtre & Guy Lalanne, 2022. "Innovation and industrial policies for green hydrogen," OECD Science, Technology and Industry Policy Papers 125, OECD Publishing.
    14. Rami Y. Dahham & Haiqiao Wei & Jiaying Pan, 2022. "Improving Thermal Efficiency of Internal Combustion Engines: Recent Progress and Remaining Challenges," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-60, August.
    15. Apostolou, D. & Xydis, G., 2019. "A literature review on hydrogen refuelling stations and infrastructure. Current status and future prospects," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 1-1.
    16. Mahdi Takach & Mirza Sarajlić & Dorothee Peters & Michael Kroener & Frank Schuldt & Karsten von Maydell, 2022. "Review of Hydrogen Production Techniques from Water Using Renewable Energy Sources and Its Storage in Salt Caverns," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-17, February.
    17. Kalghatgi, Gautam, 2018. "Is it really the end of internal combustion engines and petroleum in transport?," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 225(C), pages 965-974.
    18. June Sekera & Andreas Lichtenberger, 2020. "Assessing Carbon Capture: Public Policy, Science, and Societal Need," Biophysical Economics and Resource Quality, Springer, vol. 5(3), pages 1-28, September.
    19. Strunz, Sebastian, 2014. "The German energy transition as a regime shift," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 150-158.
    20. Tuukka Mäkitie & Markus Steen, 2023. "The energy sector: an industrial perspective on energy transitions," Chapters, in: Patrizio Bianchi & Sandrine Labory & Philip R. Tomlinson (ed.), Handbook of Industrial Development, chapter 17, pages 287-301, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    21. Priessner, Alfons & Sposato, Robert & Hampl, Nina, 2018. "Predictors of electric vehicle adoption: An analysis of potential electric vehicle drivers in Austria," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 701-714.
    22. George, Jan Frederick & Müller, Viktor Paul & Winkler, Jenny & Ragwitz, Mario, 2022. "Is blue hydrogen a bridging technology? - The limits of a CO2 price and the role of state-induced price components for green hydrogen production in Germany," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    23. Hanley, Emma S. & Deane, JP & Gallachóir, BP Ó, 2018. "The role of hydrogen in low carbon energy futures–A review of existing perspectives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 82(P3), pages 3027-3045.
    24. Velazquez Abad, Anthony & Dodds, Paul E., 2020. "Green hydrogen characterisation initiatives: Definitions, standards, guarantees of origin, and challenges," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    25. Bigdeli, Nooshin & Afshar, Karim & Gazafroudi, Amin Shokri & Ramandi, Mostafa Yousefi, 2013. "A comparative study of optimal hybrid methods for wind power prediction in wind farm of Alberta, Canada," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 20-29.
    26. Manzoor Qadir & Pay Drechsel & Blanca Jiménez Cisneros & Younggy Kim & Amit Pramanik & Praem Mehta & Oluwabusola Olaniyan, 2020. "Global and regional potential of wastewater as a water, nutrient and energy source," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 44(1), pages 40-51, February.
    27. André Wolf & Nils Zander, 2021. "Green Hydrogen in Europe: Do Strategies Meet Expectations?," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Springer;ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics;Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), vol. 56(6), pages 316-323, November.
    28. Qadir, M. & Drechsel, Pay & Cisneros, B. J. & Kim, Y. & Pramanik, A. & Mehta, P. & Olaniyan, O., 2020. "Global and regional potential of wastewater as a water, nutrient and energy source," Papers published in Journals (Open Access), International Water Management Institute, pages 44(1):40-51.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Venizelou, Venizelos & Poullikkas, Andreas, 2025. "The potential of Green Hydrogen as an alternative to Natural Gas Power Generation," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 224(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mohideen, Mohamedazeem M. & Subramanian, Balachandran & Sun, Jingyi & Ge, Jing & Guo, Han & Radhamani, Adiyodi Veettil & Ramakrishna, Seeram & Liu, Yong, 2023. "Techno-economic analysis of different shades of renewable and non-renewable energy-based hydrogen for fuel cell electric vehicles," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    2. Qureshi, Fazil & Yusuf, Mohammad & Kamyab, Hesam & Vo, Dai-Viet N. & Chelliapan, Shreeshivadasan & Joo, Sang-Woo & Vasseghian, Yasser, 2022. "Latest eco-friendly avenues on hydrogen production towards a circular bioeconomy: Currents challenges, innovative insights, and future perspectives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    3. Shamoushaki, Moein & Koh, S.C. Lenny, 2025. "Novel maturity scoring for hydrogen standards and economy in G20," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    4. Luciano De Tommasi & Pádraig Lyons, 2022. "Towards the Integration of Flexible Green Hydrogen Demand and Production in Ireland: Opportunities, Barriers, and Recommendations," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-32, December.
    5. Michel Noussan & Pier Paolo Raimondi & Rossana Scita & Manfred Hafner, 2020. "The Role of Green and Blue Hydrogen in the Energy Transition—A Technological and Geopolitical Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-26, December.
    6. Ahang, Mohammadreza & Granado, Pedro Crespo del & Tomasgard, Asgeir, 2025. "Investments in green hydrogen as a flexibility source for the European power system by 2050: Does it pay off?," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 378(PA).
    7. Eugeniusz Mokrzycki & Lidia Gawlik, 2024. "The Development of a Green Hydrogen Economy: Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-29, June.
    8. Wenting Cheng & Sora Lee, 2022. "How Green Are the National Hydrogen Strategies?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-33, February.
    9. Siavashi, Majid & Hosseini, Farzad & Talesh Bahrami, Hamid Reza, 2021. "A new design with preheating and layered porous ceramic for hydrogen production through methane steam reforming process," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    10. Ayiguzhali Tuluhong & Qingpu Chang & Lirong Xie & Zhisen Xu & Tengfei Song, 2024. "Current Status of Green Hydrogen Production Technology: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(20), pages 1-47, October.
    11. Ascioti, Fortunato A. & Mangano, Maria Cristina & Marcianò, Claudio & Sarà, Gianluca, 2022. "The sanitation service of seagrasses – Dependencies and implications for the estimation of avoided costs," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    12. Carlo Cunanan & Manh-Kien Tran & Youngwoo Lee & Shinghei Kwok & Vincent Leung & Michael Fowler, 2021. "A Review of Heavy-Duty Vehicle Powertrain Technologies: Diesel Engine Vehicles, Battery Electric Vehicles, and Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles," Clean Technol., MDPI, vol. 3(2), pages 1-16, June.
    13. Abdin, Zainul, 2024. "Empowering the hydrogen economy: The transformative potential of blockchain technology," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    14. Gordon, Joel A. & Balta-Ozkan, Nazmiye & Nabavi, Seyed Ali, 2023. "Socio-technical barriers to domestic hydrogen futures: Repurposing pipelines, policies, and public perceptions," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 336(C).
    15. Genovese, M. & Piraino, F. & Fragiacomo, P., 2024. "3E analysis of a virtual hydrogen valley supported by railway-based H2 delivery for multi-transportation service," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    16. Anna Grobelak & Klaudia Całus-Makowska & Anna Jasińska & Marek Klimasz & Aleksandra Wypart-Pawul & Dominika Augustajtys & Estera Baor & Daria Sławczyk & Aneta Kowalska, 2024. "Environmental Impacts and Contaminants Management in Sewage Sludge-to-Energy and Fertilizer Technologies: Current Trends and Future Directions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-28, October.
    17. Jesús Rey & Francisca Segura & José Manuel Andújar, 2023. "Green Hydrogen: Resources Consumption, Technological Maturity, and Regulatory Framework," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-29, August.
    18. Laila A. Al-Khatib & Ahmad M. AlHanaktah, 2025. "Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrade and Its Interlinkages with the Sustainable Development Goals," Resources, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-16, April.
    19. Vicent Hernández-Chover & Águeda Bellver-Domingo & Lledó Castellet-Viciano & Francesc Hernández-Sancho, 2024. "AI Applied to the Circular Economy: An Approach in the Wastewater Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(4), pages 1-18, February.
    20. Débora Cynamon Kligerman & Aline Stelling Zanatta & Graziella de Araújo Toledo & Joseli Maria da Rocha Nogueira, 2023. "Path toward Sustainability in Wastewater Management in Brazil," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(16), pages 1-19, August.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:396:y:2025:i:c:s0306261925009791. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/405891/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.