The Role of Hydrogen in the Visegrad Group Approach to Energy Transition

Abstract

Hydrogen is an energy carrier in which hopes are placed for an easier achievement of climate neutrality. Together with electrification, energy efficiency development, and RES, hydrogen is expected to enable the ambitious energy goals of the European Green Deal. Hence, the aim of the article is to query the development of the hydrogen economy in the Visegrad Group countries (V4). The study considers six diagnostic features: sources of hydrogen production, hydrogen legislation, financial mechanisms, objectives included in the hydrogen strategy, environmental impact of H2, and costs of green hydrogen investments. The analysis also allowed to indicate the role that hydrogen will play in the energy transition process of the V4 countries. The analysis shows that the V4 countries have similar approaches to the development of the hydrogen market, but the hydrogen strategies published by each of the Visegrad countries are not the same. Each document sets goals based on the hydrogen production to date and the specifics of the domestic energy and transport sectors, as there are no solutions that are equally effective for all. Poland’s hydrogen strategy definitely stands out the strongest.