The Netherlands is falling behind schedule for green hydrogen: What is holding back the development?

The report shows that the short-term obstacles to investing in green hydrogen projects mainly relate to the high cost compared to grey hydrogen, policy uncertainty, and infrastructure availability. It also examines the level of transparency in the market, which is a still underexplored obstacle for investment decisions. The current hydrogen market is closed and primarily consists of locally produced grey hydrogen. As a result, there is a lack of openness regarding traded prices and volumes.

However, transparency can be a driver for the development of the share of green hydrogen in the market. Transparency ensures efficient price formation, helps investors make well-informed decisions, and will attract new players who can use hydrogen as a sustainability solution.

The Common Futures report provides a good overview of both short- and long-term challenges in the hydrogen market and maps out which developments could contribute to a transparent market.

The Netherlands as a frontrunner

The Netherlands has a unique opportunity to play a leading role in the development of the hydrogen market. By removing short-term barriers through subsidy instruments or blended finance structures and building a market framework that encourages transparent trading, the Netherlands can not only achieve its climate targets but also stimulate economic growth. Read more about blended finance for green hydrogen electrolysers.

"For a sustainable hydrogen market, we need to overcome short-term obstacles, but also definitely invest in what is needed in the long term: a transparent market. Together with market parties, we want to chart a pathway there," says Stephan Falcão Ferreira, Business Developer at Invest-NL.