In Detail : Swiss Steel Group has launched a new initiative to test hydrogen in steel production as part of its sustainability strategy. The project aims to reduce the sector’s heavy dependence on fossil fuels while addressing one of the most pressing challenges in industrial decarbonization. With this step, the company strengthens its commitment to building a low-carbon future.

The steel industry is one of the largest contributors to carbon emissions globally, responsible for nearly 7% of worldwide CO₂ output. Traditional production methods rely heavily on coal and other fossil fuels, creating environmental concerns. By testing hydrogen as an alternative energy source, Swiss Steel is exploring cleaner pathways to meet rising global demand sustainably.

Hydrogen has emerged as a promising solution in energy-intensive sectors due to its ability to replace carbon-based fuels in industrial processes. When used correctly, hydrogen generates water vapor as the only by-product, making it a zero-emission alternative. Swiss Steel’s decision to invest in this innovation highlights growing momentum across industries to adopt hydrogen for deep decarbonization.

The project also reflects Europe’s broader energy transition goals under the European Green Deal. Governments and industry leaders are encouraging the use of green hydrogen to reduce emissions and achieve net-zero targets by 2050. Swiss Steel’s testing is aligned with these ambitions, showcasing private sector participation in achieving continental climate milestones.

Beyond reducing emissions, the adoption of hydrogen in steel production can also enhance operational efficiency. Hydrogen-based processes could streamline energy use while lowering overall costs in the long term. This creates an opportunity for Swiss Steel to combine profitability with sustainability, offering a model for other steelmakers to follow.

However, challenges remain in scaling hydrogen adoption across the steel industry. High production costs, infrastructure requirements, and limited green hydrogen availability pose hurdles. Swiss Steel’s pilot project is designed to address these obstacles and provide practical insights into future industrial applications.

Industry experts believe that successful integration of hydrogen could reshape global steel markets. Companies pioneering such technologies are expected to gain competitive advantages while contributing to climate goals. Swiss Steel’s move positions it as a leader in innovative steel manufacturing and environmental responsibility.

The project also reflects a growing trend of industrial companies forming partnerships with technology providers and energy firms. Collaboration will be critical in scaling hydrogen adoption and reducing associated costs. By working alongside stakeholders, Swiss Steel aims to accelerate progress and drive industry-wide change.

With this initiative, Swiss Steel Group reinforces its commitment to a greener industrial future. As hydrogen use in steel production develops further, the company is set to play a vital role in advancing sustainable practices. The pilot project not only reduces emissions but also represents a significant step towards transforming one of the world’s most polluting industries.

In Detail : HP Green R&D Centre (HPGRDC), the research and development facility of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), announced a tie-up with Engineers India Ltd. (EIL) for the commercialisation of its indigenously developed Hydrogen Pressure Swing Adsorption (HP-PSA) Technology.

Under the agreement, HPCL will serve as the ‘Technology Licensor,’ while EIL will act as the exclusive ‘Technology & Engineering Partner’ for engineering, marketing, and commercialisation of the HP-PSA Technology in India.

The HP-PSA Technology, developed by HPGRDC, has demonstrated its capabilities through a commercial-scale greenfield 6-bed H2 PSA unit at Visakh Refinery, operating for over nine years, HPCL said in a statement.

“This breakthrough technology positions HPCL as India’s first and the world’s third Hydrogen PSA Technology Licensor,” the company said.

Vipul Kumar Maheshwari, Executive Director-R&D, HPCL said “This collaboration will contribute significantly to India’s technological self-reliance and reinforce our commitment to innovation and continual improvement.”

SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES works intensively with partners on the development and optimization of coatings for metallic bipolar plates used in fuel cells and electrolyzers. The modular inline sputtering system GENERIS PVD from SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES enables the variable deposition of different layer systems and offers the possibility to sputter bipolar plates in all common sizes with a flexible substrate carrier system. The dynamic inline vacuum PVD sputtering enables high-quality and cost-efficient production.

Dr.-Ing. Stefan Rinck, CEO SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES : “For the application in the production of fuel cells we are working on the development and optimization of the sputter process and the equipment technology for the deposition of metallic bipolar plates with suitable nitride and carbide protective layers as well as other innovative processes.”

The modularly designed GENERIS PVD inline coating system can be used to deposit different coating systems. With its flexible substrate carrier system, the GENERIS PVD offers the possibility of coating bipolar plates in all common sizes. Dr. Stefan Rinck adds: “In cooperation with leading European institutes, we are working on optimizing the coating processes and results in the field of hydrogen technology. We are convinced that the use of green hydrogen makes ecological sense and that the market will grow at an above-average rate.”

Green hydrogen is produced by electrolysis of water, using only electricity from renewable sources such as solar, wind or hydropower for the electrolysis. Regardless of the electrolysis technology chosen, the production of hydrogen in this case is CO2-free, as the electricity used comes 100% from renewable sources and is therefore CO2-neutral.

Market for hydrogen growing strongly

The direct or indirect use of hydrogen offers high potential for the electrolysis, industrial and transport sectors, and in the long term also in power generation. It is becoming increasingly clear that hydrogen will play a central role in greenhouse gas neutrality. Water electrolysis will become a critical industrial policy component. The projected demand for green hydrogen electrolysis plants far exceeds the current supply. According to a study by the German Academy of Science and Engineering, there is a need for at least 20 GW of installed electrolysis capacity for the production of hydrogen in 2030 for industry in Germany alone. The German government’s National Hydrogen Strategy assumes a hydrogen demand of approximately 90 to 110 TWh per year by 2030 and aims to build an electrolysis capacity of at least 10 GW by 2030.

For example, in the study “Hydrogen-based Industry in Germany and Europe” (2021), Enervis Energy Advisors assumes a hydrogen demand for Germany of 110 TWh in 2030, 260 TWh in 2040 and 450 TWh in 2050.

With the GENERIS PVD inline coating machine SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES makes a significant contribution to efficient and cost-effective hydrogen production.

Background Electrolysis

Several electrolysis processes compete on the market with their respective advantages and disadvantages depending on the field of application: alkaline, PEM or high-temperature electrolysis. The first two processes use steel or titanium bipolar plates stacked together with a membrane and gas-conducting elements. High-temperature electrolysis is based on a ceramic solid membrane. A very promising process for hydrogen production for non-uniform operation, i.e., renewable energy sources, is PEM electrolysis (PEM: Proton Exchange Membrane). Due to the expected market for electrolyzers, inline cathode sputtering plants with their large throughput are ideally suited here for PEM as well as for alkaline electrolysis.

SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES – Thin-Film Technology and Surface Treatment

SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES develops and builds innovative machines and equipment for efficient production processes in thin-film technology and surface treatment, which are utilized world-wide in the markets of photovoltaics, semiconductors, medical technology, packaging, glass & automotive as well as batteries & hydrogen.The company’s core competencies include processes of coating technology, surface treatment as well as wet-chemical and thermal production processes.SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES views sustainability as an opportunity to position itself with innovative products.

In the focus are:

• environmental awareness
• efficient use of resources
• avoidance of unnecessary CO2 pollution.

Responsible and sustainable corporate governance is very important to SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES.

The world understands that hydrogen is the next big thing in the field of energy. China, Europe, the U.S., and Israel have already invested in blue and green hydrogen-based solutions, with an understanding that hydrogen is a key factor in achieving net zero emission targets set for 2050.

EthosEnergy promotes the use of hydrogen as a solution to the growing demand for sustainable energy on the road to a low-carbon economy.

In an era of the global energy crisis, hydrogen is no longer a passing trend, rather it is here to stay for the coming decades. Around the world, there is growing investment in the development of an effective process for producing blue and green hydrogen from renewable energies, which reduce the production costs and decrease emission of pollutants. We can see hydrogen-based solutions in development stages that are assimilated in many fields, including industry, electricity, technology and automotive.

“There has been an increase in awareness regarding the energy crisis among governments and industrial and commercial institutions; and there is a willingness to search for available and reliable energy sources to reduce the use of fossil fuels. The leading solution is hydrogen energy,” says Fabrizio Fabbri – Executive Vice President of EthosEnergy – rotating equipment experts supporting the technological revolution taking place in the global energy industry.

Hydrogen – An available, clean, and safe solution – however, it is still expensive

In contrast with solar or wind energy, which its production depends on hours of light and weather conditions, hydrogen is a common element that can be found anywhere in nature – in water, in fossil fuels and in plants. However, to produce it, the hydrogen atoms must be separated from the other elements.

The types of hydrogen are divided into colors: grey hydrogen constitutes 95% of the hydrogen currently produced in the world. It is produced using a steam methane reforming process of burning the organic material in the fuels and involves high levels of greenhouse gas emissions. Brown hydrogen is produced from coal and presents the same pollution problem.

Blue hydrogen is produced by breaking down methane gas, and the gasification of carbon by exposing it to high temperatures and splitting the gas into hydrogen and carbon dioxide. During this process, a large amount of carbon dioxide is emitted, which must be captured and stored in the ground, so it doesn’t become released into the atmosphere and harm the environment.

At the top of the list is the ‘holy grail’, namely green hydrogen, which his considered the cleanest and most expensive of them all. It is produced from splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen through electrical electrolysis, a process that has no by-products that pollute the environment. It is joined by pink hydrogen, produced in the identical method using electricity that comes from nuclear power stations.

“Hydrogen is about to drastically change the rules of the game,” claims Fabbri, “Hydrogen energy is versatile, it can be used as a gas or liquid, generate electricity, propel vehicles, heat homes in the winter, can be stored for a long period, and all this while decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. Another big advantage is that hydrogen is easy to store and to conduct. This is the energy of the future.”

The world hydrogen energy race

The global energy industry is expected to invest €750 billion in clean hydrogen by the year 2050. More and more governments, energy companies and industries are investing in the hydrogen revolution and in the integration of blue and green hydrogen in the production of hydrogen-driven vehicles and in establishing projects for hydrogen production. Some of the world’s most powerful countries, such as Japan, China and South Korea have announced a hydrogen-based road map. The European Union has announced a massive investment in the hydrogen industry in the coming years, where Germany and Italy are leading the process.

The U.S. Department of Energy has increased awareness about the hydrogen revolution. The younger generation of hi-tech executives, entrepreneurs, manufacturers, and investors are assuming ethical and social responsibility and are considering ESG considerations regarding the environment, society, and government. “The global rules of the game are changing regarding energy,” says Fabbri, “However, a change of this magnitude requires time and resources, and is based on collaboration between commercial companies and government and academic institutions.”

The challenge involved in producing blue and green hydrogen is the high production costs and initial investment in infrastructure. This is where the relative advantage offered by EthosEnergy enters the picture. EthosEnergy solutions to the energy industry that enable them to combine hydrogen with natural gas and to use existing infrastructure. Equipment is modified, and it assimilates technologies that reduce the operation and maintenance costs, extending the equipment’s life cycle by hundreds of percentage points, while reducing the carbon footprint. Clients reap economic, environmental, and social benefits, and improve their ability to meet business targets.

Fabbri adds that “one of our EthosEnergy’s main projects for evaluating hydrogen technology is conducted in collaboration with the Politecnico di Torino, and most of the research and development of the technology is for converting 40 MW gas turbines in order to receive a hydrogen mixture and to reduce CO2 emissions.”

Source: ogv

In her Union Budget address, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that India will launch its National Hydrogen Energy Mission (NHEM) in 2021-22.

The proposal in the Budget will be followed up with a mission draft over the next couple of months  a roadmap for using hydrogen as an energy source, with a specific focus on green hydrogen, dovetailing India’s growing renewable capacity with the hydrogen economy, government officials indicated.

And while proposed end-use sectors include steel and chemicals, the major industry that hydrogen has the potential of transforming is transportation — which contributes a third of all greenhouse gas emissions, and where hydrogen is being seen as a direct replacement of fossil fuels, with specific advantages over traditional EVs.

Despite its promise, hydrogen technology is yet to be scaled up. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has called fuel cell technology “mind- bogglingly stupid”.

Source: indianexpress

“We believe hydrogen has an extremely important role to play in the decarbonisation of energy systems,” Manuel Kuehn (pictured above), Head of Siemens Energy, New Energy Business in the Middle East, told H2 View. “With green hydrogen, we will be able to decarbonise sectors and applications in our lives that cannot be easily electrified, hence would not be accessible to renewable electricity.”

And Siemens Energy has big plans for green hydrogen; over the next five years the company wants to develop green hydrogen technology to address larger markets and drive down the cost of production, with an eye on the Middle East in particular.

In January (2021), Siemens Energy signed a deal with Abu Dhabi state investor Mubadala to accelerate green hydrogen capabilities in Abu Dhabi, moving the UAE’s vision for a hydrogen economy a step closer to reality. Under a Memorandum of Understanding, Siemens Energy and Mubadala will utilise renewable energy to produce green hydrogen and synthetic fuels, providing clean and transportable energy to fuel new hydrogen-based ecosystems that are supplied from UAE. They will jointly advance technology and drive down the costs of green hydrogen and synthetic fuels production.

In another move to drive development of the UAE’s green hydrogen sector, Siemens Energy also announced in January plans to build a solar-powered green hydrogen plant in Masdar City. The first phase of the programme will focus on the production of green hydrogen for passenger cars and buses in the Masdar City area. In parallel, a kerosene synthesis plant will be built to convert the majority of the green hydrogen into sustainable aviation fuel. In the second phase of the program, the production of decarbonised fuels for the maritime sector will be explored.

The Middle East is a region with one eye on the future, Kuehn notes in our interview, and a region that understands the need for economic diversification and innovation. “Or, to put it bluntly: everybody understands that one cannot rely on oil and gas alone as the source for prosperity for the future. Green hydrogen offers the potential to create entirely new industries, value chains, jobs, skills and economies…

 Read the rest of this interview with Siemens Energy in H2 View’s February magazine to find out more about the company’s plans to drive development of a green hydrogen economy in the Middle East. You’ll need to be a subscriber to access this exclusive content.

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Source: h2-view