Experts call for battery and hydrogen to coexist

Hydrogen mobility in road freight, aviation and shipping must be treated as part of the industrial policy priority, not as a niche technology. This is one of the demands of the german National Hydrogen Council (NRW), an advisory body made up of 22 experts from industry, science and civil society who are not part of the public administration. The NRW is calling for clear market signals, regulatory reliability, economic incentives and scalable infrastructure for all vehicle segments so that Germany can take on a leading role in zero-emission drive systems instead of becoming dependent on imported technologies.

In its statement "Hydrogen and e-fuels master plan for the mobility sector", the NWR sees Germany as facing a dual task: reducing emissions quickly and reliably while at the same time securing industrial strength, jobs and technological sovereignty. Hydrogen can play a role in all modes of transport - road, rail, air and water. Germany's strategy for the transformation of road-based freight transport should be based on the duality between hydrogen and battery-electric solutions, the experts demand.

Competitive debates delay transformation

The Council believes that viewing the two options of battery and hydrogen as competitors risks polarizing the debate and delaying the transformation. An approach with two technologies reduces systemic risks and increases resilience, also due to the reduced dependence on non-European supply chains and potentially scarce raw materials.

In Germany, hydrogen will be able to make a significant contribution to the transformation of the mobility sector, according to the panel. Especially in those segments with major challenges in the transition to climate neutrality, such as aviation and shipping or road-based transportation, where hydrogen is the second attractive option for emission-free transportation alongside battery-electric mobility.

Battery for moderate energy requirements

The Council sees battery-electric drives for decarbonization where charging is easy and the energy requirement per kilometer remains moderate. Hydrogen and its derivatives will also become a key technology in segments with particularly great challenges in the transition to climate neutrality, such as shipping, aviation, partly rail, heavy road transport and special vehicles.

Hydrogen for heavy-duty use

In heavy-duty road freight transport, high daily mileages and tight loading and delivery windows create operating conditions in which hydrogen-powered trucks can play to their strengths. For these segments, hydrogen - in gaseous or liquid form - is becoming a key technology for achieving sectoral CO₂ targets, ensuring security of supply and strengthening European competitiveness.

Compared to batteries, hydrogen technologies require significantly fewer and more readily available raw materials. German and European companies can establish themselves as global market leaders in the field of climate-friendly technologies and thus gain market share in the rapidly growing international hydrogen economy. In this way, hydrogen combines climate protection with industrial policy and strengthens Germany's economic power in the long term.

Energy efficiency and the real costs

The discussion about battery-electric and hydrogen-based mobility is usually reduced to the energy efficiency of the various process chains. However, the NWR emphasizes that such energy efficiency considerations are only of very limited value. The decisive factor is the cost of providing the various energy sources and their use for the different areas of application. These costs depend, among other things, but not exclusively, on the energy efficiency of the respective process chain.

Hydrogen-based synthetic fuels make a contribution to national resilience over and above their importance in terms of transport and industrial policy. State security actors such as the German armed forces, federal police and disaster control are permanently dependent on storable, high-energy and interoperable liquid fuels that are compatible with existing vehicle fleets.

Hydrogen gives us the ability to act

Green hydrogen produced in Germany or Europe enables the establishment of resilient domestic value chains for synthetic fuels and reduces strategic dependencies, emphasizes the NRW. Domestic hydrogen production therefore also strengthens Germany's crisis-proof energy supply and its ability to act in terms of security policy.

Hydrogen mobility is therefore a strategic pillar of Germany's industrial and technological sovereignty. In the global competition for emission-free drive technologies, Germany's and Europe's competitiveness will crucially depend on securing value chains, achieving industrial scaling and accelerating innovation cycles. A consistent and credible policy framework for hydrogen is therefore necessary to maintain industrial capacities, secure engineering excellence and promote highly qualified employment.

China strengthens its own hydrogen economy

Global competitors are stepping up the pace: China is increasingly positioning hydrogen mobility as a strategic component of national industrial planning, expanding its subsidy policy, strengthening industrial clusters and actively developing standards for hydrogen and CO₂ reduction sectors. Despite this rapid technological progress in China, Germany has the technological and commercial potential to compete globally. (aum)