Table 5 Benefits and risks perceived by the interviewees
From: Stakeholders’ perceptions of hydrogen and reflections on energy transition governance
Perceived benefits | Perceived risks |
|---|---|
Economic benefits Creation of a new value chain Competitive cost (green H2) Use of existing infrastructures | Economic risks Large investment and uncertainty Energy dependency (if countries must import, for instance, natural gas for hydrogen production) |
Technical benefits Flexibility of use (various sectors where electrification is not possible) Storage capacity Solution for the decarbonization of sectors that are difficult to electrify Increasing the security of the energy system | Technical and technological risks Technical and human failures Implementation of technologies Handling of hydrogen Accidents Transport |
Environmental benefits Replacement of fossil fuels in industry and mobility as a clean fuel Decarbonized/clean and inexhaustible energy carrier Possibility of being produced in a green and environmentally clean way The ability to provide clean energy without emitting pollutants, producing only water vapor | Environmental risks Resource scarcity Impacts on biodiversity |
Social risks Public concerns Conflicts of interest Dependence on political will Misinformation Creation of new needs Territorial occupation without defined criteria Non-efficient use of hydrogen |