Scaling renewable energy in Asean: Hydrogen as the missing piece

RECENT international headlines have been declaring the potential of hydrogen to solve some of the key issues that limit the development of renewable energy (RE) and the goal of decarbonization of emissions. The Wall Street Journal calls it the “new wonder fuel.” The BBC refers to a hydrogen “tech revolution” and Forbes says it “may be the crucial ‘jigsaw’ piece for green microgrids.” In short, hydrogen will be an option to mitigate carbon dioxide emissions in the future. So how can this potential be applied in the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (Asean)?

Asean’s current power generation mix is dominated by coal, gas and hydropower. However, solar and wind power comprise the most abundant energy resources in Asean, but contribute negligible amounts (1.5 percent in 2015 and 2.4 percent in 2020) to the power mix. An optimistic outlook estimates that the shares of wind and solar power will increase by about 11 percent by 2040.