Many regions of the world have developed hydrogen roadmaps, among them Europe and the USA. The activities of both countries include different models as well as stakeholder consultation. The project “HyWays-IPHE”, funded by the European Commission and the U.S. DOE aims at comparing the hydrogen roadmaps. The goal is to improve understanding about the ongoing activities and therewith support the roadmapping process in further IPHE countries, particularly in Asia. Within the project a multi-national group of institutes compared models and approaches applied for hydrogen roadmaps in Europe and the U.S. Nine hydrogen energy pathways (production / delivery / distribution) were assessed with regard to costs, energy use and well-to-wheels emissions.
Both regions used similar methodology to estimate the technical potential of hydrogen pathways but modelling philosophies and terminology sometimes differed. In the US, three models were used. They were connected to form pathways that could be compared to pathway results generated by European analysts in a single tool. Because the methodologies were similar, parameters in the various tools could be compared. The US focused on business-cases and required a greater rate-of-return than Europe. European analysts assumed vehicles would be smaller and have greater fuel efficiency than US analysts. European energy-price projections are significantly higher than the US projections. Both sides also used similar methodologies for uncertainty analysis.