The steel for German car production is to be made from green energy in the future Hydrogen to be produced. However, it is completely unclear when the climate-friendly plants for the hydrogen economy can start.
"Green" steel for car production will remain scarce for the foreseeable future. So far there has been no CO2-free steel production in Germany, as the federal government announced at the request of parliament. It is not possible to cover the entire demand in the foreseeable future. Among other things, there is a lack of green hydrogen required to manufacture the around 9 million tons of steel that is currently used. The government estimates around 540.000 tons of the gas.
Why the hydrogen economy makes so much sense
Worldwide hydrogen production was around 2019 million tons in 117. Around 69 million tons were produced from natural gas, 48 million tons were produced as by-products of chemical processes. “Green” hydrogen, which is produced with the help of electricity from renewable energies, plays almost no role. The plan is to expand production capacities worldwide. For example, Germany wants to get a large part of its hydrogen from coastal areas in South and West Africa in the future, where it will be produced from seawater with the help of solar energy. However, there are no specific systems for this yet.