The reconstruction of Brazil and green hydrogen

The most abundant element in the universe is experiencing a kind of gold rush. With the potential to reduce the environmental footprint of carbon-intensive sectors and boost the energy transition process, hydrogen is seen by many as the fuel of the future.

But not every type of hydrogen excites the market. The enthusiasm is for the sustainable version — called green hydrogen — and Brazil is in a position to lead the world in its production.

The thing is, although it exists in large quantities in nature, it is rarely found in its elemental form. It must be extracted from some raw material that today is mainly of fossil origin, such as natural gas, oil or coal.

Green hydrogen, in turn, is derived from water, in an extraction process that uses renewable electrical energy to break down the molecule and separate the hydrogen gas from the oxygen.

According to the International Energy Agency, replacing gray hydrogen with green hydrogen alone would help save 830 million tons of carbon, the equivalent of the emissions of England and Indonesia combined.

Since the market is promising, companies are betting on the development of the green hydrogen industry.

At a time when the climate crisis is mixed with the energy crisis in Europe, the race has gained a sense of urgency.

For Brazil, the sector could be an opportunity. Brazil has the potential to become one of the main producers and exporters of green hydrogen because it has climate conditions that are favorable to the generation of solar and wind energy.

Currently, our country is the third largest producer of renewable energy in the world, behind the USA and China.

The high supply also makes Brazil one of the most competitive in terms of prices.

Studies project Brazil as one of the only countries capable of offering green hydrogen at a cost of less than one dollar per kilo by 2030.

We are talking about a geopolitical race to meet a demand from Europe, which has a strong limitation on energy production.

Currently, the Northeast concentrates the greatest movement around green hydrogen in Brazil. The region could position itself as a production hub due to the high potential for solar and wind energy generation, in addition to the strategic location of the parts in relation to the European market.

Ceará is the state with the largest number of projects already announced, but Bahia, Pernambuco, Piauí and Rio Grande do Norte are close behind.

Ceará has more than 24 memoranda of understanding signed with national and foreign companies, which represents an investment signal of over US$ 30 billion.

We are able to produce the cheapest green hydrogen in the world in Brazil, in the Northeast and, particularly, in Ceará. The complementarity of wind and solar energy production in the region is a differentiating factor for the Northeast.

In the process of rebuilding Brazil, the green hydrogen project can and should occupy a prominent place.