‘Green Hydrogen’ would squander renewable energy resources in Massachusetts

(Inside Climate News, 6 Mar 2023) Using heat pumps to heat buildings would be a better use of limited clean energy resources, a new report concludes.

Efforts by natural gas utilities in Massachusetts to replace 20 percent of their fossil gas supply with “green hydrogen” derived from renewable electricity would consume more clean energy than would be produced by the state’s ambitious offshore wind energy buildout in the coming years while yielding few climate benefits, according to a report published on Monday.

Using heat pumps powered by renewable energy to heat residential and commercial spaces would be a more effective use of limited clean energy resources, the report, from Gas Transition Allies, a coalition of clean energy advocacy organizations in the Bay State, concluded.

“If you were to use green hydrogen for heating, you would be using roughly three and a half times as much electricity as if you were providing the same amount of heat to buildings with heat pumps,” said Gordon Richardson, a technology and business consultant and co-author of the report.

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Inside Climate News, 6 Mar 2023: ‘Green Hydrogen’ would squander renewable energy resources in Massachusetts