Released today (October 5), the report predicted that hydrogen and its derivatives will become heavily traded, with 400 million out of the 660 million tonnes of hydrogen needed for carbon neutrality by 2050 will be transported over long distances.

Read more: Global trade of hydrogen could reduce supply chain investment by $6 trillion, says new hydrogen council report

After 2030, the report, co-authored by McKinsey, expects investments to accelerate with $10 trillion of cumulative hydrogen and derivatives investments required by 2050, of which trade related infrastructure is estimated to account for $1.5 trillion.

It read, “Cumulative hydrogen investments will grow five times over from 2030 to 2040, then double again by 2050. The bulk of investments will be for renewable-hydrogen production, while trade-related investments make up 15 percent of total investments.”

According to the report, trade at that scale could reduce the cost of hydrogen supply by 25%, amounting to $6 trillion dollars of investments form now until 2050, while abating 80 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide until the mid-century.

Having identified over 40 trade routes with capacity of more than one million tonnes per annum, the Hydrogen Council expect to see pipelines acting a key transportation method for Europe, while Asia looks likely to receive its demand via carrier ships.

Read more: Regional hydrogen supply and demand mismatch will force global trade links by 2050, report predicts

In order to facilitate the scale of trade required by 2050, according to the report, over 1,100 ships will be required to allow the maritime trade of hydrogen and its derivatives, around 75% of the current global liquified natural gas (LNG) carrier fleet.

Additionally, to facilitate shipped exports and imports of hydrogen, the report calls for the global port tonnage of hydrogen carriers to be increased to more than 2,000 million tonnes. It states, “This is approximately three to four times the capacity of the ports of Rotterdam or Singapore. In major existing ports, much of the import infrastructure could be reused for green steel and most liquids, although expanded capacity for methanol and ammonia would likely be required.”

On land, the report estimates that half of hydrogen for end-use (approximately 440MT per year in 2050) will be transported through long-distance pipelines. By 2030, the report expects that almost all long-distance piped transport will be in domestic markets such as China and North America, with some international trade to Europe.

In order to meet such scale, the report has said that large pipeline transporters such as the US, China and Europe, must enable piped hydrogen by 2030, which will require investment decisions by 2025.

The report said, “Investments in pipelines, reconversion facilities for carriers, and shipping will only pick up after 2030 because countries with large hydrogen and derivatives demand will increasingly turn to global trade to complement domestic production.”