We caught up with Guldner ahead of the event, set to be held on March 15, to find out more about what we can expect to hear from his presentation, and what he thinks we need to see to make hydrogen happen.

We’re looking forward to hearing you talk at H2 View’s Virtual Hydrogen Summit Europe 2022. Can you give us a teaser of what we can expect from your presentation?

Hydrogen is considered a suitable energy carrier to store and to transport renewable energy and hence will play an important role in the energy transition. Among the many applications for hydrogen, the transport sector is expected to take a leading role. BMW has been researching hydrogen powered mobility for many years and recently presented the latest generation of fuel cell electric vehicles called the BMW iX5 Hydrogen.

Our summit theme is A Climate for Action and Investment: Making Hydrogen Happen. As we move towards scale, now is the time to double down on the action and investment required – widely seen as the last piece of the puzzle for the hydrogen economy. What does this action and investment need to look like in your opinion?

Scaling has to happen along the whole value chain, including electrolysis, storage and distribution, as well as the various applications and the respective infrastructure. Only when things are happening simultaneously, a green hydrogen economy can grow quickly and justify the required investments. Efforts like the so-called hydrogen valleys and the funding schemes several governments have set up will be helpful if they are implemented in a pragmatics and timely manner.

Where do you think the opportunities are for hydrogen? And conversely, where do you think the challenges are?

The opportunities are manifold. Hydrogen can be complementary to electricity both for the energy system and multiple applications. Some studies have shown that using diverse technologies can in fact speed up the pathway towards climate neutrality.

Of course, there are some challenges to overcome, for example the vital coordination between infrastructure and applications, the necessary cost reductions at all levels to make hydrogen an economically viable option, and a quick adoption of – preferably world-wide common – regulations, codes and standards.

What’s one thing you think we need to see to make hydrogen happen?

We should always keep the end user in mind when developing new technologies and make sure, the individual needs are met. For hydrogen fuel cell electric mobility, this comprises well designed, affordable vehicles and a widely-available refuelling infrastructure. The BMW iX5 Hydrogen is our second generation of hydrogen fuel cell technology. A main advantage is fast refueling in just three to four minutes – provided the availability of a customer-friendly refueling infrastructure – which allows familiar vehicle use patterns similar to gasoline and diesel cars, combined with the emission-free advantages of electric vehicles: great, smooth and yet quiet driving dynamics.