“If you're an oil and gas company, in a way, talking about hydrogen is kind of a two-way bet because if it works, then you're embedded in the hydrogen industry — but if it doesn't work, you've delayed the transition to the thing you don't make, which is electricity,” he tells Recharge. “So why wouldn't you promote hydrogen for inappropriate use? [...]"
@volkris This is unfortunately still true, and we should add coal in there as well. I think it is reasonable to clean up the power grid, and in fact that process is already underway.
I suspect Hypx will want me to call out that the hydrogen economy can also be cleaned up, but [I am more skeptical](https://qoto.org/@antares/110986868805276550) that it will happen in the kind of timeline we need it to or at the price point that is reasonable.
@antares but that goes back to the original post.
It said they might delay the transition to the thing they don't make, but they DO make it, just deeper in the supply chain.
So the picture being painted doesn't really hold together.
And that's not even getting into the electricity pathway to hydrogen, which the companies supposedly aren't involved in, so.
@antares This is just dumb rationalization by those that part of a battery protectionist racket. Their real motivation is to stop anything that might question the battery industry. This includes making up elaborate conspiracy theories on why any other technology gets money.
@Hypx Hi Friend,
Nice to see you back in the comments. I thought you might show up.
I hope you noticed that while Mr. Liebreich is not supportive of Hydrogen for road transportation, He does think that it will be a useful form of seasonal energy storage, of which I have been skeptical. The aviation angle is also one I'd not considered.
@antares Hydrogen will easily be the winner of all that you've mentioned. The part that people fail to grasp is that hydrogen will be cheap. Made from excess wind or solar energy, it could be virtually free.
There's very little that is going to be competitive with that. But rather than celebrating the rise of cheap green energy, they are instead out to protect a business. This is the real issue with guys like Liebreich. Regardless of the merits of his argument, his motivations are clear.
@Hypx @antares
If green hydrogen were to be virtually free, the electricity needed to power it would also be virtually free. So why not just use electricity when and where you can?
But it gets worse, then you make ad hominem accusations. Funnier still is you admitting to on not challenging the actual merit of his arguments. You really have learned nothing from your time on Reddit.
You sure you're not secretly anti-hydrogen and trying to embarrass the pro-hydrogen camp? Not implausible.
@Hypx @antares
There are cheaper alternatives to green hydrogen for energy storage for electricity.
You want to think the reason people don't take you seriously is because they can't understand you when in fact, you explain yourself well enough. It's just that the substance you bring is mostly as vapid as it is bogus on top of you wasting our time with shrill ad hominem accusations. I suppose that's all anyone can do when they defend the indefensible. It's never too late to learn.
@Querch @antares Except there aren't. Hydrogen is consistently the cheapest way of storing large amounts of energy.
The problem is that guys like you are controlled by the battery industry. You don't even care that your words have no merit. Anything that demonizes hydrogen is an acceptable argument. You are frankly projecting with here. You are the one spouting shrill ad hominems and defending the indefensible.
Ultimately, all of you guys don't give a shit about stopping climate change.
@antares Analogies are illustrative. Imagine our primary renewable energy currency was shaft power; a just in time system that could be transmitted short distances. The most efficient shaft power battery is a spiral torsion spring; very efficient but scales linearly with material and weight. Another storage system is compressed air. Device to compress air different from air engine. In this imaginary world which system would one use to power large vehicles?
@antares Oil and gas not used for electricity? On which planet? Because here on earth, living in reality, natural gas plants are a dime a dozen.
@antares but then, an awful lot of electricity is generated using oil and gas.