Hydrogen's Role and Risks in the Food, Energy, Water Nexus

Hydrogen is an important commodity within the food energy water nexus as well as a critical
decarbonization tool, especially in industry and other hard-to-abate sectors. Currently, global
hydrogen production is 88.5 million tons and emits 900 million tons of carbon dioxide, annually.
Hydrogen is used globally as a precursor to ammonia which is needed to make fertilizer and
other chemicals. In fact, 55% of total global hydrogen production goes to producing ammonia
via the Haber Bosch process. Reducing the emissions associated with hydrogen production
would address the food sector associated emissions of fertilizer manufacture.
Many countries are looking to establish large hydrogen production hubs to meet growing global
demand with views on domestic use and export potential. When determining where to establish
hydrogen production, proximity to demand and/or input requirements are possible factors taken
into consideration. Water and energy are both necessary inputs for hydrogen production and
understanding the resource requirements for large scale hydrogen production in various regions
of the world will be critical in responsibly scaling up this technology. We assessed the energy
and water (quality and quantity) requirements for various hydrogen production pathways and
examined the impact of use in different regions of the world including the United States, the
European Union, and Africa. We explored the tradeoffs between food, energy, and water
systems under various future hydrogen use scenarios around the world.