Utility giants like National Grid and NYSEG are planning to power New York's buildings with “green hydrogen,” but aby climate policy think tank Switchbox argues that the energy source's supposed benefits are mostly overstated and will not help the state reach its climate goals.
However, blending hydrogen for heating requires nearly eight times more electricity than using heat pumps, according to the report released on Thursday. The result is a negligible return on climate goals, with only about a 4% reduction in overall greenhouse gas emissions from the building sector, which accounts for two-thirds of New York City’s climate pollution.
The new report's authors argue that “green hydrogen” is attractive to utilities because blending hydrogen with natural gas allows them to inject it into existing pipelines, avoiding the need for major infrastructure changes — at least in the short term. However, to handle 100% hydrogen, the pipelines would eventually need to be replaced.
National Grid spokesperson Karen Young said in an email that the utility envisions hydrogen "as a significant opportunity."