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Clean Air Task Force joins global initiative to advance nuclear hydrogen 

July 26, 2022 Work Area: Advanced Nuclear

Today, Clean Air Task Force (CATF) joined with more than 40 key stakeholders to launch the Nuclear Hydrogen Initiative, a global coalition working to advance nuclear hydrogen as a critical climate solution. 

“As a global climate NGO committed to pursuing all promising decarbonization pathways, Clean Air Task Force is proud to join the Nuclear Hydrogen Initiative, helping to highlight the important role nuclear energy can play in supplying the world with carbon-free hydrogen,” said Carlos Leipner, Director of Global Nuclear Energy Strategy at CATF. “We know we need more energy options on the table, not fewer, and are committed to advancing nuclear hydrogen as part of an expanded suite of climate solutions.” 

The initiative will engage policymakers, businesses, investors, and other key stakeholders around the world to raise awareness of the important role nuclear energy technology, particularly advanced reactors can play in delivering clean hydrogen for various zero-carbon fuel applications in many energy segments that are difficult to electrify and abate carbon emissions. NHI will facilitate the development of nuclear hydrogen demonstrations, engage the financial sector in nuclear hydrogen development, catalyze commercial partnerships, and advocate for policies that support nuclear hydrogen deployment. 

Nuclear technologies could be key to meeting global demand for zero-carbon fuel demand — which is projected to increase 500-fold by 2050 according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). Hydrogen generated using nuclear energy has several important benefits, including that it requires a small land footprint, it is energy dense, providing firm and reliable clean energy at scale 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. 

In coordination with the launch of NHI, the initiative also published its first report, Hydrogen Production from Carbon-Free Nuclear Energy: Overview of Current Policies and Recommendations for Government Actions. The report provides a summary of the policy landscape for nuclear hydrogen around the world, highlighting significant government momentum to advance hydrogen as a climate solution. It finds that 26 countries and the European Union have issued hydrogen roadmaps or strategies, and 21 have released those plans between 2020 and 2021. At the time of publication, 11 additional countries were in the process of preparing hydrogen policies or strategies. The report also finds that 80 countries have provided some policy or financial support for clean hydrogen production, and a significant number of these countries have an established nuclear energy infrastructure, with some including nuclear hydrogen production in their roadmaps and strategies, including the United States, Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, Japan, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. 

Clean Air Task Force has long supported the creation of a functional global environment in which nuclear energy can make a significant contribution to managing climate change, and in which advanced nuclear energy technologies can be realized and deployed to market. CATF accomplishes these goals through direct strategic engagement on technology and commercial strategies with industry, technology, and academic partners; and through advocacy in the public arena and to investors. CATF supports the establishment of a broad portfolio of commercially available and market-competitive nuclear energy options within the coming decades that could scale rapidly and effectively to meet the increasing global demand for electricity, heat, and zero-carbon fuels for transportation and industrial applications. Learn more about CATF’s work on nuclear energy


Press Contact

Troy Shaheen, Communications Director, U.S., [email protected], +1 845-750-1189

About Clean Air Task Force 

Clean Air Task Force (CATF) is a global nonprofit organization working to safeguard against the worst impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid development and deployment of low-carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies. With 25 years of internationally recognized expertise on climate policy and a fierce commitment to exploring all potential solutions, CATF is a pragmatic, non-ideological advocacy group with the bold ideas needed to address climate change. CATF has offices in Boston, Washington D.C., and Brussels, with staff working virtually around the world. Visit catf.us and follow @cleanaircatf.

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