‘Paper projects’ hold back green hydrogen sector

Some announced large-scale developments are unlikely to materialise, hampering supply chain investment, warn developers and equipment manufacturers

The global pipeline of announced green hydrogen projects is close to terawatt-scale, but the vast majority are far from starting construction—and some will likely never reach financial close. While these ‘paper projects’ may appear to build momentum behind the industry, they are insufficient to justify actual investment in the supply chain and particularly in local manufacturing, according to developers and equipment manufacturers speaking at the recent World Hydrogen Mena conference. “When you see all those announcements, it appears as a lot of noise—for me, a lot of fake projects,” says Luc Koechlin, CEO of the Middle East subsidiary of French energy group EDF. However, he argues these ann