Hydrogen Hype is Back! Should we believe it this time?

Hydrogen-powered vehicles are back in the headlines, with major manufacturers including JCB, Volvo, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota investing in new hydrogen technologies. But while battery-electric vehicle sales continue to grow, hydrogen transport remains stubbornly uncompetitive. With insights from energy experts Paul Martin and Michael Barnard, we examine the physics, economics, environmental impacts and infrastructure challenges behind hydrogen fuel cells and combustion engines — and ask why governments and industry are still pouring billions into a technology that struggles to compete with direct electrification.

Help support this channel's independence at
http://www.patreon.com/justhaveathink

Or with a donation via Paypal by clicking here
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=GWR73EHXGJMAE&source=url

You can also help keep my brain ticking over during the long hours of research and editing via the nice folks at BuyMeACoffee.com
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/justhaveathink

Reference Links

Paul Martin - The Case Against Hydrogen Trucks
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/case-against-hydrogen-trucks-paul-martin-gq5mc/

Paul Martin et al - A Review of Challenges Using the Natural Gas System for Hydrogen.
https://scijournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ese3.1861

Paul Martin - Green Hydrogen as a Fuel is a Zombie Meme
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/green-hydrogen-fuel-zombie-meme-paul-martin-gpplc/

H2 Science Coalition
https://h2sciencecoalition.com/trackers/

Michael Barnard - How Much does Hydrogen Leak and How Much Does it Matter?
https://cleantechnica.com/2024/10/21/how-much-does-hydrogen-leak-and-how-much-does-it-matter/

Michael Barnard - Hydrogen Has Narrative Density. Electrification Has Deployment Density.
https://briefing.tfie.io/p/hydrogen-has-narrative-density-electrification

Michael Barnard - Zero Emission Bus Procurement
https://briefing.tfie.io/p/zero-emission-bus-procurement-has

Hoppe et al - Cost competitiveness of alternative heavy-duty technologies under real-world utilisation profiles
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-76265-1

Wallington et al - Green hydrogen pathways, energy efficiencies, and intensities for ground, air, and marine transportation
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2542435124003416

ICCT - The EV Transition Check 2026
https://theicct.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/ID-687-%E2%80%93-high-9.1-Transition-Check-2026-Research-Brief-A4-50216-v6.pdf

SNE Research links
https://www.sneresearch.com/en/insight/release_view/746/page

https://sneresearch.com/en/insight/release_view/707/page

Check out other YouTube Climate Communicators

Simon Clark:
youtube.com/user/SimonOxfPhys

ClimateTown:
youtube.com/channel/UCuVLG9pThvBABcYCm7pkNkA

Dr Gilbz
youtube.com/@DrGilbz

zentouro:
youtube.com/user/zentouro

Climate Adam:
youtube.com/user/ClimateAdam

Kurtis Baute:
youtube.com/user/ScopeofScience

Sarah Karvner:
youtube.com/channel/UCRwMkTu8sCwOOD6_7QYrZnw

Beckisphere: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT39HQq5eDKonaUV8ujiBCQ

Our Changing Climate :
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNXvxXpDJXp-mZu3pFMzYHQ