Renewable hydrogen systems for a sustainable heavy-duty mobility: The Italian case

Abstract

This study offers a detailed economic and technical assessment of renewable hydrogen production, storage, and utilisation for heavy-duty transport in Italy. To achieve the initial targets set by the national hydrogen strategy for 2030, the heavy-duty fleet will require 3.6 GW of variable renewables, 1 GW of electrolyzers. The findings reveal that the Levelized Cost of renewable hydrogen varies based on system configurations, the mix of variable renewables, and electricity market zones. Specifically, hydrogen cost ranges from 7.5 €/kgH2 for grid-connected plants in market zones with high renewable electricity share, to 18.6 €/kgH2 for hydrogen plants connected to solar photovoltaic in the Northern zone. The South of Italy, Sicily, and Sardinia are the most suitable and cost effective zones for hydrogen production. However, low local demand projection necessitate network infrastructure investments to enable zonal transfer and prevent congestion risks.