HyChain 4 – integral hydrogen-based supply chain development | prior work – ISPT
Problem Statement
Hydrogen value chain development faces a chicken-and-egg problem. Industry invests only when technology and supply are reliable. Infrastructure operators invest only when there is a market. A shared analytical basis for joint investment decisions across these stakeholders was missing.
Observations
Observation A: Hydrogen is a system investment challenge. Production, conversion, transport, storage, and end-use are interdependent. Optimising one element in isolation leads to suboptimal outcomes across the chain.
Observation B: Blue hydrogen dominates unless green is mandated. In the Rotterdam reference case, blue hydrogen via H-Vision is selected as the dominant strategy. Regional green hydrogen production does not develop unless explicitly enforced through policy, and comes at higher cost. The potential for hydrogen as feedstock for synfuels and syn-naphtha, however, is high and may drive demand beyond the energy carrier role.
Observation C: Models become decision infrastructure. The HyChain model was adopted as the analytical backbone for Smart Delta Resources in Zeeland and the Port of Rotterdam transition planning. The models are now actively used in these clusters as part of infrastructure planning.
Conclusion
Hydrogen supply chain development requires integral analysis across stakeholders and infrastructure. The HyChain model delivered that shared basis and continues to serve as decision infrastructure for Dutch industrial clusters.
Scope
Hydrogen value chain modelling across industrial clusters
Specifications
5-part study programme, cluster-level supply chain models, 3 PhD tracks (NWO)