Poland’s President: “Development of Clean Hydrogen Technologies is Essential”
On 23 April, Poland’s President Andrzej Duda spoke at the Canadian Hydrogen Convention in Edmonton, Alberta.
The event was attended by representatives of Polish companies, start-ups and universities specialising in producing and using hydrogen for energy and transport.
A large part of Poland-Canada relations is related to clean energy technologies
The Polish president talked about his country’s strong relationship with Canada: “In the last two years alone, Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited Poland three times.” Duda also indicated they held talks during the past few days.
Due to their shared commitment to support Ukraine, the close cooperation between Poland and Canada is getting more intense. However, Duda pointed to the importance of relations beyond security.
“At the provincial level, a large part of our cooperation is related to clean energy technologies,” he said. “Considering our commitment to achieving climate neutrality, Poland sees the development of clean hydrogen technologies as essential. We see their application primarily in those segments of the economy where electrification is not a viable solution or is inefficient” Duda remarked.
Poland’s main task is to replace “grey” hydrogen
“Poland is one of the leading countries in the world in terms of hydrogen production. Our production amounts to 1 million tons per year, which puts us in third place as a producer in the European Union and fifth in the world,” emphasised Duda.
He noted that in November 2021, the Council of Ministers adopted the “Polish Hydrogen Strategy.” It will lead to the implementation of hydrogen technologies in the energy and heating industry. Duda also talked about using hydrogen as an alternative fuel in transport.
“Poland, with all its predispositions, knowledge, and experience, is ready to meet the challenge of climate neutrality. Our main task is to replace so-called grey hydrogen, which comes from emission sources, with clean, low-emission, ecological hydrogen produced from renewable sources. But also from nuclear energy or by utilising carbon capture technologies,” he assessed.
As part of its broader hydrogen strategy, Poland’s President aims to deploy at least 800 to a thousand hydrogen buses by 2030, with a significant portion of the production and infrastructure development, including at least 32 refuelling and storage stations, planned on Polish soil.
Byline: Reinis Alksnājs
