BY TETSUJI TOMIYA
The global hydrogen industry is beginning to make choices. After years in which almost every production method, carrier and end-use attracted investment, developers are more selective about which technologies have a realistic path to commercial scale. Japan, however, is pursuing almost all of them.
That breadth once looked like a strength. Japan was among the earliest to build a national hydrogen strategy and remains strong in several key areas, including hydrogen and ammonia combustion, maritime standards, liquid-hydrogen and the integration of new fuels into existing power assets.
But maintaining parallel bets on liquid hydrogen, ammonia, MCH and other pathways also risks spreading capital and industrial effort across too many options.
The contrast is more visible as other markets narrow their focus. Recent industry discussions and technology demonstrations at Gastech in Bangkok pointed to a pragmatic hydrogen sector, where projects are judged less by technological novelty than by whether they can secure demand, financing and infrastructure. Established uses such as ammonia, refining and power remain central, but developers put greater emphasis on delivered cost, offtake and the ability to use existing energy systems.
Hydrogen investment has not disappeared. Capital committed to clean hydrogen reached about $130 billion across more than 570 projects globally, according to the Hydrogen Council, with operational capacity rising sharply over the past year. But capital is moving beyond pilots to tech or projects that can show a credible route to commercial scale.
For Japan, that shift presents a different challenge from the one a decade ago. Can Japan turn its wide portfolio of technical strengths into real business use before competitors do?