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Researchers at City University Hong Kong developed the catalyst using less platinum. Credit: City University Hong Kong.

Researchers from City University Hong Kong and Imperial College London have announced the development of a catalyst that makes hydrogen production easier.   

Producing hydrogen via electrolysis, powered by renewable energy, allows the renewable energy to be stored and transported for later use. Typically, platinum is used as a catalyst in the electrolysis reaction, but this material adds significant cost.   

The researchers have developed a catalyst that uses as little platinum as possible, which they say can be “cheaply scaled for mass use”.  

Co-author of the study, London-based Professor Anthony Kucernak, said in a statement: “The UK Hydrogen Strategy sets out an ambition to reach 10GW of low-carbon hydrogen production capacity by 2030. To facilitate that goal, we need to ramp up the production of cheap, easy-to-produce and efficient hydrogen storage.  

“The new electrocatalyst could be a major contributor to this, ultimately helping the UK meet its net-zero goals by 2050.”  

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is set to U-turn on a de facto ban imposed on proposals for new onshore wind farms as pressure from MPs mounts in the Commons. 

Lawmakers are preparing to vote on the government’s controversial Energy Bill on Tuesday. According to The Telegraph, there will be changes to planning and permitting rules for onshore wind projects that will make it easier for local councils to approve proposed wind farms if there is broad support from surrounding communities. 

Both opposition and government MPs already back an amendment to the bill. The Telegraph reports that ministers have been locked in a week-long debate over a compromise deal that would avoid a defeat for Sunak.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has given Poland approval to launch the country’s nuclear power programme. After reviewing Poland’s nuclear energy regulatory framework, the IAEA said it was in line with its safety standards and that the regulatory body is competent and prepared to launch nuclear energy. 

The Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) mission in Poland took place on 4–15 September 2023 and comprised four IAEA staff members, 15 regulatory experts from 14 countries and one observer from the European Commission. This was the second IRRS mission to Poland, after the first took place in 2013. The mission found that Poland’s governmental, legal and regulatory framework for nuclear and radiation safety was compliant with IAEA standards. 

At the final State of the Union address of her first term as President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen set a defiant tone in defending her European Green Deal against its critics and in condemning Chinese dominance within the clean energy space. 

Touching on recent wildfires in Spain and Greece, von der Leyen warned that “this is the reality of a burning planet” before explaining that the Green Deal was “born out of a necessity to protect our planet”. She cited an increase in the number of clean steel factories in the past five years, which has risen from zero to 38. This in turn is now attracting more investment in clean hydrogen in the bloc than in the US and China combined, von der Leyen declared. 

“We stay the course. We stay ambitious. We stick to our growth strategy. And we will always strive for a fair and just transition,” she said. 

France will extend the life of its two remaining coal-fired power plants until the end of 2024, as the country prepares for high demand during the winter months, according to a decree signed by Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne and Energy Transition Minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher. 

The decree stated that the country is anticipating lower levels of demand compared with last winter, but “as a precaution, we are taking all the measures to ensure [reliable] French electricity production”. 

Ahead of last winter, the government reopened the Saint-Avold coal unit to support a move away from Russian energy and to make up for electricity deficits caused by widespread damage to its fleet of nuclear reactors. In November last year, a spokesperson for state-owned nuclear giant EDF said that just 30 of its 56 reactors were operational, citing stress corrosion as a main reason for output decline.