Market outlook
The market for flow plates is expected to exhibit strong growth
The hydrogen industry is intensifying, and investments are being made in hydrogen projects around the world. While current political uncertainty is impacting market conditions, long-term trends are contributing to a sense of optimism.
The Hydrogen Council, together with McKinsey & Company, has published Hydrogen Insight 2024, a summary of the development of the hydrogen industry in the years 2020–2024. The period has been summarized in four trends.
The first trend is the increase in the number of hydrogen projects. The number of green or blue hydrogen projects that reached a final investment decision increased from 102 to 434 over the 2020–2024 period, and investments increased from USD 10 billion to US 75 billion.
The second trend is the increasing maturity of projects. The number of projects reaching the design stage increased twentyfold over the period, while projects with less favorable conditions were phased out.
The third trend encompasses regulatory uncertainty and macroeconomic headwinds in the form of high inflation, high interest rates and sharp fluctuations in the energy market.
Finally, the fourth trend is that despite high ambitions, there is a lack of policy initiatives for sufficiently large-scale investments in the hydrogen sector to meet the climate commitments that the countries of the world have committed to implement.
Examples of investments
In 2024, a number of important investment decisions were made in the hydrogen industry. In the US, Plug Power secured USD 1.66 billion in loans for a green hydrogen production facility, and ARCH2 received USD 925 million to create a hydrogen hub in the Appalachia region. In Europe, Spain allocated EUR 150 million to create an industrial supply chain, while the EU Hy2Move project is supporting the development of hydrogen solutions for clean transport with funding of EUR 1.4 billion. In Japan, investments of EUR 100 billion are planned to develop the production, storage and transportation of hydrogen.
Fuel cells for the future
Forecasts for the hydrogen economy give cause for optimism. The markets for fuel cells and electrolyzers are poised to experience massive growth. There are sectors that are difficult to electrify using battery technology, where hydrogen-electric solutions are therefore attractive. Technological advances and the increased efficiency of fuel cells are expected to drive up demand. From a policy perspective, hydrogen and fuel cells are priority areas supported by national and supranational bodies, private research institutes and universities.
According to reports from analysis companies specializing in the market for new and emerging technologies, the market for flow plates for fuel cells is expected to grow sharply in the The market for flow plates is expected to exhibit strong growth coming years. According to one external assessment, sales in the market for PEM fuel cells in the automotive industry alone will reach SEK 11,000 million by 2030 and increase further to SEK 27,000 million by 2034. By comparison, current sales in the same market segment amount to SEK 1,500 million.
The use of flow plates is also expected to grow in other market segments, beyond the automotive industry. These markets, which include the aerospace industry, marine, stationary and material handling applications, and electrolyzers, are expected to reach a combined SEK 7,000 million by 2030.
Flow plates account for a not-insignificant share of the value of the components used to manufacture fuel cells. Cell Impact can supply bipolar flow plates made from all types of metals and has ongoing projects in all of the application areas mentioned above. Based on the large number of ongoing projects we are conducting, and Cell Impact Forming’s flexible technology, we have good prospects to significantly increase our market share by 2030.
Green hydrogen driving demand
The market for electrolyzers is smaller than the market for fuel cells, but is likely to grow significantly thanks to the ambition to produce green hydrogen to free society from fossil-based energy. In addition, technological advances have made electrolyzers more efficient, while falling costs of renewable energy from solar and wind power have driven demand. The highest growth in the electrolyzer market is in Asia, with countries such as China, Japan, South Korea and India leading the way.
Uncertain political situation
In contrast to the above optimistic view of the future, the world has undergone political changes in recent years that are affecting the development of sustainable energy. Under Donald Trump, the USA has opted to withdraw from the Paris Agreement and intends to reduce its investment in sustainable energy and focus on fossil fuels instead. In Europe, politicians with more ambitious renewal agendas but less ambitious sustainability policies have the dominant voice in the European Parliament and European Commission as a result of conservative gains in the EU following the European Parliament and national elections.
It is difficult to predict how this will affect demand for fuel cells, electrolyzers and flow plates in the short term. However, the long-term outlook is positive.