Public Acceptance of Industrial Hydrogen Developments: An accessible overview of relevant factors and available evidence
About this report
The report provides an accessible overview of the many factors that may shape public acceptance of industrial hydrogen developments. Drawing on insights from social-scientific research, it brings together existing knowledge in a practical framework1 that can help readers understand how technical, people, place and process-related factors may influence public responses to hydrogen projects.
The report is particularly relevant because it focuses specifically on industrial hydrogen developments, including production, transport, storage, and related infrastructure. While public perceptions of hydrogen have attracted growing attention in recent years, relatively little research has examined these industrial applications and infrastructures specifically.
By reviewing studies on public acceptance in Europe and identifying important knowledge gaps, the report provides a useful foundation for future research and for stakeholders seeking to better understand the public acceptance of industrial hydrogen developments. For technically oriented readers who are less familiar with social science concepts, the structured overview and clear definitions offer an accessible introduction to the factors influencing public acceptance.
Public acceptance is shaped by more than technology
Public acceptance is often discussed as if it were simply a matter of informing people about a new technology. The report shows that reality is far more complex.
The researchers identified a wide range of factors that may influence public acceptance, grouped into four interconnected domains:
- Technology-related factors – such as perceived risks like safety concerns and economic and financial costs, perceived benefits like labour market benefits and climate benefits, and characteristics of hydrogen systems.
- People-related factors – including trust in governments, industry actors and other institutions, knowledge, values, attitudes, emotions, and socio-demographic characteristics like age and household income.
- Place-related factors – such as local context, proximity and perceptions of how hydrogen developments fit within a specific area.
- Process-related factors – including participation, fairness, legitimacy, and compensation.
Together, these domains highlight that public acceptance is not determined by a single factor. Instead, it emerges from the interaction of technology, people, place and process-related considerations.
What do we know so far?
The research team reviewed studies on public acceptance of industrial hydrogen developments in Europe. While hydrogen has attracted growing attention in recent years, the available evidence remains relatively limited. Only 21 studies met the criteria for inclusion. Most of these studies were published within the last few years, highlighting both the growing interest in the topic and the early stage of the evidence base.
The available research focuses heavily on a relatively small number of factors. Trust, knowledge, age, gender, education, and perceptions of risks and benefits have received the most attention.
In contrast, much less is known about the role of other factors, particularly place-related factors, process-related factors, and technological system characteristics. These remain important knowledge gaps for future research.
Implications for policymakers and industry
The findings carry an important message for those involved in hydrogen projects.
Public acceptance cannot be reduced to a single issue, such as safety, information provision, or economic benefits. Instead, a broad range of factors may play a role, and their relevance may vary across projects, communities, and stages of development.
The report highlights the importance of taking societal perspectives seriously from the earliest stages of project development. Building trust in project developers, public authorities and decision-making institutions, ensuring fair decision-making processes and understanding local concerns may be just as important as the technical performance of the hydrogen system itself for public acceptance.
Looking ahead: The next phase of Hy-SUCCESS
While the report provides an overview of current knowledge, it also reveals how much remains to be learned.
Future research within the Hy-SUCCESS project will examine the relative importance of different factors, how these factors interact with one another, and how public acceptance develops over time. Researchers will use methods such as longitudinal surveys and choice experiments to gain a deeper understanding of public acceptance of industrial hydrogen developments.
By combining social, technical, legal, and economic perspectives, Hy-SUCCESS aims to support the development of hydrogen systems that are not only technically feasible and economically viable, but also responsive to societal perspectives.
Public acceptance as part of the hydrogen transition
The hydrogen transition is often framed as a technological challenge. This report reminds us that it is also a societal one.
Public acceptance is shaped by a wide range of interconnected factors, including trust, fairness, perceived impacts, participation, and the characteristics of hydrogen technologies themselves.
By bringing together research in Europe on the public acceptance of industrial hydrogen developments, the Hy-SUCCESS team provides an accessible overview of what we know, what we do not yet know, and where future research is needed. As hydrogen moves from vision to implementation, understanding societal perspectives will be essential for developing hydrogen systems that are not only technically feasible and economically viable, but also broadly supported.
Footnotes:
1 The framework is based on Boudet, H. S. (2019). Public perceptions of and responses to new energy technologies. Nature Energy, 4, 446-455. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-019-0399-x