“As of today, Monday 16th August 2021, I have notified the Executive Members of the UKHFCA that I will no longer be able to serve as Chair. It has been a privilege to support the UK Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Association since I first was elected Chair in May 2020. The phenomenal growth in the sector, the association membership and the increased engagement with government are all elements that I have been delighted to support”.
Christopher Jackson
“I started my company Protium in July 2019 because I fervently believe that green hydrogen will play an essential role in ensuring the decarbonisation of our economy’s hardest to abate sectors of energy demand. Green hydrogen is not a silver bullet to every challenge in the pathway to decarbonisation, but it is an essential solution to harness. I fervently believe that without green hydrogen, we are guaranteeing that the world will fail in its efforts to prevent temperature rises above 1.5 degrees by 2050. And for me, the idea of failure isn’t an option I can accept. That is the first reason why I have decided to step down as Chair, to ensure that my focus is on what matters more than anything else – building UK green hydrogen projects that add value to end users and that accelerate the decarbonisation of our economy.
However, one challenge I have not been able to overcome is the role of the UKHFCA Chair to be a neutral party on the topic of blue hydrogen. The energy transition cannot be achieved by one silver bullet, and green hydrogen alone cannot solve all the worlds challenges. But while there might not be a single “right” answer, there are answers that are wrong. And as many of you will be aware, it remains my deep personal conviction that one of those wrong answers is Blue Hydrogen. In 30 years time everyone working in the energy sector today will be asked by the generations that follow us, what we did to prevent the coming climate catastrophe. And I believe passionately that I would be betraying future generations by remaining silent on that fact that blue hydrogen is at best an expensive distraction, and at worst a lock-in for continued fossil fuel use that guarantees we will fail to meet our decarbonisation goals. As Chair of the UKHFCA, my role has been to represent the interests of all, even when I disagree. And I can no longer in good conscience do that.
I am proud of the UKHFCA and all the great work it is doing. I look forward to continue supporting the organisation as an Executive Board member and advocating for the role of green hydrogen to ensure a rapid decarbonsation of the UK energy system”.
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