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In this Insight, first published in PLC, Natalie Wardle reflects on the FIDIC International Contract Users' Conference 2024 held in London in December and the new contracts and standard clauses that FIDIC is currently working on, including the carbon management guide and its collaborative contract.

The scaling up of low carbon hydrogen technologies will be crucial for achieving the UK’s Net Zero target by 2050 and a sustainable energy future. Historically, hydrogen has been produced from fossil fuels and utilised across heavy industry processes (whether as feedstock in fertiliser production, steel manufacturing or petrochemicals). Low carbon hydrogen, produced with significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions, can facilitate the decarbonisation of hard to abate industrial sectors.  However, it is not without its challenges. Production costs currently exceed certain national Net Zero targets more than two-fold (e.g. in Australia the target green hydrogen production cost is US$2/kg but the actual cost is US$9/kg and similarly in Canada the figures are just under US$3/kg (target) but US$8/kg (actual)) with more than half the production cost attributable to the cost of the power required for electrolysis.