This post first appeared on LinkedIn on 1 June 2026.
Today, a story.
Rat and Toad walked together along the road.
They were friends – but agreed on very little.
They talked about hydrogen.
Toad huffed: “Inefficient. Too expensive. Too precious for most. Electricity is the answer – and electricity alone.”
Rat nodded politely. He knew Toad well.
Then they came upon a tall wooden fence. Solid and high, it seemed impossible to see beyond.
Toad spotted a knothole. He pressed his eye against it – and saw a heat pump and an electric car.
“You see?!” he cried triumphantly. “I knew it. All electric. I was right all along!”
Rat said nothing. He looked around.
An old tree stump stood close to the fence. He climbed up – and looked over.
He saw a wide landscape.
Wind turbines and solar fields. Water electrolysers producing hydrogen. Electric vehicles on different routes, powered by battery or H₂. Biogas plants producing renewable methane, then converting it into clean hydrogen through reformers or plasmalysis. Direct use of biomethane in industry and CHP plants. Wastewater treatment plants generating energy. Everything connected. Everything used where it made most sense. No smoke. No fossil emissions.
Rat climbed down from the stump and said quietly:
“You saw something, Toad. I saw the picture.”
Hydrogen is no miracle cure.
It is an important part of a fossil-free world.
Small and powerful – exactly where it is needed.