Optimizing Vietnam’s hydrogen strategy: A life-cycle perspective on technology choices, environmental impacts, and cost trade-offs

Vietnam recognizes hydrogen as a key fuel for decarbonization under its National Hydrogen Strategy. Here, we quantified the environmental and economic performance of Vietnam's optimal hydrogen-production pathways by evaluating combinations of green and blue hydrogen under varying demand scenarios, using life-cycle assessment and optimization modeling techniques. The environmental performance of hydrogen production proved highly sensitive to the electricity source, with water electrolysis powered by renewable energy offering the most favorable outcomes. Although green hydrogen production reduced carbon emissions, it shifted environmental burdens toward increased resource extraction. Producing 20 Mt of hydrogen by 2050 would require 741.56 TWh of electricity, 178 Mt of water, and USD 294 billion in investment, and it would emit 50.48 Mt CO 2 . These findings highlight the importance of strategic hydrogen planning and resource strategy aligned with national priorities for energy transition to navigate trade-offs among technology selection, emissions, costs, and resource consumption. • 20 Mt H 2 production by 2050 requires 742 TWh of electricity, 178 Mt of water, $294 billion, and emits 51 Mt CO 2 . • Electricity and technology selection crucially shape hydrogen's environmental impacts. • Green hydrogen cuts carbon emissions but shifts burdens to resource extraction. • Optimal H 2 production must balance trade-offs among emissions, cost, and resource use.