With 2025 fading into the distance, a troubling reality has emerged for the litany of electrolyzer manufacturers across the hydrogen sector. Tightening market pressure has raised uncertainty over timelines for this year. 2026 is supposed to continue the trend of new hydrogen projects reaching commissioning; however, new reports from reputable institutions have pointed to an alternative reality in 2026. With several electrolyzer manufacturing companies noting a less-than-ideal environment for production this year, the industry needs some self-introspection.
Hydrogen industry leaders are grappling with a new reality this year
With the unstable global geopolitical landscape that emerged towards the tail end of last year, several market analysts noted that this year will see some troubling trends emerging for electrolyzer manufacturers. Regionalization across the hydrogen market has emerged following years of a global new world order aimed at increasing hydrogen developments.
Consolidation has become an all-too common theme across the hydrogen market over the past few years. While some regions have embraced the potential of the hydrogen sector to deliver vast amounts of clean energy, others have languished in their adoption of the renewable energy market overall, such as the United States, which has been actively rolling back clean energy permits over the past few months.
“We’ve gone from that globalization to regionalization—that almost helps some of your high cost players very short term…that’s a very near term. How long that lasts if we have another round of tariff movements—European, and we will, but European, I don’t know what it is, but we will in Q2.“ – Andrew Neale Vice President – Chemicals, Derivatives, Plastics & Materials, S&P Commodity Insights
With a litany of other energy experts noting the substantial stagnation of the hydrogen energy dream, the market will need to reconsider delaying certain projects this year to give the sector some organic recuperation time. Thankfully, the energy market is nothing if not adaptable.
Several electrolyzer manufacturers expect this year to see a dip in sales
Among the world’s top electrolyzer manufacturers, several are reporting some worrying sales expectations for the new year. Thyssenkrupp Nucera, one of the global energy market’s top hydrogen companies, has stated that it expects significantly lower sales this year. It attributes this less-than-ideal sales to the stagnation and delays of financing for hydrogen projects around the world.
The company has forecasted revenues of €500–600 million for the 2026 fiscal year, which is a dramatic dip from last year, which saw upwards of €845 million in electrolyzer sales across the renewable energy market. The company’s CEO, Werner Ponikwar, said that the global hydrogen market has become an exceedingly challenging place to do business, but assured investors and shareholders that the company will stand strong in the face of adversity.
Germany has become the home of the hydrogen market in Europe
Thyssenkrupp Nucera, which is majority-owned by German company Thyssenkrupp AG, has become an essential driver for the hydrogen sector over the past few years. Germany, overall, has been a welcoming destination for the hydrogen market, with a new report stating that Germany produced hydrogen plasma at 20 million ºC.
Despite the uncertainty, hydrogen remains the most viable fuel of tomorrow
The notable reduction in forecasted sales across the electrolyzer market points to a broader stagnation in adopting the renewable energy sector across the world. Not to be alarmist, but the international energy community will need to foster a more welcoming environment to increase investments in the hydrogen sector. While the market contemplates the next move, some nations have huge plans for the hydrogen sector, such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its astonishing NEOM Green Hydrogen Company, which is developing a new hydrogen-powered city in the desert of the nation.
