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Chile’s first hydrogen train, massive floating solar plants in Thailand, and geothermal energy on the rise — despite setbacks, the global push for green is gaining momentum. And on a local level: a ferry operator likewise performing essential services.
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00:00Are hydrogen trains the solution for future rail travel?
00:11The H2 hype has been growing for years, not just in Europe, but now in Latin America too,
00:17where Chile wants to become a world leader in hydrogen production.
00:23While some sectors have been celebrating progress, German rail companies are reporting problems
00:28with the technology.
00:29So is hydrogen on track to power the trains of tomorrow, or is it all just hot air?
00:36Also unmade this week, Thailand, a bright future driven by solar energy.
00:43Geothermal energy, the deeper you go, the hotter it gets.
00:48Chilli is by far the world's biggest copper producer with a global market share of around
01:07a quarter.
01:08In the coastal town of Antofagasta in Chile's far north, a tiny piece of tech history is
01:13about to be made.
01:13The logistics company, FCAB, is owned by one of Chile's biggest copper producers.
01:19It started transporting minerals using coal-powered steam trains a century ago.
01:24Today, the train fleet runs on climate-damaging diesel.
01:28But this train is about to kick off a change.
01:32Hi, I'm Jose Luis Adame, chief engineer of Antofagasta Railways, Bolivia.
01:37Here's the first hydrogen-powered locomotive in Chile and South America.
01:41The train is brand new and was recently shipped in from China.
01:47Final preparations are being made for the first tests.
01:51Here you can see part of the tanks with their valves, which feed the fuel cell.
02:01It's equipped with 20 cylinders of hydrogen.
02:07Depending on the route and the section of track where this locomotive is going to travel,
02:11it could have a range of 166 kilometers.
02:16For the more favorable route, we can start to talk about a greater autonomy.
02:25The train is initially tested on a shorter route between the port and the company's warehouse
02:30a few kilometers outside of town.
02:33It will later cover longer distances between the port, Bolivia and the copper mines.
02:39FCAB transports around 7 million tons of copper and other materials every year.
02:45The oars are extracted from mines in northern Chile, Argentina and Bolivia, and transported
02:50via a 700-kilometer railway network through mountains and deserts en route to further processing.
02:59Decarbonizing the rail network is key to achieving the company's sustainability goals.
03:08One of the goals is to reduce emissions by 30 percent by 2030.
03:13And if we look at the characteristics of the railroad, most emissions come from the locomotives.
03:19The hydrogen still needs to be delivered from Brazil and is currently produced using biomass.
03:25This is much more expensive than diesel, according to FCAB.
03:29However, the company believes that this could soon change.
03:34Italy's ambitions for hydrogen are huge.
03:37The first pilot projects are underway and the necessary infrastructure will be built in
03:42the south of the country.
03:43The aim is to be number one in the world for cheap hydrogen.
03:47The country is ramping up its wind power generation and hydrogen production capacity.
03:51There are areas in Patagonia where the wind is blowing roughly two to four times more than
03:59it is in Germany for instance.
04:01So hydrogen can be very cheap there and could supply hydrogen trains.
04:09The World Bank believes that with its vast potential, Latin America could meet up to a third of global
04:15demand for clean hydrogen by 2030 and become a strong competitor to Africa and Australia.
04:21The most important thing is the costs of hydrogen delivered.
04:27Those costs are today roughly ten times the cost of natural gas.
04:33It gives you an impression of the challenges of those first projects.
04:39According to UCAB, around $1 trillion need to be invested globally in ongoing or planned
04:44hydrogen projects by 2030 to reduce costs worldwide as quickly as possible.
04:50A mammoth task.
04:54Looking at global patent applications, the picture becomes clearer.
04:58Data from the International Energy Agency shows that most innovation and patenting around
05:03hydrogen is happening for the automotive, aviation and the steel sector, as well as for the shipping
05:10industry.
05:12In recent years, only 13 patents have been registered for the rail sector.
05:17The vast potential boils down to those sectors specifically where you don't have other options.
05:26These include the steel and cement industries, but to some extent also the railway sector.
05:32Transport still relies heavily on diesel in South America and all around the world, just like
05:37the trains from FCAB in Chile still do.
05:40This is where hydrogen comes into play.
05:43Electrification is not always the best or cheapest option.
05:47Currently, the railroad geography is more than 700 kilometers of track in highly demanding conditions.
05:54We're talking about very steep desert slopes, where you have to travel long distances between
05:59your place of departure and destination, where the cost of electrification is very high considering
06:05all these characteristics.
06:11On the other hand, hydrogen requires an entire infrastructure to deliver its potential.
06:17It's about an entire ecosystem.
06:20It's not only the train that uses the hydrogen.
06:23It's also about the production and the fueling of the trains.
06:30In Canada, Japan, India and China, and also in several European countries such as Austria,
06:36Italy, Spain and Germany, hydrogen trains are being tested or already in use on a small-scale
06:42basis.
06:43For the operators of the hydrogen-powered Taunusbahn railway in western Germany, disillusion has
06:49set in after the initial excitement.
06:52Since its launch a few years ago, the railway has been plagued by breakdowns, says Kai Daubatshäuser
06:57from the Rhein-Mine Transport Association.
07:00The initial technical problems began shortly after the first batch of trains were brought into
07:06service.
07:09We had a problem with the tank systems, which often end up leaking.
07:15The success of hydrogen trains, at least in Germany, is looking shaky.
07:18Due to the many technical problems on the railway in western Germany, the trains will be replaced
07:23by diesel trains again, at least for 2025.
07:28We have to be very careful with hydrogen expectations.
07:31So I see that hydrogen will be more focused on those sectors that don't have alternatives
07:38because they have the willingness to pay for it in the end because they don't have an alternative.
07:44The demand for hydrogen in rail transportation is not yet very big.
07:48Innovation, lower costs and a massive expansion of infrastructure will decide if hydrogen trains
07:54remain an exotic luxury or are indeed the better choice.
07:59Only in areas where electrification is not possible or affordable, such as on long-distance routes
08:05in remote areas, hydrogen trains could become a real alternative.
08:09Thailand has set its sights on a greener future.
08:20By 2036, it's aiming to source 30 percent of its total energy needs from renewable sources,
08:25with solar power expected to deliver 6,000 megawatts.
08:30For now, Chinese imports are fueling the boom.
08:35But domestic production is also set to ramp up to make Thailand more independent.
08:42Bright prospects indeed for green energy in Thailand.
08:49Soaking up the sun.
08:51This floating power plant generates enough electricity to power 36,000 households a year.
08:58The solar farm on Sirindhorn Dam in northeastern Thailand is one of the largest of its kind
09:03in the world.
09:05Thanom Mungphia has been running the operation here, and so far, it's all smooth sailing
09:11since the plant went online a few years ago.
09:15On this island alone, there are 20,000 solar panels, covering an area 140 meters wide and
09:25500 meters long.
09:28In total, there are seven of these islands, making for a grand total of approximately 144,420 panels.
09:41The setup is designed to be low-maintenance.
09:44Rain does the cleaning, and the panels even help reduce water loss from the dam.
09:48Thailand has worked hard to become a renewable energy leader in Southeast Asia.
09:55Tax breaks, incentives and small solar lights like these are popping up everywhere.
10:02Even roadside street lights are going solar now.
10:06For businesses in the solar game, keeping up with new tech is a constant race.
10:12You don't sell fast enough, you've got that in stock, and the new models come out.
10:17Just like a cell phone, the new model comes out.
10:19It's more interesting, right?
10:21And the old model, nobody's going to buy it.
10:23It's the same thing.
10:24If you can't sell it fast enough, the old model is stuck in your stock.
10:27And it's just like that, every single quarter.
10:32Like the panels floating on the solar lake, most panels sold in Thailand are still imported
10:37from China or made by Chinese companies operating here.
10:41It helps Thailand because prices keep falling.
10:44But it also puts local producers like PPM Solar right in the crossfire.
10:50After getting hit by U.S. tariffs last year, they're now bracing for more as Donald Trump
10:55ramps up efforts to target China.
10:57Many Chinese companies come to Thailand, open the factory, they didn't make the panel
11:02here.
11:03They import from China, and then they say the panel is out from this factory, it's made
11:07from this factory, export to U.S.
11:09So the U.S. government see this thing happen, and they come to inspect, and then they verify
11:15that this company is doing that.
11:18So they put the tariff, but they don't put it to a specific company, they put it to the whole
11:22country.
11:23To stay competitive, PPM Solar is refining its strategy.
11:27They're hunting for Thai partners, from TV makers to fridge manufacturers, to build a
11:32truly local supply chain.
11:34Still, 70 percent of their raw materials right now comes from China.
11:39In the future, it's not about the part is made in China or the supply chain from China or not.
11:45It's going to be who owns the company.
11:47What is the supply chain of that company?
11:50So if we can verify and be sure that the Thai producer, the Thai supply chain can match the
11:58qualities, can match the quantities that we need, this one will be applicable on the tax
12:04reduction for sure.
12:06The current tariff system, however, is not very efficient.
12:09It's damaging for many companies in Thailand that play by the rules.
12:13And broad tariffs backfire, this expert says, hurting the U.S. economy more than they help.
12:22Because what will happen is once you have a very high tariff barrier, it will create a kind
12:27of a situation within the domestic market where those companies believe that they are protected
12:32and they don't have to invest on more technology or to become more competitive in the global
12:37market.
12:38So I don't think this is… it is going to help the American companies, maybe in the early
12:44stages, but in the midterm and the longer term, it will be very difficult for them.
12:50For now, PPM Solar is turning its focus inward, polishing their strategy at home.
12:55These panels will soon be powering homes and businesses right here.
13:00The future of Thailand's solar industry looks bright, but to win over local buyers, people
13:05actually need to trust that these panels will last and save them money in the long run.
13:12One group already convinced are Thai farmers.
13:15These solar-powered water pumps that replace pricey diesel generators are selling like hot
13:20cakes and are supposed to last decades.
13:23Thailand plans to double its solar capacity over the next 10 years and reach carbon neutrality
13:29by 2050.
13:31A lot will depend on how much sun the kingdom will be able to capture until then.
13:42Do you know where most of the Earth's natural heat is?
13:45Right beneath your feet.
13:47Well, not directly beneath.
13:51If you drill down far enough, eventually you'll reach the next generation of geothermal energy
13:58deep in the Earth's core.
14:01After rising to the surface, it's sometimes released in spectacular fashion via volcanoes.
14:07A new drilling technique could tap into the energy while leaving oil and gas in the ground.
14:13But is that really possible?
14:16Can we harness the energy of the Earth's core?
14:19Iceland already has.
14:21Two-thirds of its primary energy comes from a unique renewable source, geothermal.
14:26They are tapping gigantic hot water reservoirs underground to generate heat and electricity
14:3124-7.
14:32Around the world, other countries want to replicate the success story.
14:36Geothermal pump.
14:37Geothermal power plant.
14:38The geothermal power industry.
14:40But there is a catch.
14:41You can only do it in places with hot water reserves underground, and frankly, there aren't
14:46very many of them.
14:48But there is a new kid on the block.
14:50Or should I say, in the rock.
14:52A new generation of geothermal technologies promises to make energy from the Earth's core
14:57available pretty much everywhere.
15:00It's even available in downtown Paris that you can just simply, if you can drill, you can
15:05access to it.
15:05Even Google is betting on new geothermal to power its data centers.
15:11Time to explore how we can drill into a new energy era, and who stands to profit.
15:16But first, the basics.
15:17This is how deep a conventional geothermal operation runs.
15:21It varies, but they're roughly located a few hundred to three thousand meters deep, where
15:26hot water reservoirs usually sit.
15:28The water is pumped up for district heating or power stations.
15:35For reference, oil and gas wells often run deeper, up to a depth of four thousand meters.
15:42Geothermal 2.0 can go way deeper than that, and doesn't need a hot water reservoir.
15:47If you want this heat to be everywhere in the world, you go beyond four thousand.
15:54Between four thousand and seven thousand, it's basically, it's like a wind resource or a solar
15:59resource, right?
16:00So, it's everywhere.
16:02On average, the temperature increases by 25 to 30 degrees Celsius per kilometer you go down.
16:08So, the deeper you drill, the more energy you can potentially harvest.
16:12Look at these maps.
16:14Those are promising locations for geothermal at two thousand meters below the surface,
16:19where the Earth itself is one hundred fifty degrees or more.
16:23This is considered warm enough for heat and electricity generation.
16:27This is how many you'll find at four thousand and at seven thousand meters.
16:32All these sites combined could unlock energy to provide one hundred and fifty times our annual
16:38global electricity demand. But just drilling deeper won't bring up the energy. So, how can we do that?
16:45One way is currently being explored in this quaint village in Bavaria, Germany.
16:51The Canadian company Ever is planning to open their first commercial geothermal power plant here in 2026.
16:57We can drill many different wells out of one mother well. So, we can fan them out. We can drill them very,
17:05very long, beyond eight thousand meters length. And then we can interconnect them, seal them and build this
17:13large subsurface radiator.
17:15They call this Everloop, a closed loop system. The key point, it works without a hot water reservoir
17:21underground as it extracts heat from dry rocks. I reconstructed the process for you. Two wells
17:28are drilled five thousand meters vertically into the Earth. From there, several lateral well bores fan
17:34out and intersect the two main wells. Cold water is then pumped through the tubes. As it flows through
17:42the hot rock, it absorbs the heat and brings it back to the surface. There it can be used to keep houses
17:48warm via district heating systems or turned into electricity using a steam turbine.
17:55Ever is investing 350 million euros in geothermal and has several patents on their technologies.
18:02But Ever isn't the only company going deep underground.
18:06Enter Google. They need renewable energy, a lot of it, to power their data centers. That's why in 2021,
18:14they made a deal with startup Furvo Energy to build a new type of geothermal plant in the Nevada desert.
18:21Their approach involves creating an artificial hot water reservoir. In order to do this,
18:26Furvo drilled two wells of about 2500 meters. After that, they turned the bore heads and kept drilling
18:34horizontally. The idea being that horizontal drilling makes the heat transfer process more efficient
18:40and boosts water throughput. Once they reach the ideal position, a fluid, usually water,
18:47gets pumped into the ground under huge pressure, fracturing stones and rocks.
18:54Water is then pumped into the wells, flows through the cracks in the rocks, heats up, and is pushed to the surface.
19:03If this all sounds familiar, that's because the same approach is used in fracking,
19:07to extract oil and gas. But Furvo seems to have taken it to the next level.
19:15In the short period of time, they were able to reduce the cost by 50%, drilling time by 70%.
19:23And now they are basically drilling for a 370 or almost 400 megawatt project in Utah.
19:31This is where the excitement is coming from.
19:33But amid all the hype, there is an important side effect.
19:39Earthquakes.
19:48Korea 2017, a magnitude 5.4 earthquake in Pohang injures dozens and 1700 people had to move into
19:56emergency housing. It was caused by enhanced geothermal exploration. The risk of earthquakes has led to
20:03public opposition and bans in some areas. Furvo says its operation has been safe and is monitored
20:09throughout the process. As with almost all cool breakthrough technologies, the biggest factor
20:15that's holding back next-gen geothermal is money. The IEA expects that without subsidies, electricity
20:22from new geothermal would be several times more expensive than solar and wind. Digging to depths of
20:28four, five or even 10,000 meters lets you harvest more energy, but at a much higher cost.
20:37To keep that cost down, this clean renewable energy could join forces with and give a boost to
20:42an unlikely ally. Big oil and gas.
20:45Candidly, from a climate perspective, we need that size of player in order to meet our expectations of
20:56climate. They are the ones that can move this fastest.
21:00Drilling, cementing, finishing, closing the wells. If you spend $100, 80 percent, $80 of this
21:09is basically oil and gas industry's bread and butter. Today at Furvo, 90 percent of the work time
21:16is covered by oil and gas workers, but so far the fossil fuel industry has only invested $140 million
21:23in new geothermal development. They are waiting and trying to see whether an innovation breakthrough
21:30is going to happen for geothermal as well. Which leads to a bit of a stalemate, because that innovation
21:36breakthrough won't happen without lots of investment. Better regulation is also needed or any at all.
21:42Some countries also provide grants in the form of debt or insurance schemes to mitigate risks and high
21:48initial costs. Next generation geothermal technology is developing quickly and could bolster electricity
21:55security by substituting coal or complementing solar and wind in Europe. If the technology keeps
22:02developing, stays safe and costs come down even more, it could deliver at least 15 percent of global
22:09electricity demand by 2050. And it could throw big oil and gas a lifeline, a new renewable business model
22:17that still lets them do what they do best. Drill baby drill, but leaving fossil fuels in the ground.
22:24Ah, the romance of the sea and dreams of exploring the wider world. Although not every skipper sets
22:37out for distant shores, of course. Some simply ferry commuters, school children, or people who just enjoy
22:44being out on the water and having a little fun while they're at it.
22:48I really enjoy my job. And I really can't imagine ever doing anything else. I'll definitely keep working
23:05on the water, likely until I retire.
23:20Quite often, people just ride along with us for the fun of it. That means they get on board,
23:25I take them to the other side, and then they just stay on board and ride right back,
23:29just so that they can say they took the ferry. And that's fine. The job's called Inland Boatman.
23:42It's an interesting job with lots of variety, different customers every day, new ones and regulars.
23:49Every morning, I'm lucky enough to take the ferry. It does take some getting used to,
24:04like when you get there and the ferry has just left. But then you just unwind and chill.
24:09Darn it. What's going on?
24:22The job may not be physically demanding, but it is mentally taxing. If I'm working nine hours,
24:28that means I need to be focused for nine hours. Yeah, this actually happens sometimes, more often in
24:35winter, not so much in the summer. And this will get you going again.
24:53There you go. What do I owe you? Nothing at all. Something for the coffee kitty. No,
24:58please just move along and enjoy your day. Thanks. I'm responsible for the school children who cross
25:06here and for all the other passengers, for the cars, for my crew. I must keep an eye on everything.
25:19As you can see, the weather's beautiful and the people are in a good mood. It's just interesting
25:24and nice to see what goes on here.
25:36That's it for this Journey Unmade. Taking in hydrogen trains in Chile, solar energy in Thailand,
25:56and global geothermal energy. Green technology showing the way ahead. See you next time and take care.
26:06Switch.
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