Climate
change has prompted policymakers to implement new solutions
to decarbonize the energy sector. In this context, hydrogen has been
identified as an alternative energy carrier to decarbonize the energy
sector. Thus, this study proposes a mathematical decision-making model
to identify the minimum cost of establishing the hydrogen supply chain.
The proposed model is developed by considering various echelons in
the hydrogen supply chain such as conditioning, storage, transportation,
and distribution. The model developed in this work is demonstrated
using two scenarios. The two scenarios analyzed the techno-economic
feasibility of the supply chain for three different end users of hydrogen.
These end users are oil refinery industries, power plants, and hydrogen
refueling stations. The first scenario assumes that the pipeline’s
installation cost is paid by the operator. In the second scenario,
the pipeline installation cost was fractionated to explore the impact
of cost sharing among the stakeholders. Liquefaction, cryogenic liquid
tanks, tankers, and railway tankers were selected in the optimal supply
chain for oil refinery industries and power plants. For refueling
stations, the optimal supply chain consisted of compression, a high-pressure
vessel, a tube trailer, and a railway tube car. Moreover, it was found
that the distance and hydrogen demand were the two most significant
deciding factors in both scenarios. This led to liquefied hydrogen
being chosen as a form of delivery for oil refineries and power plants
and gaseous hydrogen for refueling stations.