The NSW government announced a new strategy on Wednesday to develop hydrogen that will help the state cut its carbon footprint in half by 2030 and create new opportunities that could grow the economy by more than $600 million this decade.

But hydrogen as a form of energy has been around for decades and all meaningful attempts to use it as a cleaner form of energy have failed to reach their full potential.

The costs associated with so-called green hydrogen are prohibitive and critics say it will never be the path forward for cleaner energy.

Today on Please Explain, business reporter Nick Toscano joins Nathanael Cooper to talk through the complexities of green hydrogen.