So I've been thinking about the hydrogen energy space for a while now, and looking back at what happened with some of the best hydrogen stocks in 2023, there's actually some interesting stuff worth revisiting.

Back then, the global momentum around hydrogen was pretty clear. Over 20 countries were committing to scaling up low-emission hydrogen production massively - we're talking going from 1 million tonnes annually to at least 90 million tonnes by 2030. That's the kind of structural shift that doesn't happen by accident. And industry experts were projecting hydrogen could meet up to 14% of U.S. energy demand by 2050. Plus, production costs from renewable electricity were expected to drop 30% by 2030. That's the kind of tailwind you want to see.

Plug Power was one of the names everyone was watching. The stock had gotten absolutely hammered, down like 73% over 12 months at that point. But the company was showing real traction - Q2 2023 revenue hit $260.2 million, up 72% year-over-year. They were guiding for $1.2 to $1.4 billion in 2023 revenue. The thing that caught my attention though was their long-term targets: $5 billion revenue by 2026 with 30% gross margins, then $20 billion by 2030 with 35% margins and over 20% operating income. If they could execute on that, the returns would be massive. That deep correction looked like a real accumulation opportunity for patient investors.

Air Products was another one of the best hydrogen stocks to consider back then. It's a blue-chip name with solid fundamentals. They had some massive projects in motion - a $4 billion green hydrogen facility in North Texas with AES, a $4.5 billion blue hydrogen project in Louisiana that was supposed to be the world's largest, and investments in Saudi Arabia for carbon-free hydrogen supply. That kind of project pipeline gives you real visibility on future growth.

Bloom Energy was the third one that looked interesting. The stock had corrected 43% in the prior 12 months, so the valuation was getting reasonable. They make solid-oxide hydrogen fuel cells and had already deployed their tech in hundreds of applications across healthcare, data centers, and manufacturing. Q2 2023 showed 23.8% revenue growth to $301.1 million with expanding margins. That's the kind of execution you want to see.

Looking back now from 2026, the hydrogen sector thesis was solid. The best hydrogen stocks in 2023 were positioned for exactly the kind of multi-year growth story that's playing out. Whether you got in on those opportunities or missed them, the underlying fundamentals around hydrogen scaling have only gotten more real.