Seven regional hydrogen hubs spanning Appalachia, California, the Midwest, the Gulf Coast, the American heartland, the Mid-Atlantic, and the Pacific Northwest are poised to obtain $7 billion in Infrastructure Funding and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding beneath the Division of Vitality’s (DOE’s) Regional Clear Hydrogen Hubs Program (H2Hubs).
The choices, unveiled by the Biden administration on Oct. 13, at the moment are anticipated to enter into award negotiations with the DOE’s Workplace of Clear Vitality Demonstrations (OCED). OCED on Friday famous that choice for award negotiations “will not be a dedication by DOE to concern an award or present funding.” Earlier than awards are issued, the DOE and its candidates “will bear a negotiation course of, and DOE could cancel negotiations and rescind the choice for any motive throughout that point,” it stated.
The DOE stated the seven hubs vying for the profitable billion-dollar alternative first launched in September 2022, had been chosen for his or her technical benefit, monetary and market viability, proposed pace of deployment, venture administration, and group advantages.
The hubs are anticipated to kind the muse of a nationwide clear hydrogen “community” that might show the manufacturing, processing, supply, storage, and end-use of hydrogen. The White Home on Friday stated that mixed, the seven hubs may produce greater than 3 million metric tons of “clear hydrogen”—hydrogen produced by non-carbon emitting sources—per 12 months, attaining practically a 3rd of the U.S.’s 2030 clear hydrogen manufacturing aim.
Right here’s a short overview of the tasks chosen, ordered by the DOE’s introduced federal cost-share for every venture.
| Undertaking Title | Area | Selectee/Prime Contractor | Federal Value-Share Quantity |
| California Hydrogen Hub | California | Alliance for Renewable Clear Hydrogen Vitality Methods (ARCHES) | As much as $1.2 billion |
| Gulf Coast Hydrogen Hub | Texas |
HyVelocity H2Hub/GTI Vitality |
Up to $1.2 billion |
| Midwest Hydrogen Hub | Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan | Midwest Alliance for Clear Hydrogen (MachH2) | Up to $1 billion |
| Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub | Washington, Oregon, and Montana | PNW H2 | Up to $1 billion |
| Appalachian Hydrogen Hub | West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania | Appalachian Regional Clear Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2)/Battelle | As much as $925 million |
| Heartland Hydrogen Hub | Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana |
Heartland Hub (HH2H)/Vitality & Environmental Analysis Middle (EERC) |
As much as $925 million |
| Mid-Atlantic Hydrogen Hub | Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey | Mid-Atlantic Clear Hydrogen Hub (MACHH) | As much as $750 million |
As much as $1.2B for the California Hydrogen Hub
The state of California’s proposed hub, led by the Alliance for Renewable Clear Hydrogen Vitality Methods (ARCHES), is predicted to supply a “blueprint for decarbonizing public transportation, heavy-duty trucking, and port operations—key emissions drivers within the state and sources of air air pollution which can be among the many hardest to decarbonize,” the DOE stated. “Specifically, the California Hydrogen Hub will introduce clear hydrogen to heavy-duty transport by cargo dealing with tools and drayage to assist the eventual conversion of maritime tools at ports and put together the port for the potential export of hydrogen.”
Notably, together with enabling new hydrogen-power transportation potential, the hub will launch the usage of hydrogen for energy era.
As much as $1.2B for the Gulf Coast Hydrogen Hub
Centered in Houston, the Gulf Coast Hydrogen Hub covers a lot of the Texas coast. The hub, spearheaded by prime contractor HyVelocity Inc., plans large-scale hydrogen manufacturing for industrial decarbonization utilizing pure fuel and carbon seize, and renewable-powered electrolysis. To assist decrease the price of distribution and storage and attain extra hydrogen customers, the Gulf Coast Hydrogen Hub plans to develop salt cavern hydrogen storage, a big open entry hydrogen pipeline, and a number of hydrogen refueling stations,” the DOE stated. It’ll use “hydrogen for gasoline cell electrical vans, industrial processes, ammonia, refineries and petrochemicals, and marine gasoline (e-Methanol).”
The hub will leverage “the world’s largest focus of current hydrogen manufacturing and end-use belongings in Texas and Southwest Louisiana,” HyVelocity stated on Friday. The industry-led hub notably consists of seven core {industry} companions—AES Corp., Air Liquide, Chevron, ExxonMobil, Mitsubishi Energy Americas, Ørsted, and Sempra Infrastructure. HyVelocity is run by GTI Vitality. It additionally consists of a wide selection of organizations, together with organizing members, the College of Texas at Austin, The Middle for Houston’s Future, and the Houston Superior Analysis Middle.
Requested about energy era venture specifics, GTI Vitality on Friday advised POWER it would present extra info because it will get steerage from the DOE and company companions “within the coming weeks.” The primary part of the DOE program consists of “a number of months of planning and venture refinement” the place these end-use purposes might be additional outlined, it stated.
GTI Vitality famous, nonetheless, that “HyVelocity has a number of end-use purposes in its proposed portfolio, which can embrace energy era utilizing hydrogen/pure fuel blends and it additionally could embrace on-site energy era by way of gasoline cells. Different end-use purposes embrace the manufacturing of unpolluted ammonia, marine gasoline, and hydrogen for heavy-duty car fueling.”
As much as $1B for the Midwest Hydrogen Hub
Led by the Midwest Alliance for Clear Hydrogen (MachH2), the Midwest Hydrogen Hub covers Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan. The hub is situated in a “key U.S. industrial and transportation hall,” the DOE stated. It’ll “allow decarbonization by strategic hydrogen makes use of together with metal and glass manufacturing, energy era, refining, heavy-duty transportation, and sustainable aviation gasoline.”
After saying its bid and preliminary idea paper in November of 2022, MachH2 obtained a letter of encouragement from the DOE in December of 2022. In February, MachH2 introduced it had joined forces with the Indiana-led Midwest Hydrogen Hall Consortium as a single hub.
“MachH2 will use the wealthy range of current and new clear era sources together with nuclear and renewables in Illinois and Michigan, and blue hydrogen using carbon seize and sequestration in Indiana,” MachH2 advised POWER on Friday.
Energy {industry} entities affiliated with MachH2 embrace Ameren Illinois, Huge Rivers, Bloom Vitality, BP, ComEd, Constellation, Exelon, Holtec, Invenergy, NiSource, and Plug Energy.
As much as $1B for the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub
The Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub (PNWH2), spearheaded by the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Affiliation, covers Washington, Oregon, and Montana. It plans to “leverage the area’s considerable renewable sources to provide clear hydrogen completely by way of electrolysis,” the DOE stated.
The hub’s key precedence is to vastly develop and use electrolyzers to gasoline a hydrogen gasoline cell car growth in heavy-duty trucking. “This can assist allow the event of a West Coast freight community that addresses refueling gaps and additional clear transportation growth. Different hydrogen makes use of embrace agriculture (fertilizer manufacturing), {industry} (turbines, peak energy, knowledge facilities, refineries), seaports (drayage, cargo dealing with), and aviation (regional, drones), the place it would serve to decarbonize among the highest emission drivers within the area,” the DOE stated.
The PNWH2 hub’s developer Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Affiliation on Friday stated it’s eligible to obtain as much as $1 billion in federal funding over 4 DOE-defined improvement phases spanning 9 years, with $20 million allotted for Section 1. “DOE will consider the hub’s actions and ship go/no-go choices at every part,” it famous. PNWH2 will start negotiating closing funding and scope for the hub “starting this fall.”
A number of corporations have proposed tasks as a part of the hub, it famous. Energy {industry} entities embrace Air Liquide Hydrogen Vitality US LLC, ALA Renewable Vitality LLC, Mitsubishi Energy Americas, Inc., Portland Normal Electrical Firm (PGE), Puget Sound Vitality (PSE), PUD No. 1 of Douglas County, Regis Photo voltaic, LLC, USA Fortescue Future Industries, Inc., and Williams Discipline Companies Group, LLC.
Different entities concerned within the hub embrace Amazon.com, Inc., Atlas Agro, Centralia School, Northwest Seaport Alliance, NovoHydrogen Growth, Inc., PACCAR Inc., Synchronous LLC dba First Mode, and Twin Transit.
As much as $925M for the Appalachian Hydrogen Hub
The DOE stated it selected the Appalachian Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2), proposed by West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, given its “strategic location” and improvement of hydrogen pipelines, a number of hydrogen fueling stations, and everlasting CO2 storage. These amenities, situated in a coal- and gas-rich area, have the potential to drive down the price of hydrogen distribution and storage, the DOE stated.
Lead venture improvement companions beneath ARCH2 embrace Air Liquide, The Chemours Firm, Clearway Vitality Group, CNX Assets Corp, Dominion Vitality Ohio, Empire Diversified Vitality, EQT Company, Fidelis New Vitality, First Mode, Hog Lick Aggregates, Hope Gasoline Inc., Independence Hydrogen Inc., KeyState Vitality, MPLX, Plug Energy, and TC Vitality.
Battelle, a key nationwide laboratory contractor, will function the prime contractor for the hub. ARCH2 was shaped by a partnership with the State of West Virginia, EQT Company, the nation’s largest pure fuel producer; Battelle and GTI Vitality; with experience executing clear vitality applications for the federal authorities; and Allegheny Science & Expertise (AST), a number one West Virginia vitality expertise consulting agency.
$925M for Heartland Hydrogen Hub
Spanning North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Montana, the Heartland Hub will decarbonize the agricultural sector’s manufacturing of fertilizer. The Heartland Hub, led by the Vitality & Environmental Analysis Middle (EERC), additionally plans to make use of hydrogen for energy era “in a fashion which will catalyze co-firing hydrogen in utility-owned era throughout the nation,” the DOE stated.
The hub consists of Xcel Vitality, Marathon Petroleum Corp., and TC Vitality, in collaboration with the College of North Dakota’s Vitality & Environmental Useful resource Middle.
$750M for the Mid-Atlantic Hydrogen Hub
The Mid-Atlantic Hub (MAHH), which spans the Delaware River and consists of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and southern New Jersey, is predicted to repurpose historic oil infrastructure and utilizing current rights-of-way. The hub will even develop “renewable hydrogen manufacturing” amenities from renewable and nuclear era utilizing “each established and revolutionary electrolyzer applied sciences.”
The general problem to hydrogen manufacturing is price. DOE’s Hydrogen and Gasoline Cell Applied sciences Workplace is concentrated on creating applied sciences that may produce hydrogen at $2/kg by 2026 and $1/kg by 2031 by way of net-zero-carbon pathways, in assist of the Hydrogen Vitality Earthshot aim of decreasing the price of clear hydrogen by 80% to $1 per 1 kilogram in 1 decade (“1 1 1”).
Energy {industry} entities affiliated with MAHH embrace Baltimore Gasoline and Electrical, BHE GT&S, Aggressive Energy Ventures, Constellation Vitality, Delmarva Energy, Dominion Vitality, Exelon, Independence Hydrogen, Inc., Pepco, Port of Virginia, Washington Gasoline.
—Sonal Patel is a POWER senior affiliate editor (@sonalcpatel, @POWERmagazine).
Editor’s Notice: This can be a creating story that’s actively being up to date. As this story continues to unfold, POWER journal stays devoted to delivering complete updates. Please verify again for additional particulars as they turn into accessible.
