DOE Allocates $7 Billion for Regional Hydrogen ‘Hubs’
President Biden and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, left, visited Philadelphia on Oct. 13 to announce the winning proposals in the Department of Energy’s hydrogen hub competition.
(The White House)
Speaking in Philadelphia on Oct. 13, President Joe Biden announced the Department of Energy’s selection of seven regional “hubs” for hydrogen production and distribution that it will support:
- Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub (MACH2) in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey
- Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2) in West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania
- Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems (ARCHES) in California
- HyVelocity Hydrogen Hub in Texas
- Heartland Hydrogen Hub in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota
- Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen (MachH2) in Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan
- Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub (PNW H2) in Washington, Oregon, and Montana
Each of the hubs will employ “clean” production methods, such as sequestering the carbon emitted when hydrogen is extracted from fossil fuels or using renewable or nuclear energy to electrolyze water.
The $7 billion they will collectively receive, pending successful award negotiations, represents the single largest initiative to commercialize energy technology funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. DOE intends to spend the rest of the $8 billion the act provided in total for the hub initiative on projects aimed at establishing demand for the hydrogen the hubs produce.
The infrastructure act is also providing $1.5 billion for separate initiatives to support clean hydrogen electrolysis, manufacturing, and recycling, and last year the Inflation Reduction Act established tax credits to further boost clean hydrogen.
