24 Jul 2024 | 21:20 UTC

Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub awarded $27.5 mil to begin project's first phase

Highlights

PNWH2 Phase one is expected to last 12-18 months

LDES STORED awarded $675,000 for New York project

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The US Department of Energy's Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) announced July 24 it awarded the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub with $27.5 million, making it the second US regional clean hydrogen hub to officially launch.

In October, the Biden administration announced $7 billion to be divided among seven regional clean hydrogen hubs: Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association (PNWH2); Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems (ARCHES); Heartland Hydrogen Hub (HH2H); HyVelocity Hub; Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen (MACHH2); Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub (MACH2); and Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2).

"OCED is working with PNWH2 to build a clean hydrogen ecosystem across Washington, Oregon and Montana that leverages the region's abundant renewable resources to produce all of its hydrogen exclusively via electrolysis using clean, carbon free energy, facilitating greater connectivity and expansion of a clean West Coast freight network that links to the California Hydrogen Hub," OCED said in a July 24 statement.

In California, the ARCHES hydrogen hub announced July 18 an agreement committing an additional $11.4 billion in public and private matching funds, in addition to the $1.2 billion from the US Energy Department.

In California, the price at the pump of hydrogen for the light-duty mobility sector was assessed at $33.26/kg on July 1, while pricing for heavy-duty transport has ranged from $9/kg to $16/kg so far in 2024, S&P Global Commodity Insights data showed. Other hydrogen hubs, both outside of California and in Canada are recognizing the demand on the West Coast and are driving future hydrogen trade flows into the state due to strong policy and net-zero goals.

Phase one funding

The $27.5 million is for the first tranche of PNWH2 funding out of the total federal cost share of up to $1 billion to begin phase one of its project plan, according to OCED. Phase one is expected to last 12-18 months.

"PNWH2 is establishing the Pacific Northwest as a national benchmark for successful low-carbon intensity and economically viable green hydrogen production," the Consortium for Hydrogen and Renewably Generation E-Fuels said in a July 24 statement. "Phase 1 will encompass initial planning, permitting and analysis activities to ensure that the overall Hub concept is technologically and financially viable, with input from relevant local stakeholders."

PNWH2 aims to reduce emissions in hard-to-decarbonize industries including transportation, agriculture and electricity generation industries, with the ultimate goal of reducing carbon emissions by approximately 1.7 million metric tons per year - roughly the equivalent to annual emissions of 400,000 gasoline-powered cars, according to OCED.

The Pacific Northwest hub plans to produce hydrogen solely via renewable-powered electrolysis, playing a "key role" in lowering the cost of electrolyzers, the DOE said in an October statement. The agency has committed up to $1 billion to the project located in Washington, Oregon and Montana.

Key highlights of the PNWH2 Hub include the following:

  • Consists of eight project locations, also known as nodes, across Washington, Oregon and Montana.
  • Leverages the region's innovative technology and abundant renewable energy to address the hardest to abate end-users, such as public transit, agriculture products, medium- and heavy-duty transport and the electric power industry.
  • Washington State University, with support from its Consortium for Hydrogen and Renewably Generated E-Fuels, will oversee the Community Benefits Plan in alignment with the Biden-Harris Administration's Justice40 initiative.

The public-private collaboration in PNWH2 focuses on developing low-carbon hydrogen for various applications, including medium to heavy transportation, refineries and power generation.

Public-Private Collaboration in the PNW Hydrogen Hub
Company Proposed Role in the Hub
Air Liquide Hydrogen Energy US LLC Hydrogen liquefaction, distribution and market activation
ALA Renewable Energy LLC, An Alta Gas Company Clean hydrogen production to decarbonize heavy transportation, refineries and power generation
Amazon.com, Inc. Decarbonize Amazon operations
Atlas Agro Hydrogen production, agricultural end-use
Centralia College Leading career training and energy education
First Mode Proving grounds for heavy-duty vehicle decarbonization
MHI Hydrogen Infrastructure LLC Hydrogen production, storage, delivery and peak power
Northwest Seaport Alliance Deploy hydrogen port trucks and cargo-handling equipment
Express Ranch Hydrogen Hydrogen production, heavy-duty industrial transportation
PACCAR Inc. Truck original equipment manufacturer (OEM) developing zero-emission hydrogen vehicles
Portland General Electric Company (PGE) Clean hydrogen electricity generation project
PUD No. 1 of Douglas County Clean hydrogen production
Puget Sound Energy (PSE) Hydrogen-powered peak-generating facility
St. Regis Solar, LLC Hydrogen production, transportation and off-grid
Lewis County Transit Hydrogen production and fueling, public transit
USA Fortescue Future Industries, Inc. Clean hydrogen production
Williams Field Services Group, LLC Hydrogen transmission and storage facilities
Source: Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association

Long-Duration Energy Storage award

OCED also awarded the Long-Duration Energy Storage Stored Rechargeable Energy Demonstration (LDES STORED) with $675,000 out of the total project federal cost share of up to $6.5 million to begin Phase 1 of its project plan. The LDES STORED project is led by Urban Electric Power in collaboration with the New York Power Authority and EPRI.

During Phase 1, UEP and the project team will initiate and develop system designs and site agreements, procure long lead time items, begin community and labor engagement, and develop community stakeholder working groups for both sites, according to OCED.

"This project uses low-cost and largely domestically available materials to decrease technology risk, reduce demand on grid infrastructure through reduced peak demand load, and reduce total costs of installation and operation as compared to a lithium-ion system," OCED said.

UEP plans to develop and build two LDES systems that together provide up to 600 kW of power for up to 12 hours per discharge, using its own rechargeable zinc-manganese dioxide batteries, according to OCED. The LDES systems will be installed at two sites, State University of New York Oneonta in Oneonta, NY and Westchester County's Grasslands Reservation in Valhalla, NY, to provide power resilience to the campuses, increasing the utilization of renewable power at both locations.


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