Coalition applies for US hydrogen hub funding

The group's application sets out details of a USD2 billion plan to create a clean hydrogen hub which will use nuclear power from Energy Harbor's Davis-Besse plant in Ohio to produce clean hydrogen at a competitive cost.

The project has a well-defined scope, is commercially feasible, and will use proven production technologies to minimise the time required to achieve full production of more than 100 tonnes of hydrogen per day, the group said. The hydrogen it will supply will help major industries across the Midwest to decarbonise as well as serving the hydrogen needs of a growing mobility market (including trucking, transit buses, rail, aviation, and marine) and will benefit local communities through stakeholder engagement, job creation, and workforce partnerships and investments, particularly in disadvantaged communities.

According to information from the group, it proposes to develop low-carbon hydrogen via electrolysis at Davis-Besse, supplemented, as needed, with clean hydrogen produced through solar energy projects under development in the region. The hydrogen would be distributed across the Great Lakes region by pipeline and road transportation. Total project investment is expected to exceed USD2 billion, with 50% requested from federal infrastructure funding under the US Department of Energy's regional clean hydrogen hub initiative.

GLCH is led by industrial gases and engineering company Linde and includes Energy Harbor, flat-rolled steel producer Cleveland-Cliffs Inc, GE Aerospace, which provides jet engines, components, and systems for commercial and military aircraft, the University of Toledo, and non-profit trade association the Glass Manufacturing Industry Council. The group said its members include companies with "shovel-ready" opportunities to replace fossil fuels with clean hydrogen.

The Department of Energy (DOE) USD8 billion programme to develop regional clean hydrogen hubs - also known as H2Hubs - was launched last year and is an initiative under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. It aims to support the development by 2026 of at least four H2Hubs that can be developed into a national clean hydrogen network to facilitate a clean hydrogen economy.