Renaissance Philanthropy's Chimaera Fund is supporting the development of a research and demonstration effort with the United States Air Force focused on geologic hydrogen exploration, production, storage, and use at the McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita, Kansas, and the Malmstrom Air Force Base in Cascade County, Montana.
Our objective is to evaluate the technoeconomic feasibility, regulatory pathways, and near-term deployment opportunities for geologic hydrogen in the United States, with a particular emphasis on practical, field-grounded insights that can inform future demonstrations at these and other Air Force base locations.
We are seeking to collaborate with partners who have relevant technical, operational, or regulatory experience. This Request for Information (RFI) is intended to invite brief expressions of interest and perspectives from organizations that may wish to contribute to this effort.
Please note that this RFI is issued solely for information gathering and program design purposes. It does not constitute a solicitation, request for proposals, or commitment to fund or contract with any respondent.
Submission Guidelines
Interested parties are invited to submit up to three pages addressing applicable areas below. Not all areas require responses.
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Technical and Techno Economic Contributions
Describe how your organization could support technical analysis, including:
- Input to or execution of techno economic assessments (TEAs) for geologic hydrogen exploration, production, storage, and/or use
- Key technical assumptions, sensitivities, or uncertainties you believe are most important for estimating:
- the hourly and lifetime hydrogen production of a well
- the all-in cost of hydrogen
- Data, models, or prior analyses you could contribute to inform cost, performance, or scalability
2. Access to Infrastructure, Wells, or Sites
Indicate whether your organization could provide access or insight related to:
- Existing or planned commercial hydrogen wells, assets, or closely related infrastructure within approximately 200 miles of the two Air Force Bases associated with this program
- Experience with relevant equipment for hydrogen production and storage
High-level descriptions are sufficient. Detailed site data is not expected at this stage.
3. Regulatory and Permitting Considerations
Based on your experience, please comment on:
- Key state and federal regulatory hurdles relevant to geologic hydrogen exploration, production, or storage
- Permitting timelines, approvals, or agencies that may represent critical path risks
- Regulatory uncertainties or gaps that you believe merit early attention in a government supported program
Responses may reference prior experience in hydrogen, natural gas, COâ‚‚, helium, or other subsurface gas or geothermal activities and key relationships. High-level descriptions are sufficient.
4. Effort and Cost
To the extent possible, please provide order of magnitude insight into:
- The level of effort that would be required for your proposed contribution
- Approximate cost ranges or key cost drivers (e.g., staff time, field access, data acquisition)
Detailed pricing is not required at this stage, but information will help support next steps.
Submission Instructions
Responses should consist of:
- Up to three pages addressing Sections 1–4 above
- A cover page including the company name and primary point of contact
All information provided will be treated as non-confidential to the extent permitted by law, unless clearly marked otherwise.
Please submit your response via this form by Monday, March 2nd at 5:00pm ET.