Each project highlights the unique culture and economy of the home state. She is confident the WIH2 proposal meets OCED’s goals.
“The review of these might take a little longer than your average funding announcements because of the complexities” involved, Granholm said during a House Appropriations Committee hearing on the DOE’s 2024 budget request to Congress. “It will definitely happen this year."
Hawaii is now officially in the running to receive close to $1 billion in federal funding to help develop a regional clean hydrogen production and distribution hub for uses including fuel and electricity generation.
The planned network is expected to span across six states and five major utilities and aims to assist in decarbonisation efforts in the Southeast.
Together with the federal portion, the proposal represents a $3.62 billion investment and includes over one dozen projects across seven Northeast states that advance clean electrolytic hydrogen production, consumption, and infrastructure projects, for hard to decarbonize sectors, including transportation and heavy industry, among others.
The PNWH2 Hub concept envisions creating a dynamic Pacific Northwest network of clean, renewable hydrogen suppliers and end-users to decarbonize some of the hardest-to-abate sectors, such as heavy-duty transportation, aviation, maritime, agriculture, and industrial operations. The PNWH2 Hub’s goal is to exceed the U.S. Department of Energy’s benchmark of 50 to 100 metric tons per day for hydrogen production.
"We don't really have a Mr. Fusion out there to go 600, 700 miles," said the report's key author and NACFE's Director of Emerging Technologies Rick Mihelic, "and as much as we appreciate battery-electric vehicles (BEVs), they really aren't set up to go those really long distances with heavy loads."