United States to Develop Hydrogen Hubs

The federal government wants to make the transition to cleaner fuels now, rather than later, and to that extent is providing $7 billion in funding to establish ten regional hydrogen hubs: power plants where the fuel source will be generated. The result may just help the trucking industry make numerous years worth of progress for hydrogen trucking in a significantly shorter time.

Details

The Biden-Harris Administration has announced that seven of the ten projects are already underway, via the Department of Energy. They are named:

• Appalachian Hydrogen Hub (West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania).
• California Hydrogen Hub (no points if you can guess where this is located!)
• Gulf Coast Hydrogen Hub (Texas).
• Heartland Hydrogen Hub (Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota).
• Mid-Atlantic Hydrogen Hub (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan).
• Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub (Washington, Oregon, Montana).

Beyond the $7 billion the federal government is spending to get these power plants up and running, private entities partnered with the United States are spending $40 billion in a joint project wherein taxpayers are footing 17.5% of the bill.

Truckers Most Affected

This news is interesting and all, but how does it apply to fleets and drivers? The current hydrogen fueling infrastructure is in its infancy: even less developed than its closest competitor, electric charging, both of which combined are leagues behind the diesel fueling infrastructure in the United States. Having an increase in the total amount of hydrogen fuel for everyone makes it more likely that hydrogen fueling stations will start appearing along busy interstates.

Conclusion

While shovels have broken into the dirt at these future hydrogen hubs, there is no currently set timeline for which these construction projects will be completed. The Department of Energy hopes, however, that with these seven stations that 25 million metric tons of carbon emissions will be reduced from the environment every year, and that the cost of producing hydrogen fuel to one dollar per kilogram in 2031, whereas current production costs are quintuple that at $5 per kilogram.

If the federal government is able to reduce the price of hydrogen fuel by 80%, combined with its faster refueling times and lower weight when compared to electric battery trucks, hydrogen trucking may just become the next big thing in ten years.

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