US President Joe Biden is set to announce a funding plan worth up to USD7bn for building regional hydrogen hubs across the US, as reported by Reuters on October 11. Biden is scheduled to unveil the winners of the federal grants on Friday during his visit to Pennsylvania. The state is leading an Appalachian hydrogen hub project in partnership with West Virginia and Ohio. The Biden Administration has emphasized the crucial role hydrogen plays in achieving the country’s climate goals and has set a target to reduce the cost of hydrogen production by 80% toUSD1 per kilogram (kg) by 2030.

The USD7bn funding plan for hydrogen projects is a result of the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) introduced last year. This bipartisan bill contains USD9.5bn funding for hydrogen, including USD8bn for hydrogen hubs. The Energy Department invited 33 projects to submit full applications after receiving 79 proposals, and between six and ten regional clean hydrogen hubs are expected to receive final awards. Additionally, last year’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) also offered billions of dollars in tax credits for clean hydrogen producers. These incentives aim to support America’s clean energy target of producing 50 million tons of clean hydrogen fuel annually by 2050, replacing fossil fuels in hard-to-decarbonize sectors such as cement, steel, and chemicals.

Sources:

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/biden-administration-announce-hydrogen-hub-grants-friday-sources-2023-10-10/

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-10/biden-to-award-7-billion-for-hydrogen-hubs-across-the-nation?srnd=green#xj4y7vzkg

https://www.rff.org/publications/reports/incentives-for-clean-hydrogen-production-in-the-inflation-reduction-act/