Lawmakers demand emissions data for $8B federal hydrogen hubs

Two Home Democrats are demanding that the Division of Power report projected lifecycle emissions for seven federally-funded hydrogen hubs.

First reported by Politico, Reps. Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Don Beyer of Virginia wrote a letter to the Power Division’s of Workplace of Clear Power Demonstrations (OCED) asking for clarification on the emissions from the $8 billion hydrogen hub venture, which goals to scale up hydrogen manufacturing for transportation hydrogen uses like trucking.

Hydrogen might displace some fossil-fuel use, however its manufacturing can generate carbon emissions as nicely, together with within the type of “grid emissions” from electrical energy used to energy that manufacturing, the lawmakers noted in their letter.

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“Scientists have warned that top ranges of lifecycle emissions from hydrogen manufacturing might totally cancel out any local weather advantages from changing fossil fuels with hydrogen,” they wrote, including that the Power Division has solely to this point printed projected greenhouse gasoline emissions financial savings from the hydrogen hubs—not the emissions related to their operation.

The federal authorities has not less than to this point set a high bar for clean hydrogen handouts within the type of tax credit for hydrogen producers, often called the Clear Hydrogen Manufacturing Credit score. That quelled considerations that dirtier fuels like coal could be used—though fuels like pure gasoline, methane, or others nonetheless should be taken under consideration. Electrolysis powered by renewable power is mostly thought-about to be the lowest-emission possibility.

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Introduced in 2021, the hydrogen hubs had been finalized in 2023. The seven hubs—Mid-Atlantic, Appalachian, California, Gulf Coast, Heartland, Midwest, and Pacific Northwest—intention to provide greater than three million metric tons of hydrogen per 12 months, which shall be used to get rid of 25 million metric tons of carbon emissions from finish makes use of, the White Home stated on the time. That is assuming these finish makes use of materialize.

Assessments of how quickly hydrogen may very well be cost-competitive with fossil fuels have been wildly optimistic. One 2020 research instructed it might occur by 2030, whereas a California Power Fee research (additionally from 2020) instructed hydrogen might attain value parity with gasoline by 2025. Hydrogen costs have as a substitute soared since then.