The US Department of Energy’s National Clean Hydrogen Strategy and Roadmap, released in June 2023, provides various pathways for US producers to incrementally increase clean hydrogen production to 10mt/yr by 2030, 20mt/yr by 2040 and up to 50mt/yr by 2050.

This report built on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) passed in November 2021, which allocated more than $60b for the US DOE, including $9.5b to boost domestic green hydrogen production.

The roadmap—part of the US’ goal to achieve of 100% carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035 and net-zero GHG emissions by 2050—details three key strategies to effectively maximise the US’ clean hydrogen production potential:

1. Target strategic, high-impact uses for clean This aspect focuses on using green hydrogen to decarbonise hard-to-abate industrial sectors, such as chemicals and petrochemicals production, oil refining, steelmaking and heavy-duty transport, as well as increasing clean hydrogen exports.
2. Reducing the production cost of clean hydrogen. This initiative is part of the US DOE’s Energy Earthshot Hydrogen Shot programme to reduce the cost of green hydrogen production to $1/kg within one decade. To reach this goal, significant investments must be made in green hydrogen production, infrastructure, storage and distribution, and supply chains, among other areas.
3. The development of hydrogen These regional networks (see Fig.1) will enable producers and consumers to share infrastructure (e.g., distribution, production and storage) to facilitate green hydrogen use and build hydrogen economies around major demand centres. The US DOE has allocated $7b to establish 6–10 regional clean-hydrogen hubs. The original allocation was $8b, but the US DOE has diverted $1b to stimulate domestic hydrogen demand (e.g., additional hydrogen project support, funding for feasibility studies for hydrogen offtakers near domestic hydrogen hubs, and the creation of a “market maker” to provide a central purchaser/seller of clean hydrogen). Of the nearly 80 concept papers received, the US DOE invited more than 30 groups to submit a full application for potential funding. In October 2023, the US DOE announced more than $7b to seven recipients for funding:
   1. Appalachian hydrogen hub (ARChydrogen): $925m.
   2. California hydrogen hub (ARCHES): $1.5b.
   3. Gulf Coast hydrogen hub (HyVelocity): $1.2b.
   4. Heartland hydrogen hub (Heartland): $925m.
   5. Mid-Atlantic hydrogen hub (MAChydrogen): $750m.
   6. Midwest hydrogen hub (Machhydrogen): $1b.
   7. Pacific Northwest hydrogen hub (PNW hydrogen): $1b.

According to the US hydrogen roadmap, midstream infrastructure investments must scale to $2–3b/yr from 2023–30, increasing to $15–20b/yr from 2030–50. These investments will not only grow regional hydrogen networks to distribute green hydrogen to demand centres but will also build a national hydrogen network.

The overall national action plan for clean hydrogen in the US is shown in Fig.2.

Active US projects/initiatives

Building on the enactment of the BIL and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), numerous hydrogen projects have been announced or have already started operations to meet these ambitious goals. Fig.3 shows a snapshot of operational hydrogen production installations and announced projects in the US. These represent approximately 12mt/yr of hydrogen production capacity. Since the passage of the IRA, which provides for highly attractive production tax credits of up to $3/kg, more than $84b in new hydrogen project investments have been announced in the US. These projects include various investments along the value chain, from hydrogen production and distribution to fuelling infrastructure; fuel cells, and hydrogen and renewable energy components and equipment manufacturing; and hydrogen-powered generation facilities.

At the time of publication, the GEI database was tracking more than 180 active hydrogen projects in the US, representing more than $200b of capex. When broken down by location, most active hydrogen projects are in Texas (18%), California (16%) and Louisiana (7%). Nearly 20% of active hydrogen projects are still in early planning/proposal stages, and exact locations have not been publicly announced. Most projects under development will take a green pathway (55%) to produce hydrogen, followed by the blue route (41%).

More than two dozen hydrogen projects under development in the US have a capex of more than $1b. These projects range from green hydrogen production to fuel power generation to help decarbonise industry and establish a robust green ammonia value chain for domestic use and exports and energy storage. Several examples of these capital-intensive projects include:

• The $7.5b Ascension Clean Energy project.
• The $4.6b St. Charles Clean Fuels project.
• Industrial gases firm Air Products’ $4.5b Clean Energy Complex and $4b. Wilbarger hydrogen production facility.
• The Advanced Clean Energy Storage project.
• Fuel manufacturer Groen Fuels’ $9.2b, 65,000b/d renewable fuels facility.
• ExxonMobil’s 1bcf/d blue hydrogen facility in Baytown, Texas.
• Chemicals producer Lotte Chemical, Japan’s Mitsubishi and German utility RWE’s 10mt/yr Corpus Christi clean ammonia production and export facility. Mitsubishi is also involved with another consortium for the possible development of a blue ammonia value chain in Alaska. The blue ammonia would be exported to demand centres in the Asia-Pacific region.
• German firm Linde’s $1.8b clean hydrogen production facility in Beaumont, Texas, which will supply hydrogen and nitrogen to fertiliser producer OCI’s 1.1mt/yr blue ammonia complex (the plant could double in size, if needed).
• The $4b Lake Charles Methanol blue methanol complex.
• New Jersey-based Avina Clean Hydrogen’s 700,000t/yr green ammonia. production facility.
• Washington-based Bair Energy’s 1GW Clear Fork Texas facility.
• Electrofuel firm HIF Global’s $4b Matagorda eFuels facility.
• Canadian fertiliser company Nutrien’s $2b, 1.2mt/yr clean ammonia facility in Geismar, Louisiana.
• US fertiliser producer CF Industries’ multibillion-dollar green ammonia facilities in Oklahoma and Louisiana.
• A 2.2mt/yr clean hydrogen/ammonia complex in Mingo County, West Virginia being developd by Adams Fork Energy and the Flandreau Santee Sioux tribe.
• Norwegian fertiliser producer Yara and Canadian pipeline firm Enbridge’s nearly $3b blue ammonia plant. Yara is also working with Germany’s BASF to develop a 1.2–1.4mt/yr blue ammonia production facility.

These capital-intensive projects—along with numerous infrastructure investments—are only a portion of the more than 170 active hydrogen projects in the US. With the enactment of the BIL and IRA and subsequent funding from the US DOE to support clean hydrogen development, additional public and private investments will likely be made to significantly boost low- and zero-carbon hydrogen production and distribution domestically and internationally.

Canada

The Canadian government released its Hydrogen Strategy for Canada in late 2020, detailing the role hydrogen will play in the country’s 2050 net-zero ambitions.

According to the report, Canada is targeting hydrogen to deliver up to 30% of end-use energy by 2050—this would increase domestic hydrogen demand to 4mt/yr by 2030 and up to 20mt/yr by 2050. The strategy is based on eight pillars: strategic partnerships, de-risking investments, innovation, codes and standards, enabling policies and regulations, awareness, regional blueprints, and international markets (see Fig.4).

Canada plans to use a mix of pathways to increase hydrogen production. These include electrolysis (green hydrogen), fossil fuels (blue hydrogen, which will include CCS or CCUS), gasification of biomass, and production as a byproduct from industrial operations. These routes will enable Canada to decarbonise several industrial sectors, including transportation (the nation plans to have more than 5m fuel-cell electric vehicles on the road by 2050), mining, manufacturing and power, as well as utilising hydrogen as a feedstock for the refining and chemical processing industries.

Each province has its own directives and pathways to promote the development of a green hydrogen value chain. At the time of publication, the GEI database was tracking more than 50 hydrogen projects in the region. At 32%, the province of Alberta holds the highest market share. Alberta is followed by British Columbia (22%), Quebec (16%), Ontario (14%), Nova Scotia (8%), and Newfoundland and Labrador (7%), with other provinces accounting for 1%. Notable hydrogen projects and initiatives in Canada are detailed in Fig.5.

Central & South America

Countries in Central and South America have abundant renewable energy supplies, meaning they are prime for utilising this power system as a pathway to green hydrogen/ammonia generation. More than a dozen Latin American countries have published either a full working hydrogen strategy or detailed framework.

However, implementing these programmes is a separate challenge, especially with the significant costs associated with building up renewable energy infrastructure, green hydrogen production plants and other pathways to transport and provide zero-carbon hydrogen. Regardless, several Central and South American countries have announced ambitious plans to scale up both the production and use of green hydrogen in their economies in an effort to drive down carbon emissions.

Brazil

The Brazilian government passed a resolution establishing the country’s hydrogen strategy in mid-2022. The country’s National Hydrogen Programme focuses on six areas to increase the country’s adoption of green hydrogen:

1. Research and development
2. Training the future hydrogen
3. Energy planning.
4. Developing a regulatory framework.
5. Enticing market growth and competitiveness.
6. Increased international cooperation.

50mt/yr – US target for clean hydrogen production by 2050

Brazil has more than 40 active green hydrogen and projects and pilot projects under development. Many of these are in potential hydrogen hubs in the states/ports of Bahia, Pecem, Pernambuco, Rio Grande do Norte and the Port of Acu, among other places. These projects represent more than $20b in capital investments, with some being funded by the EU. Brazil has approximately $30b in low-carbon hydrogen projects (e.g., green/blue hydrogen) under development, with several including carbon capture, according to government data. In June 2023, the EU announced plans to invest more than $2.1b in advancing Brazil’s green hydrogen value chain. These projects will not only help Brazil reach its domestic decarbonisation goals but also provide the country with green hydrogen/ammonia export revenues.

For example, Brazilian firms Casa dos Ventos and Comerc Eficiencia are developing a green hydrogen production facility at the Industrial Port Complex of Pecem. The 2.4GW of electrolysis capacity will produce 960t/d of green hydrogen, which will be converted into 2.2mt/yr of green ammonia for export to regions such as Europe. Pecem is also the site for developer Enegix’s proposed $5.4b Base One project. If built, the facility will produce 600m kg/yr of green hydrogen.

In Bahia state, chemicals company Unigel is developing a $1.5b green hydrogen/ammonia complex. Once fully operational in 2027, the three-phase project will produce 100,000t/yr of green hydrogen and 600,000t/yr of green ammonia. Although Unigel plans to export most of the green ammonia to Europe, the company will retain some of it to produce fertilisers and acrylics.

In the state of Piaui, project developer Green Energy Park has launched a feasibility study to develop a 1mt/yr green ammonia production facility. The facility can be expanded to 5mt/yr, if needed. Produced green ammonia will be used domestically, with any surplus being exported.

Additional investments—along with future tax incentives to bolster Brazil’s hydrogen value/supply chains—are being made to not only produce and distribute/export green hydrogen/ammonia to the world but also to develop green hydrogen research centres and decarbonise industrial operations and mass transit sector, among other initiatives.

Chile

Chile has laid out a strategy to become one of the leading green hydrogen producers in the region. The country’s National Green Hydrogen Strategy details three waves of green hydrogen innovation and deployment:

• Wave 1 (2020–25) includes the domestic ramp-up and export preparation for green hydrogen. This includes six prioritised applications—oil refineries, ammonia, mining haul trucks, heavy-duty trucking, long-range buses and blending into gas grids—to build local supply chains and experience in scaling up the country’s workforce and export abilities.
• Waves 2 and 3 (2025–30 and beyond) focus on capitalising on export markets and expanding green hydrogen

180 – Active hydrogen projects in the US, according to GEI

By the mid-2020s, Chile is targeting at least $5b in green hydrogen investments, with 5GW of electrolysis capacity operating or under development. Chile plans to increase electrolysis capacity to 25GW by 2030 and have 200,000t/yr of hydrogen production in at least two hydrogen valleys in the country: one in the Antofagasta region and one in Magallanes. Chile has the potential to attract $45b in green hydrogen investments by 2030, increasing to $330b by 2050, according to the country’s energy ministry. At the time of publication, the GEI database was tracking more than $65b in active green hydrogen projects in Chile (see Fig.6).

These projects (including using green hydrogen as a transportation fuel for mass-transit vehicles and industrial operations, such as buses and mining trucks, along with the closing or retrofitting of all domestic coal-fired power generation plants by 2040, will help Chile reach its ambitious goal of a carbon-neutral economy by 2050.

Colombia

According to the country’s hydrogen roadmap, Colombia plans to build its hydrogen ecosystem on five pillars:

1. Emissions reduction.
2. Economic growth (e.g., a low-carbon hydrogen export economy).
3. A fair energy transition.
4. National goals.
5. Developing integrated hydrogen local communities.

By 2030, Colombia aims to develop 1–3GW of electrolysis capacity, achieve competitive green hydrogen production costs (e.g., $1.70/kg) and produce at least 50,000t/yr of blue hydrogen via existing and/or planned capacity. The low- and zero-carbon hydrogen will be used to decarbonise several industrial sectors, as well as to fuel light- and heavy-duty hydrogen vehicles. These projects are estimated to cost $2.5–5.5b.

From 2030–50, Colombia plans to increase the development and the deployment of green hydrogen to help decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors, along with increasing green hydrogen export opportunities around the world.

Additional hydrogen strategies, projects and initiatives in Central and South America are detailed in Fig.7.

The second, third, fourth and fifth parts of this six-part report covered Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, Africa and Europe, Russia & the CIS, respectively. Click here for the introduction to the report.

FIG.5: Notable hydrogen projects and initiatives in Canada

FIG.6: Notable green hydrogen projects in Chile

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Author: Lee Nichols