The Biden-Harris administration is sending out a strong signal to the hydrogen industry. Currently on tour to defend his economic record, the President of the United States has selected 7 regional hubs to produce clean, affordable hydrogen.

The announcement was made on 13 October by Joe Biden and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm. The White House press release mentions 7 regional hubs that will receive 7 billion dollars as part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill. But in total, 50 billion dollars will be mustered with the help of private funds, creating tens of thousands of jobs.

Hydrogen hubs to meet a third of United-States needs by 2030

The aim is to produce three million metric tonnes a year, to meet one-third of America’s hydrogen needs by 2030. This hydrogen will reduce CO2 emissions by 25 million metric tonnes a year (the equivalent of 5.5 million cars running on petrol).

Spread across 16 states, the hubs in question will help to kick-start an energy transition in the oil industry by using electrolysers and developing pipelines, as well as powering lorries and forklift trucks. Hydrogen will also be used to produce cleaner fertilisers.

Texas switches from oil to hydrogen

The two largest projects are worth 1.2 billion dollars each in Texas and California. What a symbol, given that the former is an oil giant and the latter a leader in green energy. Air Liquide (like Denmark’s Orsted) is associated with the Texas cluster, called HyVelocity, alongside Exxon and Chevron. Amazon will be a customer of the platform. The online retail giant is also involved with Air Liquide and Fortescue in the California Hydrogen Hub project.

You can watch Joe Biden’s speech here.

The Biden-Harris administration wants to reduce the price of hydrogen by 80% to $1 per kilo.

Do you want to learn more about the United States and hydrogen hubs? Then our latest article on the subject should interest you. You can read it here.

Article written by Laurent Meillaud and translated by Logan King