The hydrogen community was saddened by the announcement of Sunita Satyapal’s departure from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), where she led the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office for 16 years.
Over the course of her career, she managed a $10 billion budget and played a central role in shaping the United States’ national hydrogen strategy. Dr Satyapal spent nearly 22 years at the DOE, following three years at UTC Power.
On 7 May, she announced her departure in a LinkedIn post. It was not a voluntary exit. She described it as “one of the hardest decisions of my career”, linking it to the deferred resignation/retirement scheme initiated under the Trump administration — now reportedly being revived in a push to reduce the civil service under Elon Musk’s influence in Washington. “May the force be with you,” she wrote to her colleagues.
Laurent Antoni, Executive Director of the International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE), called her departure “a huge loss for the hydrogen community, and especially for the United States.” Satyapal, who also served as Vice-Chair of the IPHE, is expected to vacate her role ahead of the next steering committee meeting scheduled for June in Chile. Under the Biden administration, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm had referred to her as the “Queen of Hydrogen”.
In her farewell post, Satyapal reflected on her achievements: over 1,000 hydrogen-related patents generated since 2004, with 30 commercially viable technologies and 65 more in development. She also highlighted progress on the hydrogen hubs initiative. However, there are growing rumours of a 40% budget cut for hydrogen at the DOE — a potential blow to the sector amid a political shift favouring fossil fuels. Some point to Musk, a long-time hydrogen sceptic, as having influenced the decision.
Despite this setback, Sunita Satyapal has received messages of support from around the world. With over 30 years of experience in hydrogen, she is unlikely to stay on the sidelines for long.
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