HYDROGEN HUBS HERE & THERE ~ Federal Money Coming for H2 Hubs

State of West Virginia Brings Together Major Energy Companies and Leading Energy Technology Firms to Develop a Clean Hydrogen Hub in the Region

>>> From an Article by Anya Litvak, Pittsburgh Post Gazette, September 28, 2022

A coalition of Appalachian natural gas producers, industrial companies and research institutions launched a plan today, September 28, to pursue a hydrogen hub in the region. Again.

This group, which unites the State of West Virginia with some of the same companies involved in a previously announced effort to pursue a hydrogen and carbon capture and sequestration hub, is called the Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub, or Arch2.

EQT Corp. is among the leading companies in this effort, which hopes to center the hub in West Virginia, “while expanding its impact, through cooperative efforts in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky,” the group announced in a news release.

Other companies involved in the Arch2 coalition include CNX Corp., Nucor Steel, Peoples Natural Gas, the Energy Innovation Center in the Hill District, Babcock and Wilcox, Air Liquide, the National Energy Technology Laboratory, and Battelle.

The hydrogen money is here, just in time for the hype

The race is on for federal money recently made available for the establishment of clean hydrogen hubs — networks of producers, pipelines and customers for hydrogen made in a low-carbon way. In Appalachia, the entities vying for that money are interested in establishing a blue hydrogen hub, where the hydrogen is made from natural gas with the CO2 that would be emitted in the process captured and piped to yet-to-be-established injection wells for permanent storage underground.

The U.S. Department of Energy last week opened the application period for $7 billion of that money, with concept papers due Nov. 7 and final applications by April 7.

In echoes of the region’s pursuit in recent years of a petrochemical hub and an Appalachian natural gas and liquids storage hub — initiatives that didn’t come to pass but were touted as tri-state collaborations — it again seems like multiple competing entities will be pursuing the same opportunities.

EQT, for example, was part of a coalition launched last year in Pennsylvania that included Shell, Equinor and U.S. Steel, among others, with the aim of preparing the region for hydrogen opportunities.

Last month, Shell and Equinor, with U.S. Steel hedging its participation, announced they would jointly apply for federal funding for “clean energy hubs” after signing an agreement to collaborate on hydrogen and carbon capture and sequestration opportunities in the same tri-state area.

EQT said it’s not associated with the Shell/Equinor/U.S. Steel effort. There are be multiple funding opportunities available for different pieces of a blue hydrogen hub.

While EQT’s CEO Toby Rice has talked about the potential of investing in the hydrogen production part of the equation, Shell’s interest seems to be in developing a carbon capture and storage network in the region, where the CO2 captured from power plants or factories is pumped into geological storage.

In addition to the clean hydrogen funding announcement that the Department of Energy released last week, it also made available close to $5 billion in funding for carbon capture and storage research and projects. Applications for that are also due in November.

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Hydrogen Hub Brings Together Producers, End-Users, World-Class Technology Experts, and Necessary Infrastructure to Advance the Production, Use, and Delivery of Hydrogen in Appalachia

From an Article by the Business Wire, September 28, 2022

CHARLESTON, W. Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The State of West Virginia, EQT Corporation, the nation’s largest natural gas producer, Battelle and GTI Energy, both with deep expertise executing clean energy programs for the federal government, and Allegheny Science & Technology (AST), a leading West Virginia energy technology consulting firm, have collaborated to establish a Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub in the Appalachian region, the Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2).

The Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2) is expected to be centered in West Virginia while expanding its impact, through cooperative efforts in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Kentucky. The region is the ideal location for a clean hydrogen hub, due to its unique access to ample low-cost natural gas feedstock, end-user demand, workforce and technology capability, and carbon sequestration potential.

ARCH2 will be a key foundational component of America’s transition toward decarbonization. The ARCH2 team is composed of entities with operations across the Appalachian region spanning the hydrogen value chain as well as energy technology organizations, including the National Energy Technology Laboratory, consultants, academic institutions, community organizations, and NGOs that will provide commercial, technical, and programmatic leadership for the development and buildout of the hub.