A $40 million funding announcement was made by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to enhance the creation and use of clean hydrogen technology.
DOE is also forming a $20 million university research collaboration to assist states and tribal communities in effectively implementing grid resilience programs and achieving decarbonization targets in order to further decarbonize the system. The DOE is making considerable progress toward President Biden’s objective of a net-zero carbon economy by 2050 that prioritizes historically underprivileged communities by bringing down the price of clean hydrogen and leveraging business investments in clean technology.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm stated that “DOE is laser-focused on developing a future with cleaner manufacturing, transportation, and power – all of which can be done with clean hydrogen technology.” These investments will develop cutting-edge technology and give state, territory, and tribal authorities the information they need to make the best decisions possible for enhancing and decarbonizing the electric power infrastructure.
This funding opportunity will support DOE’s H2@Scale initiative, which aims to advance the affordable production, transport, storage, and utilization of clean hydrogen to enable decarbonization and revenue opportunities across multiple sectors, as well as DOE’s Hydrogen Shot goal of reducing the cost of clean hydrogen to $1 per kilogram in one decade (“1 1 1”). Projects that address these issues include those that advance the detection and monitoring of hydrogen emissions, show off higher-density and lower-pressure hydrogen storage technologies, reduce the cost and improve the durability of hydrogen fuel cells for medium- and heavy-duty transportation applications.
The Department of Energy plans to make many financial aid grants in the form of cooperation agreements, with a two- to four-year performance term. Teams of applicants are encouraged by DOE to include representatives from national labs, industry, and academia. Teams are also urged to include members who represent diverse organizations, such as institutions that serve minorities or have connections to Opportunity Zones.
A geographically varied university consortium aimed at creating a decarbonized and more robust electrical power grid in collaboration with universities in Mexico and Canada will also get three years of financing under the Hydrogen Shot and University Research Consortium Grid Resilience FOA. This North American collaboration will be essential in resolving the region’s electrical interconnections and cross-border grid dependence.
The application procedure will be divided into two stages: a concept paper and a complete application, for both the clean hydrogen FOA and University Consortium financing. Full applications must be submitted by December 1, 2022, and concept papers must be submitted by September 23, 2022.
