A recently formed coalition, which includes the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Southern Company, Dominion Energy, Duke Energy, Louisville Gas & Electric Company, and Kentucky Utilities Company (LG&E and KU), as well as Battelle and other organizations, announced its intention to seek federal financial support for a Southeast Hydrogen Hub.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently offered a financing opportunity that includes $8 billion for regional hydrogen hubs as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The alliance will react to this opportunity (IIJA).
A growing number of hydrogen consumers from different industries in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee will also be part of the Southeast Hydrogen Hub partnership. The alliance anticipates that as word of the opportunity spreads and as interest in hydrogen increases, so will the number of its members.
A hydrogen hub in the Southeast of the United States is anticipated to have a significant positive impact on the region’s economy. Hydrogen is appealing as an energy source because it has the immediate potential to speed up the decarbonization of the Southeast and of all U.S. economic sectors, including transportation, which accounts for the largest proportion of GHG emissions in the nation.
In addition, hydrogen is a dispatchable energy source, which allows power providers to integrate more erratic renewable resources into the energy system. Each coalition member may need hydrogen to achieve its declared carbon-reduction goals if it is to succeed in combating climate change:
- Dominion Energy: By 2050, all electric and natural gas activities must have net-zero greenhouse gas emissions across Scopes 1, 2, and 3.
- Reach net-zero carbon emissions from power generation by 2050, according to Duke Energy. The business has set interim goals for reducing carbon emissions from electric generation by at least 50% by 2030 and 80% by 2040.
- Together with their parent company, PPL, Louisville Gas and Electric Company, and Kentucky Utilities Company (LG&E and KU) have set a goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by the year 2050. The companies have also established interim reduction targets of 70% from 2010 levels by the year 2035 and 80% by the year 2040.
- By 2050, Southern Company’s electric and natural gas activities must have net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.
- TVA: Achieve a 70% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and about an 80% decrease by 2035. Aim for net-zero status by 2050.
Together, the coalition can concentrate on creating scalable, integrated projects at strategic locations throughout the Southeast to help achieve these carbon-reduction objectives. Additionally, the coalition can support the broad creation of a regional energy ecosystem, which will enable its members to use hydrogen as a decarbonization tool for customers and communities.
In our region’s transformation to sustainable energy and Dominion Energy’s journey toward net-zero emissions, hydrogen will be a key component, according to Mark Webb, chief innovation officer of Dominion Energy. “Hydrogen will provide employment, investments, and clean energy to every sector of the Southeast U.S. economy, including everything from power and home heating to transportation and manufacturing. To fulfill this commitment to our clients and the communities we serve, we are thrilled to collaborate with all the Southeast Hydrogen Hub coalition members.
According to Swati Daji, senior vice president of enterprise strategy and planning at Duke Energy, “Duke Energy is delighted to partner with our colleagues to investigate this funding opportunity, which is critical to our industry-leading clean energy transformation for our customers and our communities.” “A Southeast hydrogen center will boost the region’s economy and workforce development in ways that go far beyond the duration of these projects. As we cooperate with the coalition to make this hub a reality, we are thrilled to have Battelle’s leadership and expertise on our side.
According to John Crockett, president of LG&E and KU, “LG&E and KU’s aim is to offer safe, dependable, sustainable, competitively priced energy to our customers.” One of the main tenets of our sustainability strategy is to “advance a cleaner energy future, and we will continue to leverage our partnerships with industry, academic institutions, and national research organizations to achieve our aims.”
According to Chris Cummiskey, executive vice president, chief commercial officer, and chief customer solutions officer at Southern Company, “Southern Company views hydrogen as a powerful opportunity to provide an energy system that is abundant, affordable, reliable, and resilient in a net-zero future.” The Southeast Hydrogen Hub “promises to become a new catalyst for economic development and progress, while providing broad, economy-wide decarbonization to the consumers and communities we serve,” with the backing of the nation’s top utilities.
Dr. Joe Hoagland, vice president of TVA Innovation & Research, declared that the company is dedicated to its purpose of providing services that improve the lives of the people it serves. We are prepared and ready to optimize the development of hydrogen as a much-needed alternative fuel as a member of the Southeast Hydrogen Hub partnership alongside Battelle and the Southeast’s leading energy providers. To fulfill the demand for low-carbon energy in our area and across the nation, hydrogen will be essential for quickening the switch to clean electricity.
According to Matt Vaughan, president of Battelle’s Applied Science and Technology, “this team has a lot of strong players, and we think Battelle’s expertise and long history of managing large complex programs for the Department of Energy and other federal agencies can help uniquely position this team for success to address the critical issue of creating a clean energy future.”
