Reports are speculating that the US Department of Energy (DOE) could axe funding for clean hydrogen hub developments in Democratic-leaning states.
Politico today (March 26) released a report which said sources had told the publication that a list circulating within the DOE suggests blue-state projects could have funding their Biden-era Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding cut.
However, it suggests funding for the three hubs in Republican states would be maintained.
It comes after President Donald Trump suspended funding from the IIJA in a directive to reduce waste and end some of the Biden administration’s climate-focused spending.
The seven hydrogen hubs secured the first tranche of their combined $7bn in funding before Biden left office to support preliminary studies.
Politico reports that it obtained a spreadsheet of the projects “prepared by DOE” which labelled each hub as “cut” or “keep.”
The publication says it was told that out of the seven hubs, only the four planned for primarily Democratic-leaning states are recommended to have funding cut.
That would include Oregon, Washington and Montana’s Pacific North West (PNWH2); California’s Arches hub; Illinois, Indiana and Michigan’s MachH2; and Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey’s MACH2.
Reportedly on the keep side are Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota’s Heartland Hub; Appalachia’s hub across West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania; and Texas’ Hyvelocity.
Beyond the political leaning of each state, key differences emerge in the hydrogen production plans across the hubs – with those on the keep list looking to natural gas-based operations.
Since Trump’s funding suspension, many hydrogen industry proponents have been pointing to the energy carrier’s “natural link” with oil and gas as a potential saviour while other clean energies were targeted.
Industry stakeholders have already begun expressing concerns that funding cuts could significantly disrupt planned clean hydrogen infrastructure and jeopardise thousands of potential jobs in impacted regions.
While any further cuts would compound these fears, such a potentially politicised move could undermine confidence in the market as a whole – while potentially damaging the reputation of hydrogen along the way.
H2 View has contacted the DOE for comment.
