The Biden administration’s lucrative incentives for hydrogen are slated to only go to “green” producers who use newly built clean energy sources to make the fuel — and some hydrogen producers aren’t happy about it.

A long red building stands on the shore of a river, with a blue sky above.
Q Hydrogen’s facility in Groveton, New Hampshire. Credit: Courtesy / Q Hydrogen

Clean hydrogen has the potential to be a low- or zero-emission alternative to fossil fuels, and could clean up energy-intensive industries like steelmaking and heavy-duty transportation. But it’s not economical to produce just yet.

That’s why the Inflation Reduction Act established the 45V tax credit to help incentivize hydrogen that’s produced with clean energy under these three conditions:

  1. Renewable energy used to make hydrogen must be newly added to the grid, not taken from existing sources
  2. It has to be generated near the hydrogen plant
  3. It has to be generated around the same time it’s used

Many companies, including federally backed hydrogen hubs, have pushed back against the rules, saying they will make their projects economically unviable.

But they’re not the only voice out there, Kari Lydersen reports for the Energy News Network. Companies like Hy Stor Energy and Q Hydrogen say they’re committed to producing clean hydrogen, and want the Treasury to only reward fuel that’s produced from new clean energy sources.

Without these parameters, producing hydrogen could actually end up driving up emissions, environmental advocates and academics say. That’s why Hy Stor Energy wants to build new renewable energy, use it to produce hydrogen, and then store it in a network of underground salt caverns for use when renewables can’t meet power demand. Q Hydrogen meanwhile draws its electricity from a nearby hydroelectric plant, and aims to sell its clean fuel to industrial users that otherwise would rely on fossil fuels.

Read more about these hydrogen innovators at the Energy News Network.

— Kathryn Krawczyk

More clean energy news

🛑 Coal exports on hold: The bridge collapse in Baltimore is blocking access to the U.S.’s second-largest port for coal exports and will likely disrupt the industry for at least six weeks. (E&E News)

♿ Are EVs really for everyone? Electric vehicle chargers are often inaccessible for people with disabilities, a growing problem as officials forecast millions more electric vehicles on roads in the coming years. (Mother Jones)

🚛 Rolling toward zero-emission trucks: The U.S. EPA announces a new rule that aims to get more zero-emission heavy- and medium-duty trucks on the road by 2032, earning praise from environmental groups but concern from truck and engine manufacturers. (New York Times, NPR)

🏥 Efficiency saves lives: Appliance energy efficiency standards reduced emissions and prevented as many as 4,400 pollution-related deaths in 2017, researchers find, making a case for even stronger requirements. (Utility Dive)

⛵ Offshore wins: Over the past week, four developers bid to build offshore wind projects off the Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island coasts, and the federal Interior Department approved three large offshore wind farms. (CT Mirror, E&E News, Associated Press)

🏭 Passing on gas: As economic growth drives new electricity demand, utilities look to natural gas as a quick fix, but customers and clean energy advocates say the strategy lacks ambition and ignores the giant pool of federal money currently available for cleaner alternatives. (Grist/WABE) 

🌱 Greenhouse effect: Indoor farming offers producers steady growing conditions amid increasingly unpredictable weather, but their energy consumption represents a potential threat that could worsen climate change. (Washington Post)

👀 Eyes on state climate policy: A new searchable database aims to reveal how lobbying is derailing climate policy in 17 state legislatures. (Inside Climate News)

🗑️ Trash’s emissions impact: Landfills release an average of three times more methane than they report to federal regulators, a study of 1,200 landfills across the country finds. (New York Times)

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Kathryn brings her extensive editorial background to the Energy News Network team, where she oversees the early-morning production of ENN’s five email digest newsletters as well as distribution of ENN’s original journalism with other media outlets. From documenting chronic illness’ effect on college students to following the inner workings of Congress, Kathryn has built a broad experience in her more than five years working at major publications including The Week Magazine. Kathryn holds a Bachelor of Science in magazine journalism and information management and technology from Syracuse University.