News and Highlights
- Hy Stor Energy announced last week it has submitted a formal application to the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub initiative. The company’s Mississippi Clean Hydrogen Hub (MCHH) could break ground this year if awarded federal funding.
- Topsoe A/S is eyeing a $300 million investment in U.S. electrolyzer manufacturing capacity, with a final investment decision (FID) on the facility expected by the end of this year.
- NEL ASA recently unveiled plans to build an electrolyzer factory in Michigan, with plans to spend about $400 million initially on a facility that could ultimately produce 4 gigawatts (GW) of alkaline and proton exchange membrane (PEM) units per year. It appears that the NEL facility has not reached FID yet.
- Topsoe was also in the news recently when ExxonMobil selected its autothermal reforming (ATR) technology for the company’s blue hydrogen project at Baytown. Honeywell was announced as the project’s provider of carbon dioxide capture equipment.
Green Project News and Announcements
Domestic electrolyzer manufacturing capacity may soon expand, with two potential new projects announced already this month. On May 5th, NEL ASA announced plans to pursue a $400 million manufacturing facility in Michigan that would produce both PEM and alkaline electrolyzers. According to NEL, the Michigan facility could ultimately produce up to 4 GW of electrolyzers annually, though it isn’t clear how much capacity the initial investment will provide. It also appears that the potential project has yet to receive FID.
NEL’s news was followed by the announcement this week that Topsoe A/S is looking to potentially FID an electrolyzer plant in the U.S. by the end of this year. At an initial investment of $300 million, it sounds like Topsoe’s factory will be similar in size to NEL’s. However, comments from Topsoe suggest the U.S. facility will be “at least” as big as the company’s 500 megawatt electrolyzer plant under construction in Denmark.
Hydrogen Hub Updates
Hy Stor Energy revealed last week that it has submitted an application to the DOE for regional hydrogen hub funding, making it the 25th project we have confirmed to have made a formal request. Hy Stor’s Mississippi Clean Hydrogen Hub (MCHH) is a broad effort looking to build a hydrogen ecosystem in the southeast, including what the company calls a potential Strategic National Hydrogen Reserve. In our view, this statement suggests the project would look to capitalize on the geology of the region, which already supports numerous natural gas storage caverns, to create a large-scale storage system for hydrogen. Certainly, such a storage mechanism would be beneficial to developing a hydrogen market, given the inherent fluctuations in the renewable energy sources that will be used to generate green hydrogen. Hy Stor says it could break ground on MCHH as early as this year with the combination of already committed private capital and potential federal funds.
