NWI part of partnership awarded federal “hydrogen hub” funds
The Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen (MachH2), a partnership of over 60 public and private entities across Indiana, Illinois and Michigan, will receive up to $1 billion in federal Department of Energy (DOE) funds for the development of hydrogen technology and infrastructure, the White House announced on Friday.
The news was celebrated by elected officials and industry leaders in Northwest Indiana who pushed for the funding, but prompted a skeptical reaction from environmental advocates who say that MachH2′s plans don’t do enough to fight climate change.
The 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act set aside $7 billion for regional “hydrogen hubs,” with the goal of reducing the environmental impact of industries that have traditionally relied heavily on fossil fuels. MachH2 is one of seven funding recipients, alongside projects in the Pacific Northwest, the Mid-Atlantic, Appalachia, California, the Texas Gulf Coast and the Upper Midwest, which were awarded funding amounts of between $750 million and $1.2 billion.
MachH2′s members include industry giants like steel producers Cleveland-Cliffs and ArcelorMittal as well as oil industry titans BP and Exxon Mobil, alongside nonprofit advocacy groups like the Illinois Alliance for Clean Transportation and academic institutions like The University of Chicago and Purdue University Northwest’s Center for Innovation through Visualization and Simulation.
PNW’s CIVS has worked on a number of projects aimed at decarbonizing processes in industrial operations. Most recently, CIVS and a coalition of partners were awarded nearly $10 million from the DOE’s Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office to support decarbonization research, development and demonstration in the steel industry.
The Midwest Hydrogen Hub will employ electrolysis technology, powered by carbon-free energy, to separate the hydrogen and oxygen molecules in water, resulting in clean hydrogen. MachH2′s hub will become part of the DOE’s broader network of hydrogen producers, consumers and local connective infrastructure accelerating the use of clean hydrogen and delivering and storing tremendous amounts of clean energy.
When burned, fossil fuels produce carbon dioxide, one of the chief causes of man-made climate change. Burning hydrogen, by contrast, produces only water as a byproduct. Advocates say that replacing fossil fuels with hydrogen in heavily energy-intensive industrial processes — for instance, in blast furnaces used in the steel industry — can help lower their carbon footprint.
The manner in which hydrogen is produced determines its environmental impact. Hydrogen can be separated from the oxygen atoms in water using electricity in a process called electrolysis, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. If the electricity used in the process comes from renewable sources, such as wind or solar, then “green” hydrogen can be produced and burned without releasing carbon dioxide. Using electricity produced through the burning of fossil fuels, on the other hand, means that hydrogen production will indirectly involve carbon emissions, while the cheapest and most common method of hydrogen production involves reacting natural gas with high-temperature steam to produce hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide, the DOE states.
In a statement, Cleveland-Cliffs President and CEO Lourenco Goncalves said that the funding “marks the very beginning of a new era in steel producing,” with hydrogen fueling a more environmentally friendly industry. Cleveland-Cliffs operates two steel mills — Indiana Harbor-East Chicago and Burns Harbor — in Northwest Indiana.
Indiana’s Congressional delegation urged the DOE to fund MachH2′s projects in an April letter. After the White House announced the award, U.S. Sen. Todd Young, R-Indiana, and U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan, D-Highland, cheered the news in a joint statement.
“Given the historical generations of Northwest Indiana’s incredible workforce and members of organized labor, manufacturing prowess, and ability to collaborate, we have known the inherent value of this application since day one and its impact to create intergenerational jobs opportunities for our workforce,” Mrvan said.
The Midwest hydrogen hub aims to produce hydrogen through a combination of methods, including using renewable energy, natural gas, and nuclear energy. The hydrogen will be put to use in steel and glass production, power generation, transportation, and aviation fuel. The partnership anticipates creating 13,600 jobs through its projects, including 12,100 in construction and 1,500 permanent roles, according to the proposal.
BP has proposed to use carbon capture and storage to offset the environmental impact of so-called “blue” hydrogen produced from natural gas in Northwest Indiana. The company’s proposal, which involves constructing new pipeline infrastructure to move liquid CO2 south to suitable underground storage sites, has prompted local residents and environmental advocates to voice concerns over the project’s potential impact on the area.
MachH2 is not without its critics. Environmental advocates say that though hydrogen can play a valuable role in decarbonizing steel production and other energy-intensive industries, the hydrogen hub’s plans have placed an inadequate emphasis on renewable energy. In a statement, Hilary Lewis, steel director at Industrious Labs, called on the federal government to push for higher environmental standards from MachH2 and its peers.
“As proposed today, the Hydrogen Hubs with the greatest potential to clean up the primary steelmaking industry fall short of the opportunity to eliminate fossil-fuels and their climate and health-harming impacts on communities,” Lewis said. “As the Department of Energy negotiates funding it must listen to workers and communities, and prioritize a full commitment to green hydrogen.”
In June, a coalition of over a dozen Indiana environmental advocacy groups, coordinated by Indiana Conservation Voters, called for increased transparency and community involvement from the partnership.
In a letter sent to DOE and MachH2 representatives, the advocates lamented that MachH2 had been unresponsive to requests for a meeting and unwilling to discuss the specifics of its proposals. The letter also raised concerns over the environmental impact of fossil fuel-powered hydrogen production, urging MachH2 to prioritize the construction of new clean energy infrastructure to support hydrogen projects.
A MachH2 spokesman told the Post-Tribune at the time that the group would not discuss certain aspects of its funding application publicly due to the competitive nature of the application process. Representatives from MachH2 met with Indiana Conservation Voters in July, and “addressed a sliver of the transparency concerns,” Chris Chyung, the ICV’s executive director, wrote in an email to the Post-Tribune.
In a statement released Friday, Chyung voiced cautious optimism about White House’s announcement.
“President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law could be a game-changer for Hoosiers, but now comes the hard part: implementing programs like hydrogen hubs to ensure emissions reductions, create high-road jobs, and benefit disadvantaged communities,” he said. “MachH2 and its supporting entities must engage with stakeholders across Indiana in order to create the cleanest, most economical, and smartest options in the production and use of hydrogen, such as for supporting our steel economy. Indiana Conservation Voters and our partners look forward to bridging divides between industry, workers, and the environment now that MachH2 has been awarded federal funding.”
