The US Department of Energy (DOE) intends to issue $750 million in funding to reduce the cost of clean-hydrogen technologies. (DE-FOA-0002921) The activities to be funded under this FOA support Sec. 40314 of the “Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,” which amended Title VIII of the “Energy Policy Act” (EPAct) of 2005 to include a new section 815, “Clean Hydrogen Manufacturing and Recycling” and a new section 816, “Clean Hydrogen Electrolysis Program.”

Through these provisions, the BIL will invest $500 million for the development of manufacturing and recycling of clean hydrogen technologies, and $1 billion for electrolyzer development for the five year period encompassing Fiscal Years (FYs) 2022 through 2026. This FOA will be an integral part of the programs developed under these provisions.

In addition to this FOA (which includes up to $750 million of the total $1.5B), other program activities will include funding for national laboratories, Small Business Innovative Research projects, Prizes, and additional FOAs or other funding mechanisms. These activities will support the broader government-wide approach to accelerate progress in clean hydrogen technologies.

The anticipated FOA will support research, development, demonstration (RD&D), and manufacturing of affordable hydrogen technologies, aligned with the vision outlined in DOE’s draft national clean hydrogen strategy and roadmap. The draft roadmap outlines strategic opportunities for 10 million metric tonnes (MMT) of clean hydrogen per year by 2030, 20 MMT per year by 2040, and 50 MMT per year by 2050.

Specifically, the Clean Hydrogen Electrolysis, Manufacturing, and Recycling FOA will support the following objectives:

• Reduce the cost of clean hydrogen produced using electrolyzers to less than $2 per kilogram by 2026.

• Advance new manufacturing technologies and techniques for clean hydrogen production and use equipment, specifically for electrolyzer and fuel cell technologies.

• Research, develop, and demonstrate innovative and practical approaches to increase the reuse and recycling of clean hydrogen technologies.

Together with the regional clean hydrogen hubs (H2Hubs), tax incentives in the “Inflation Reduction Act”, and ongoing research, development, and demonstration in the DOE Hydrogen Program, these investments will accelerate the technical advances and scale-up needed to achieve DOE’s Hydrogen Shot goal of $1 per kilogram of clean hydrogen within a decade.

Managed by DOE’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office (HFTO), projects funded through this opportunity will address underlying technical barriers to cost reduction that can’t be overcome by scale alone and ensure emerging commercial-scale deployments will be viable with future lower-cost, higher-performing technology.