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Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Clean Hydrogen 2024 Update

Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Clean Hydrogen 2024 Update

Full Title: Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Clean Hydrogen 2024 Update
Author(s): Campbell Howe, Dr. Katelyn O’Dell, Neha Rustagi, and Dr. Theresa Christian
Publisher(s): U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date: December 27, 2024
Full Text: Download Resource
Description (excerpt):

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has published a series of Liftoff Reports—living documents that serve as a shared fact base on the development, deployment, and commercialization of clean energy technologies, like clean hydrogen. The Liftoff Reports build upon deep industry and community engagement, learnings from DOE investments and initiatives, and input from other public sector organizations. They analyze both challenges and opportunities in the acceleration of our energy transition in an effort to align and catalyze action.

In March 2023, the DOE published its first Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Clean Hydrogen Report. DOE reported that clean hydrogen can reduce U.S. carbon emissions by up to 10% by 2050, particularly in sectors without other cost-effective decarbonization options, such as ammonia production and heavy-duty transport. Clean hydrogen reaches liftoff when it becomes cost competitive with fossil-based hydrogen or other carbon-intensive alternatives at the point of consumption for a sustained period of time.

Overall, the clean hydrogen economy is poised to achieve liftoff by 2030, although the timing of liftoff varies by end use application. Industrial and chemical use cases—such as ammonia and petrochemical production, in which production can be co-located with utilization—might see near-term expansion by 2026. Mobility and transportation use cases, such as heavy- and medium-duty trucking, might require additional cost reductions and infrastructure build-out so that liftoff can occur in the 2030s.

All statements and/or propositions in discussion prompts are meant exclusively to stimulate discussion and do not represent the views of OurEnergyPolicy.org, its Partners, Topic Directors or Experts, nor of any individual or organization. Comments by and opinions of Expert participants are their own.

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