Williams (NYSE: WMB) continues to advance efforts to commercialize a clean hydrogen economy, following the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) announcement that Williams is a participant in two hydrogen hubs. The two hubs – one in the Pacific Northwest and the other in Appalachia – were selected to begin award negotiations with the DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations.
“Williams is excited to play a key part in these hydrogen hubs and I congratulate our teams for their ingenuity and expertise in leveraging natural gas infrastructure to advance the emerging hydrogen energy space,” said Chad Zamarin, Executive Vice President for Corporate Strategic Development at Williams. “As one of the largest energy infrastructure providers in the United States, our strategy is centered upon the belief that we can only achieve the ambitions of scaling new energy technologies through leveraging our existing energy ecosystem. Our natural gas infrastructure is a national treasure and must serve as a springboard for developing the energy solutions of the future.”
The DOE received over 79 applications for the Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs Program, 33 of which were encouraged to make full applications, and seven of which were chosen to receive $7 billion in funding. Williams is proud to be part of two of the seven hubs selected: The Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub and the Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub.
The Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub is focused on reducing the emissions of hard-to-abate sectors such as transportation, energy storage, ports, agriculture and industrial operations. Williams was named as a sub-recipient of DOE funding and plans to build hydrogen pipelines to safely and reliably transport clean hydrogen to advance the decarbonization of key energy consumers.
The Appalachian Clean Hydrogen Hub intends to leverage the region’s ample access to low-cost natural gas to produce low-cost clean hydrogen and permanently and safely store associated carbon emissions. The hub will include the development of hydrogen pipelines, multiple hydrogen fueling stations, and permanent CO2 storage to drive down the cost of hydrogen distribution and storage. As part of the DOE program, Williams will leverage its footprint and partnership opportunities in the region where Williams has a large natural gas gathering, processing and transportation presence.