Southern States Energy Board, Linde, INEOS, and MPLX LP (MPLX) along with 13 supporting companies and offtakers submitted a concept paper to the DOE for development of the Leading in Gulf Coast Hydrogen Transition (LIGH₂T) hydrogen hub.

The project received encouragement from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to submit a full application for the DOE Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs (H2Hubs) funding program.

Authorized by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, DOE’s H2Hubs program will provide up to $8 billion to develop the foundation of a regional hydrogen energy network by creating several hydrogen hubs throughout the United States. SSEB is leading LIGH₂T’s application process to secure funding from DOE’s H2Hubs program. LIGH₂T will submit a full proposal in April 2023.

The LIGH₂T hub envisions this project to be a flagship for long-term growth of clean hydrogen development and utilization in the Gulf Coast region. Within the LIGH₂T proposal is access to and ownership of the region’s most extensive existing hydrogen infrastructure. This existing infrastructure will enable rapid at scale utilization for a clean hydrogen network complete with production, transportation, storage and multiple difficult to decarbonize end-users.  The benefits of this long-term and sustainable hydrogen hub extends far beyond this DOE hub funding process by contributing to the DOE’s goal of establishing a collaborative energy ecosystem and launching a national clean hydrogen network.

Diverse technologies and feedstocks will be used to produce, distribute and use clean hydrogen to decarbonize multiple energy-intensive sectors including chemical manufacturing, refining, refueling stations, and backup power generation. LIGH₂T’s operations will result in investments that contribute to meaningful economic and community benefits in the region.

Partners

In addition to SSEB, Linde, INEOS and MPLX, LIGH₂T brings together a diverse consortium with longstanding and complementary expertise in the entire hydrogen value chain. Member entities include other energy and industrial world leaders with unique capabilities and regional and local partners with a vested interest and trusted presence in the LIGH₂T Hub communities. The University of Houston and the National Energy Technology Laboratory are vital members of the consortium, providing valuable expertise and support across the entire hydrogen value chain effort.