HomeBlogNewsCHBC Excited about SB 100, Calls Upon Legislature to Support Hydrogen to Manage Renewable Grid

CHBC Excited about SB 100, Calls Upon Legislature to Support Hydrogen to Manage Renewable Grid

  • September 20, 2018
  • Category a: News

Additional Infrastructure Investment Needed to Manage Renewables on the Grid and Decarbonize Transportation

For Immediate Release

Yorba Linda, CA – September 20, 2018: Today, the California Hydrogen Business Council (CHBC) applauds Governor Brown for signing into law SB 100, a bill the CHBC supported from the beginning. SB 100 will create a reliable framework to build out renewable electricity in the state, which will drastically reduce, if not eliminate, GHG and carbon emissions from the electric sector, a key step to fight climate change. The CHBC sees great potential for hydrogen technology to help meet the mandates in SB 100.

Under SB 100, utility companies and Community Choice Aggregators will need to manage ever increasing amounts of renewable energy. Hydrogen based energy storage and fuel cells provide an ideal toolkit for long-duration seasonal storage, among other grid services, that will undoubtedly be needed moving forward. Hydrogen and derivatives produced with electrolysis using renewable electricity from the grid (“power to gas” or “power to X”) provide pathways for flexible, mass scale storage as well as for making good use of excess renewable generation. California Energy Commission consultant E3 recently stated that hydrogen is among the flexible loads that are needed to “absorb surplus renewable generation, and avoid costly need for additional storage and renewable overbuild.”[i] In addition to enabling renewable energy generation expansion and providing grid services like energy storage, renewable hydrogen can also supply zero emission fuel for light, medium and heavy duty vehicles, shipping, rail and other energy applications.[ii]

Renewable hydrogen is a cornerstone of greenhouse gas reduction, grid resilience and renewable integration strategies in Europe, Japan, and Canada, among other regions.[iii] On the national level here in the United States, the US Department of Energy’s H2@Scale program encourages expanded use of hydrogen “to enable resiliency of the power generation and transmission sectors, while also aligning diverse multibillion dollar domestic industries, domestic competitiveness, and job creation.”[iv]

While firmly supporting SB100, CHBC also urges the legislature to look beyond the electric grid. 41% of GHG emissions in the Golden State are generated by the transportation sector. Fuel cell technology in light, medium, heavy duty transportation, rail, and shipping are in commercial or near commercial stages, ready to be brought to market with the right legislative framework and support. Fuel cells, due to their long range and low weight, can provide flexible low carbon or renewably fueled transportation solutions that other zero-emission technologies cannot provide. Today, the hydrogen industry has already surpassed the 33% renewable target mandated by law (SB 1505), delivering hydrogen that is 42+% renewable, which is higher than the renewable content in the grid.  As SB100 and local 100% renewable mandates take effect, 100% renewable hydrogen can be produced via electrolysis at mass scale, enabling the complete transition to decarbonized, zero-emission transportation. But for this to happen, there needs to be continued support of hydrogen and fuel cell transportation technologies.[v]

Now is the time for California’s legislature to act to support hydrogen and fuel cell technology as key means to reduce GHG and improve air quality. This year, Governor Brown requested additional hydrogen station funding for the coming fiscal year to build out the state’s infrastructure to 200 stations, which was rejected by the legislature. The State ought to develop a long-term commitment to hydrogen technology as part of its program for decarbonizing the electricity sector.

The hydrogen and fuel cell industry can replace dirty diesel technology and provide long-distance, heavy-duty, fast refueling solutions that are not possible with competing zero-emission technologies. With California’s mandate of SB 100, other revenue sources for surplus renewable electricity need to be identified. With electrolyzers producing hydrogen, the state can produce large quantities of a renewable, zero-emission fuel, which, if supported by the legislature, can help decarbonize the entire energy sector, replace natural gas and diesel, and create a prosperous, healthy California.

Media Contact:

Emanuel Wagner
Deputy Director
California Hydrogen Business Council
310-455-6095 | ewagner@californiahydrogen.org

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The California Hydrogen Business Council (CHBC) is comprised of over 100 companies, agencies and individuals involved in the business of hydrogen. Our mission is to advance the commercialization of hydrogen in the energy sector, including transportation, goods movement, and stationary power systems to reduce emissions and dependence on oil. More information at www.californiahydrogen.org

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[i] See E3 Presentation (file name “Renewable Integration Update) at http://www.energy.ca.gov/2018_energypolicy/documents/2018-06-20_workshop/2018-06-20_presentations.php

[ii] Among the many specific beneficial capabilities electrolytic hydrogen carries are:

  • increasing grid reliability and integrating increasing levels of renewables onto the regional electric grid by using electricity from over-generation of intermittent renewables that would otherwise be wasted to produce hydrogen, which can then be used in a variety of ways or stored for later use.;
  • turning the “duck curve” challenge into an opportunity by repurposing low or no cost surplus renewable electricity that would otherwise have to be curtailed;
  • providing highly scalable, cost-effective, geographically flexible storage and the only pathway to providing storage at terawatt-hour scale, which is particularly important for seasonal storage in a high renewables, high electrification future.
  • Supplying low or zero GHG fuel to hydrogen stations to fuel zero-emissions vehicles.
  • Enabling a climate protective pathway for energy uses that are difficult to decarbonize with battery electrification only, such as medium and heavy- duty vehicles, shipping, aviation, and certain industrial applications.

[iii] See:
1)  https://renewablesnow.com/news/france-unveils-hydrogen-ambitions-615072/;
2) https://cdn.eurelectric.org/media/3172/decarbonisation-pathways-electrificatino-part-study-results-h-AD171CCC.pdf;
3) https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/en/press/pressinformation/a-greenhouse-gas-neutral-germany-is-almost-possible.;
4) http://www.ieso.ca/en/sector-participants/engagement-initiatives/engagements/power-to-gas-request-for-expression-of-interest;
5) https://www.japan.go.jp/tomodachi/2016/spring2016/tokyo_realize_hydrogen_by_2020.html

[iv] https://www.energy.gov/eere/fuelcells/h2-scale

[v] To realize the full emissions reductions and job creation benefits within California, as well as to help keep up with rapidly growing demand for affordable hydrogen for ZEV transportation and other beneficial uses, regulators must step up efforts to support economical in-state production.