Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub
OCED awarded the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub—led by the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association (PNWH2)—with $27.5 million for the first tranche of funding out of the total federal cost share of up to $1 billion to begin Phase 1 of its project plan. OCED is working with PNWH2 to build a clean hydrogen ecosystem across Washington, Oregon, and Montana that leverages the region’s abundant renewable resources to produce all of its hydrogen exclusively via electrolysis using clean, carbon free energy, facilitating greater connectivity and expansion of a clean West Coast freight network that links to the California Hydrogen Hub. The Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub aims to reduce emissions in hard-to-decarbonize industries including transportation, agriculture, and electricity generation industries, with the ultimate goal of reducing carbon emissions by approximately 1.7 million metric tons per year—roughly the equivalent to annual emissions of 400,000 gasoline-powered cars. During Phase 1, which is expected to last 12-18 months, PNWH2 will conduct foundational activities including planning, analysis, design, and community and labor engagement.  

Stored Rechargeable Energy Demonstration (STORED)
OCED awarded the LDES STORED project, led by Urban Electric Power (UEP) in collaboration with the New York Power Authority and EPRI, with more than $675,000 for the first tranche of funding out of the total project federal cost share of up to $6.5 million to begin Phase 1 of its project plan. UEP plans to develop and build two LDES systems that together provide up to 600 kW of power for up to 12 hours per discharge, using its own rechargeable zinc-manganese dioxide batteries. The LDES systems will be installed at two sites, State University of New York Oneonta in Oneonta, NY and Westchester County’s Grasslands Reservation in Valhalla, NY, to provide power resilience to the campuses, increasing the utilization of renewable power at both locations. This project uses low-cost and largely domestically available materials to decrease technology risk, reduce demand on grid infrastructure through reduced peak demand load, and reduce total costs of installation and operation as compared to a lithium-ion system. During Phase 1, UEP and the project team will initiate and develop system designs and site agreements, procure long lead time items, begin community and labor engagement, and develop community stakeholder working groups for both sites.