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Grant PUD and Obsidian Renewables to collaborate on developing H2 renewable solutions

Grant County Public Utility District (Grant PUD) and Obsidian Renewables will collaborate to design a potential power plant fueled by renewable H2. The project includes a renewable H2 production and storage facility to fuel the power plant and help meet Grant County’s growing demand for power.

The H2 would be produced by a solar power plant connected to an electrolyzer that will split water into H2 and oxygen. The proposed power plant design will use an onsite storage pipeline to hold enough H2 so that the plant can operate for up to one week on the stored renewable energy.

“We’re excited to pursue this promising technology with Obsidian and for its potential to provide needed power generation resources for our customers, while also meeting Washington’s clean-energy goals,” Grant PUD CEO Rich Wallen said.

Grant County has several industrial H2 users, including developers of an experimental H2-powered aircraft and rocket engines. The surplus renewable electricity generated by the project will potentially create affordable renewable H2 for these users.

“This project kicks off the development of Obsidian’s Pacific Northwest H2 Hub plan to make low-cost renewable H2 available to large parts of Oregon and Washington,” Obsidian Director of H2 Development Ken Dragoon said. “Renewable H2 will play an important role in the region’s decarbonization goals, and we are proud to take this step towards a green energy future.”

The Obsidian Pacific NW H2 Hub is one of the 33 projects around the nation encouraged to seek funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Obsidian will submit a complete funding application in April, which includes funding for the Grant PUD project.

The DOE plans to select six to 10 H2 hubs to receive between $400 MM and $1.25 B to connect large-scale clean H2 production to consumers. Applications will be evaluated based on several critical factors, including technical merit, financial viability and community benefits. DOE is expected to make final funding awards in the Fall of 2023.