RENEWABLE HYDROGEN

The Missing Piece to Achieving 100% Clean Energy in California’s Power Sector

To achieve its ambitious goal of attaining 100% clean electricity by 2045,1
California must implement alternative energy sources to fossil fuels that can provide reliable and clean power to its approximately 40 million residents.2 As California’s electricity consumption exceeds that of every other state but Texas and Florida,3 the solution must be able to operate at a scale sufficient to meet the state’s demand. The issue remains that California relies on natural gas-fueled power plants to achieve grid reliability — and will continue to until at least 2045.4
Studies find that in order to reduce this reliance on fossil fuels, California must embrace on-demand, clean resources to bolster grid resilience. To fully replace fossil fuels, the Environmental Defense Fund estimates that California will require between 25 to 40 gigawatts of clean and dependable power.5 In addition, the state will require robust energy storage solutions to manage the fluctuations of multi-day and seasonal energy demand, which cannot be achieved with current battery technology.

Renewable hydrogen (RH2) offers a solution, since it can fill the state’s need for clean, firm power and long-duration energy storage. Without access to such a resource, the state will continue to rely on natural gas plants. RH2 can be a key element in mitigating power sector emissions and supporting the state’s emission reduction objectives.

California has abundant renewable resources to produce RH2 for the decarbonized energy future.

HOW SHOULD RENEWABLE HYDROGEN BE DEFINED?

GHC recommends that renewable hydrogen is defined using the following set of parameters:

+ The feedstock used to produce the hydrogen is non-fossil fuel derived and is consistent with RPS eligible resources

+ The definition is technology neutral (e.g., does not specify the production or conversion process)

+ Eligibility is based on a well-to-gate a carbon intensity framework consistent with the U.S. Department of Energy

THE BENEFITS OF RENEWABLE ENERGY IN THE POWER SECTOR

RH2 BENEFITS CHALLENGES IN THE POWER SECTOR THE ROLE OF RH2 IN THE POWER SECTOR
RH2 can help California affordably transition from fossil fuels by repurposing electric generation facilities. Substantial amounts of clean, firm power are needed to ensure grid reliability. Today, much of that is supplied by burning natural gas in power plants. Existing power plants can be used to combust RH2 in place of natural gas. Retrofitting power plants to run on RH2 offers a pathway to reach 100% clean energy affordably.
RH2 can provide reliable, clean backup power in lieu of gasoline, propane, or diesel. California has been subject to multi-day Public Safety Power Shutoff blackout events, which have increased over the past several years. Today, backup power is typically provided using propane, gasoline, and diesel-fueled generators. To achieve a clean future, the state needs renewable alternatives. Distributed RH2-fueled power plants (turbines, linear generators, or fuel cells) can supply on-demand, reliable backup power when the grid is under stress.
RH2 can store large amounts of renewable energy to cover daily, weekly, or even seasonal changes in power supply Currently, when there is a surplus of renewable electricity on the grid, the state does not have the ability to make use of this excess; instead, the energy is curtailed. At other times when renewable electricity production is not sufficient to meet demand, other sources of power must fill in to meet demand. Today, on-demand power is primarily met by burning fossil fuels, such as natural gas. RH2 will enable California to capture excess solar and wind generation, store it, and utilize it as needed to balance the grid. Stored renewable electricity in the form of RH2 can be converted to renewable electricity to achieve 100% renewable energy in the power sector.
The power sector is an important near-term offtaker for RH2, which can help
catalyze California’s RH2 economy.		 To jump start the ecosystem and attract the necessary capital investments for shared transport and storage infrastructure, California will need visibility into bankable, large-scale offtakers. The power sector offers concentrated, predictable demand, which will help drive economies of scale and lower the cost of RH2. As a result, RH2 will become more accessible for adoption in other highly polluting sectors, such as heavy-duty trucking, maritime shipping, and aviation.

Resources:

  1. California Energy Commission. n.d. “SB 100 Joint Agency Report.” Accessed June 7, 2023. https://www.energy.ca.gov/sb100.
  2. U.S. Census Bureau. n.d. “Quickfacts: California.” Accessed May 11, 2023. https://www.census. gov/quickfacts/fact/table/CA/PST045221.
  3. U.S. Energy Information Administration. n.d. “Profile Analysis: California.” Accessed May 11, 2023. https://www.eia.gov/state/analysis.php?sid=CA#24.
  4. California Energy Commission. n.d. “California releases report charting path to 100 percent clean electricity.” Accessed May 11, 2023. https://www.energy.ca.gov/news/2021-03/californiareleases-report-charting-path-100-percent-clean-electricity.
  5. Long, JCS, et al. n.d. “Three Detailed Models of the Future of California’s Power System All Show That California Needs Carbon-Free Electricity Sources That Don’t Depend on the Weather.” Environmental Defense Fund. Accessed June 7, 2023. https://www.edf.org/sites/default/files/documents/SB100%20clean%20firm%20power%20report%20plus%20SI.pdf.
  6. “U.S. Energy Information Administration – EIA – Independent Statistics and Analysis.” n.d. Eia.gov. Accessed May 9, 2023. https://www.eia.gov/state/analysis.php?sid=CA.
  7. Ibid.
  8. Office of Govenor Gavin Newsom. 2022. “ICYMI: California Poised to Become World’s 4th
    Biggest Economy.” Accessed on June 15, 2023. https://www.gov.ca.gov/2022/10/24/icymicalifornia-poised-to-become-worlds-4th-biggest-economy/.
  9. 2022: Sommer, Lauren. 2022. “California Just Ran on 100% Renewable Energy, but Fossil Fuels
    Aren’t Fading Away Yet.” NPR, May 13, 2022. https://www.npr.org/2022/05/07/1097376890/fora-brief-moment-calif-fully-powered-itself-with-renewable-energy.
  10. California ISO. (n.d.) Managing Oversupply. Accessed May 11, 2023. http://www.caiso.com/ informed/Pages/ManagingOversupply.aspx.

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