Oakland to Receive Federal Funding to Help
Form the Backbone of the California Hydrogen Hub
The Ports of Oakland will receive funding
for projects to decarbonize their operations.
Oakland, CA- The City of Oakland welcomes President Joe Biden and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm's announcement that the California Hydrogen Hub will be one of the seven regional clean hydrogen hubs that were selected to receive $7 billion in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding to accelerate the domestic market for low-cost, clean hydrogen. The Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems (ARCHES) serves as the coordinator for California’s Hydrogen Hub grant seeking efforts, and included projects submitted by the Port of Oakland in their federal application.
“Today’s announcement by President Biden is a win for Oakland, a win for our state, and a win for our planet. The clean hydrogen energy project in Oakland will build a healthier future and create local quality green jobs while reducing pollution impacts and transitioning to clean locally produced energy. We are grateful to President Biden for recognizing that Oakland is a leader in adopting and advancing clean energy technology. I want to thank the Oakland City Council, city staff, and the Port of Oakland for working in collaboration with the Newsom Administration and the State of California to secure this critical funding,” said Mayor Sheng Thao.
For decades, Oakland residents - specifically in West Oakland and East Oakland - disproportionately felt the effects of air pollution caused by heavy-duty equipment operations throughout the Port and the East Bay. Oakland’s clean energy hydrogen hub projects will help decarbonize heavy-duty trucking and port operations—key emissions drivers and sources of air pollution that are among the hardest to decarbonize.
Earlier this year, the City of Oakland and the Port of Oakland applied to the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) to be part of ARCHES submittal. This followed on from important initiatives led by the City of Oakland to promote hydrogen and green energy production and usage. For example, in 2021, the Center for Transportation and the Environment, in partnership with the City of Oakland and 15 other public and private organizations secured $54 million to build and deploy 30 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks and a supporting hydrogen fueling station at the East Bay Municipal Utility treatment plant, adjacent to the Port of Oakland. The NorCal ZERO project is the largest commercial deployment of Class 8 Fuel Cell Electric Trucks in North America, highlighting Oakland’s leading efforts to embrace hydrogen technology.
Oakland’s application for ARCHES funding for the Port of Oakland focuses on hydrogen fueling stations and the replacement of 42 pieces of cargo handling equipment with zero-emission hydrogen fuels technology and the construction of three in-terminal hydrogen fueling stations to support zero-emissions equipment deployment. More information about the timing and implementation of this initiative will be available in the coming weeks as the state develops the full funding and program allocation in coordination with the Department of Energy.
“The Port of Oakland is committed to meeting its vision for a zero emissions seaport by working with its terminal operators to convert diesel-fueled cargo handling equipment to zero emissions, including green hydrogen fuel cell technology. This is an exciting opportunity for the Port of Oakland, our customers and tenants, and, importantly, our local community as the Port and City of Oakland work together to become a center for green tech innovation. We appreciate the leadership of the Newsom Administration and ARCHES and the funding support from the Department of Energy to advance these ambitious goals,” said Danny Wan, Executive Director, Port of Oakland.
The Oakland segment of California’s Hydrogen Hub has committed to requiring Project Labor Agreements for all projects connected to the hub, which will expand opportunities for good-paying, local green jobs..
For more information, about the Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems (ARCHES) visit:https://archesh2.org/.
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