Air Products, AES Commit $4 Billion for Largest Green Hydrogen Facility in Texas

Air Products, a leader in industrial gases, and AES, a provider of electricity, have announced intentions to invest $4 billion to construct the first "mega-scale" green hydrogen production facility in Texas.

The project is planned to be the largest green hydrogen factory in the United States, with a capacity of more than 200 metric tonnes of hydrogen per day and around 1.4 gigawatts (GW) of wind and solar power generation.

The project, which is scheduled to begin commercial operations in 2027, will meet the rising demand for green hydrogen from states and corporations seeking to include zero-carbon intensity fuels in their net-zero ambitions. Green hydrogen is particularly relevant for the transportation business and other industrial applications.

"We have been collaborating with AES for many years on the development of this project, which will be competitive on a global scale and deliver major tax, job, and energy security benefits to Texas. We are eager to move forward and offer clean, green hydrogen to U.S. customers in the near future."

Hydrogen is seen as one of the main building elements of the transition to a cleaner energy future, particularly for industries with difficult-to-abate emissions, in which renewable energy sources such as wind or solar are less practicable.

Each year, around 90 million metric tonnes of hydrogen are produced, but the vast majority is harvested using fossil fuels, which generate pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Significant investments are necessary to create clean extraction technologies, such as green hydrogen, which employs a renewable energy-powered electrolysis process to extract hydrogen from water.

Slated to commence commercial operations in 2027, the new facility will offer green hydrogen to the transportation and industrial industries in the U.S., answering the growing demand for zero-carbon intensity fuels.

According to Air Products and AES, the plant will assist to prevent more than 50 million metric tonnes of CO2 over its lifetime, equivalent to the emissions from approximately five billion gallons of diesel fuel.

Air Products and AESwill equally own the renewable energy and electrolyzer facilities, with Air Products functioning as the only off-taker and marketer of the green hydrogen under a 30-year contract.

AES President and Chief Executive Officer Andrés Gluski stated:

"We are thrilled to join with Air Products, the world leader in hydrogen, on this mega-scale green hydrogen project, the first of its kind in the United States. We will build more than 1 GW of new solar and wind facilities to supply zero-carbon electricity for electrolysis and related manufacturing facilities. AES thinks that green hydrogen has a significant role to play in decarbonizing transportation and speeding the future of energy.”