Clean Hydrogen: The Next Frontier in Energy
Clean hydrogen production is actively being contemplated in San Juan County, NM, and has the potential to advance efforts in attaining clean air standards, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, boost economic development and job creation and improve healthy lifestyles for citizens in New Mexico.
Benefits of hydrogen production include:
- Excess energy storage from solar, wind and carbon-sequestered natural gas and converted back into electricity or heat when there is demand, just like a battery.
- Hydrogen can also power hard-to-abate carbon sectors, including cement processing, steel manufacturing and fertilizer production.
- Hydrogen is easy to transport to and from points of production and end-use.
- It is versatile, as it can be transported and stored as a gas or a liquid, and it does not emit greenhouse gasses at the point of consumption.
Hydrogen production is at the forefront of local, regional and national efforts to combat climate change by developing low-carbon energy techniques. The Four Corners Clean Energy Alliance has an excellent visual explanation of the economics of the emerging hydrogen industry.
Why Four Corners?
Numerous factors make San Juan County perfectly situated to be a leader in clean hydrogen generation, storage and usage, as well as hydrogen equipment manufacturing:
- Vast supply of inexpensive natural gas, water and sunshine for solar energy.
- Sophisticated Oil & Natural Gas Industry: Significant energy industry knowledge and infrastructure exists to translate into developing hydrogen technologies.
- Existing Applications: Local companies such as PESCO, currently manufacture hydrogen-related systems and are ready to assist new developers.
- Excellence in Workforce Development: The San Juan College School of Energy provides hydrogen developers a willing and capable partner in delivering the basic and advanced training needed for new hydrogen development in the region.
Regional Momentum and Benefits
San Juan County can play a big role in clean hydrogen production due to its sunshine, low-cost and abundant natural gas, access to the high-voltage transmission line network, excellent workforce and workforce training at the San Juan College School of Energy and business-friendly local governments.
San Juan County Projects
Well over $1 billion of new hydrogen projects are being contemplated for San Juan County. More about them below.
Yideeską́ądi Nitsáhákees - “Thinking For The Future”
The Navajo Agricultural Products Industry (NAPI) and Four Corners Economic Development (4CED) are collaborating on this project to develop a nationally designated commercial‐scale agricultural test farm in the western U.S.
Avangrid
Avangrid is looking to build a green hydrogen/ammonia plant that could service regional needs for fertilizer, power and other industrial needs.
Libertad
Libertad is developing clean hydrogen production via electrolysis plus infrastructure in San Juan County to serve off‐takers in heavy haul transportation, energy storage and power generation and industrial processes across the West.
Contact Four Corners Economic Development to learn more about the region’s potential for clean hydrogen production!