Unlocking Clean Hydrogen: What Should Treasury’s Guidance Be for Hydrogen Production Tax Credit Eligibility?

Join David Stoll with Farella Braun + Martel along with guest speakers Beth Deane with Electric Hydrogen, Mark Fillinger with Candela Renewables, Kevin Kopchyski with Plug Power, and Mikhael Skvarla with The Gualco Group, Inc., in the discussion on "Unlocking Clean Hydrogen: What Should Treasury’s Guidance Be for Hydrogen Production Tax Credit Eligibility?"

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed just over a year ago, contains a clean hydrogen production tax credit of up to $3/kg. However, guidance from the Treasury as to what qualifies for the clean hydrogen tax credit remains outstanding.

This uncertainty has fueled a growing debate over how strict the requirements should be to qualify for the clean hydrogen tax credit. On one side are those who argue allowing hydrogen production to be powered by the grid will lead to a significant increase - rather than a decrease - in carbon emissions, given that electrolyzers require a massive amount of electricity and the grid is not very clean at all. On the other side are those who argue that too strict of guidance will make the production of clean hydrogen too expensive and will stifle the goal of stimulating a clean hydrogen industry. And still many others fall somewhere in between.

Join us as we debate what should qualify for the clean hydrogen production tax credit and discuss important concepts such as:

Additionality (using new vs. existing renewables to power green hydrogen production)
Temporal Correlation (requiring the matching of energy use to renewable energy supply)
Geographic Correlation (requiring siting of electrolyzers close to the renewable energy they consume)
Whether the requirements should start out strict and relax over time, or start out more relaxed and tighten over time.