THE U.S. WAS THE FIRST COUNTRY TO ESTABLISH HYDROGEN AND FUEL CELL

technology as part of its national energy strategy. Initiated due to the oil crisis, the US government has funded research sponsorship on hydrogen since the 1970s.

IN THE LAST DECADE, NATIONAL AND STATE GOVERNMENTS HAVE EMPHASIZED

the development of hydrogen power technology as a crucial part of the energy transition. In 2012, the U.S. Congress rewrote the hydrogen fuel cell policy, increasing the tax credit for hydrogen refueling properties from 30% to 50%, and creating a tiered investment tax credit to reward highly efficient fuel cells utilizing combined heat and power (CHP) systems. Soon after, the federal government promulgated an all-of-the-above Energy Strategy, which clarified the leading role of hydrogen energy in transforming transportation.

IN MARCH 2019, THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ANNOUNCED INTENTIONS TO

spend up to $31 million on H2@Scale, focusing on economic scale hydrogen production, transportation, storage, and utilization in multiple sectors in the U.S. To further promote wide adoption and address infrastructure challenges, the DoE launched H2USA — a public-private partnership with FCEV OEMs, focusing on advancing hydrogen infrastructure to support more transportation energy options for U.S. consumers. The DoE has since announced additional funding rounds of $40 million and $64 million.

IN NOVEMBER 2021, PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN SIGNED INTO LAW THE $1.2 TRILLION

bipartisan infrastructure bill, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The new legislation features a suite of hydrogen-specific provisions aimed at driving large-scale deployment and investment for the US hydrogen industry. Included within this is $8 billion of funding to create at least four regional hubs to demonstrate the production, processing, delivery, storage, and end use of clean hydrogen. These hubs will turbocharge the nation’s progress toward heavy trucking and industrial sectors that operate without producing carbon pollution.

CALIFORNIA REPRESENTS THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF COMMERCIALIZATION OF

hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the United States, due to a level of government support and public support for renewable energies not found in other states.

THE CALIFORNIA AIR RESOURCES BOARD AND THE CALIFORNIA FUEL CELL

partnership played a major role in advancing the commercialization process. With a complete planning-subsidiary evaluation system, California has become the most active and demonstrative market for hydrogen and fuel cell development and deployment in the U.S. Looking forward, the California Fuel Cell Partnership has outlined targets for 1,000 hydrogen refueling stations and 1 million hydrogen powered vehicles by 2030.