The DMV Energy Transition

The District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia (the DMV) are in the early stages of a major energy transition fueled by climate change, technical and process innovation, and a population committed to responsibly stewarding our natural resources to provide a healthy and prosperous environment for all who live and work in the region. Pushing forward into the next generation of the energy ecosystem enables the DMV to demonstrate strong regional and national leadership in meeting climate goals and objectives. This will create economic growth and establish thousands of high-quality jobs and safer environments throughout our region, including our most distressed communities.

The DMV possesses a unique collection of assets to employ in this clean energy transition and the fight against climate change. It has abundant, diversified resources such as wind, solar, nuclear, and natural gas that will be critical sources of supply for the region. It is also home to one of the country’s most significant demand portfolios, which will prove necessary to deploy clean energy solutions at scale. The DMV region hosts two major ports; four major airports; regional distribution centers; the nation’s largest collection of data centers; and extensive federal government, defense, and intelligence facilities. The DMV has leading policy advocates, forward-thinking commercial and government entities, and a culture of innovation and leadership that attracts attention, investment, and talent. The DMV region is uniquely positioned to take on this challenge.

While electrification is seen as a key pathway to decarbonizing energy use in the DMV, it is essential to note that not all end-use can be decarbonized through electrification alone. Further, while significant growth in renewable electric generation is forecast in the region, the electric grid demand cannot be met solely by renewables in the foreseeable future.¹ Therefore, addressing climate change in the DMV will increasingly require innovative solutions to reach the region’s goals.

Hydrogen represents one of the most promising of these innovative solutions. It is the most abundant element in the world and one of the most versatile components of our clean energy solutions portfolio. It also serves as a strategic ally to existing clean energy transition initiatives and technologies. Hydrogen can be produced, transported, stored, and utilized in various ways to decarbonize the DMV’s hardest to abate sectors. It can store and generate clean power and heat used in industrial processes and enable zero-emission transportation.

The National Capital Hydrogen Center (“The Center”) will accelerate the development of a responsible and robust hydrogen market and ecosystem across the DMV Region. The Center is already driving collaboration across government, academic, community, philanthropic, commercial, and industrial organizations to support the regional and national imperative to deliver hydrogen solutions for our country’s clean energy future.

Connected DMV established this Center to coalesce and amplify the exceptional assets in our region. The Center will coordinate the rollout of hydrogen infrastructure to deliver economically viable hydrogen projects, thereby accelerating scale and cost competitiveness. The Center and its partners will provide the full lifecycle of project planning, execution, and benefit delivery while incorporating social equity and environmental justice as foundational principles, consistent with Connected DMV’s mission.

The first step required to plan and implement a new energy infrastructure in the DMV is an assessment that qualifies and quantifies this transformational opportunity. The DMV Hydrogen Greenprint presents a value proposition for deploying hydrogen across the DMV region.

In addition to a conceptual plan for deploying infrastructure, it provides a data-driven analysis that quantifies potential hydrogen supply and demand across the DMV over the next ten years. As a foundational view of the hydrogen market and ecosystem, the Greenprint assesses scenarios for hydrogen growth based on the addressable market for the largest sectors in the region and describes the corresponding marketplace potential.

This Greenprint Overview provides the conclusions from that analysis. Moreover, acknowledging that other studies and mandates target a 2050 timeline, the Greenprint assessment evaluates an accelerated timeline leading up to 2030. The objective is to articulate the more immediate opportunities and benefits to be realized by actions taken now. Also, for the purposes of the Greenprint Overview, “hydrogen" generally refers to “clean hydrogen,” which the U.S. Government defines as hydrogen “produced with a carbon intensity equal to or less than 2 kilograms of carbon-dioxide equivalent produced at the site of production per kilogram of hydrogen produced.” For clarity or emphasis, “clean hydrogen” is sometimes used.

Achieving a responsible transition from fossil fuels to low-carbon solutions such as clean hydrogen requires cascading support and investment from consumers, regulatory agencies, technology providers, and investors.² The Greenprint outlines a future with strong, coordinated support for hydrogen and illustrates the superset of opportunities available to the region where:

• Consumers, providers, policymakers, and communities are inspired to drive change;

• Demand for sustainable business practices provides more companies with incentives to achieve net-zero goals, leading to more significant investment in low carbon solutions that accelerate innovation and reduce costs; and

• Actions are enabled by consistent and enduring support from local, state, and federal governments and regulatory agencies.

The Greenprint articulates a hydrogen ecosystem that supports and complements existing efforts to decarbonize the economy, including local electrification initiatives and hydrogen projects conducted in other regions. In this context, the Greenprint highlights hydrogen’s role in local, regional, and national strategies as part of a diverse portfolio of solutions.