Hydrogen

Hydrogen is an energy carrier that can be used to store, move, and deliver energy.

What is Hydrogen?

Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements on earth and has the highest energy content of any common fuel by weight. When combusted, hydrogen produces water vapor, not greenhouse gas emissions. It can be safely produced, transported, stored and blended into the existing gas grid to help decarbonize the pipelines. Hydrogen has been safely used for decades in aeronautics to fuel space exploration and in the industrial sector to process food, manufacture electronics, and make glass and metal. In addition, Europe, Asia, and Australia are scaling up their use of hydrogen to combat climate change and lower carbon emissions.

How will Hydrogen power our clean energy future?

Integrating hydrogen into our energy future is complementary with renewable energy and could further advance the global energy transition underway. Similar to natural gas, hydrogen requires techniques for safe handling in comparable ways which makes us equipped with both the skillsets in its engineers and technicians, along with the technology to support its development and integration into the next stages of our energy economy. Hydrogen is versatile and can be used to power heavy duty trucks, factories, power plants, as well as your home, appliances, and cars through a hydrogen fuel cell. We are empowering hydrogen development for California’s homes and businesses because we believe in a clean, safe, and reliable energy for tomorrow.

Understanding Clean Renewable Hydrogen

Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements on Earth, but it rarely exists alone, therefore it is produced by extracting it from its compound. This can require a lot of energy and resources which is why hydrogen technology must be improved to lower the costs involved with using it. Some processes can also produce greenhouse gas emissions so it is important to focus on technology that will focus on low to zero emissions. For example, hydrogen can be renewable or decarbonized if produced using renewable or carbon free electricity such electricity produced from wind turbines.

 

Projects

Our Research, Development, and Demonstration program plays a key role in the effort to innovate around hydrogen by developing and demonstrating transformational products and technologies that promote decarbonization across the natural gas value chain. Here are some of the current hydrogen projects:

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Shaping the future with clean renewable hydrogen

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[H2] Innovation Experience

First of its kind in the U.S. microgrid that includes a home, solar arrays, a home battery and an electrolyzer to convert solar energy into clean hydrogen.

H2 Blending

SoCalGas will begin to demonstrate how electrolytic hydrogen can be safely blended into existing natural gas infrastructures. This an important next step in establishing a statewide injection standard for renewable hydrogen that would promote California’s clean energy and resiliency goals. 

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Leading Through Sustainability

We are working to build a more sustainable future by doing the right thing, championing people and shaping the future.

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Clean Fuels

Read about the role of clean fuels and gas infrastructure in achieving California's Net-Zero climate goal.

Research Development & Demonstration

The RD&D Program seeks to advance and champion technologies that support widespread access to clean, affordable, and reliable energy for all Californians.​

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Additional Resources