Annual Hydrogen Evaluation
Categories
Contact
Page last updated September 19, 2022
Background
California’s Assembly Bill 8 (AB 8; Perea, Chapter 401, Statutes of 2013) provides the Energy Commission with up to $20 million annually through the end of 2023 to co-fund the development of hydrogen fueling stations in California. The Energy Commission has used competitive grant solicitations to provide these funds to station developers since 2014. As required by AB 8, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) has advised the Energy Commission on the use of these funds through a series of annual evaluations. AB 8 requires that these reports provide analysis of current and projected future fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) deployment and hydrogen fueling station development and identify needs for further hydrogen station network development. These recommendations center around the location, daily fueling capacity, and technical requirements of stations to receive Energy Commission co-funding.
Reports are available for each year starting with 2014. Find them linked below.
What’s New in 2022?
Fuel cell electric vehicle sales and hydrogen fueling markets have continued to progress in the year since the 2021 Annual Evaluation, and 2022 has the potential to be one of, if not the most, successful year for new retail station openings and FCEV sales in California. Acceleration in these markets has been projected for the early 2020s in prior analyses, though the timelines continue to be unpredictable, and delays are more common than advances in projected schedules. Regardless, the growth potential that has now been put in place by station funding under AB 8 is substantial and work needs to be done to ensure the benefits can be realized as quickly and as equitably as possible.
Read the report’s executive summary for a high-level overview of 2022 developments and the key findings from CARB staff’s analyses of the FCEV market and refueling network.