博彩对冲

Although US President Donald Trump's first 100 days in office have been marked by policy uncertainty in the energy transition space as the new administration reviews spending priorities, major hydrogen producers, including specialists like Plug Power and incumbents like Exxon Mobil, have expressed measured optimism about the future of a hydrogen economy. At industry events and in interviews, executives have stood by the idea that hydrogen is a key facet of a future energy mix in the US and necessary for the goal of 鈥渆nergy dominance鈥� touted by the Trump administration.

But they have also acknowledged the importance of incentives, like the "45V" hydrogen production tax credits in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), along with a continuing flow of loans guaranteed by the Department of Energy (DOE). Clarity is seen as a necessary ingredient for several major projects slated to move forward this year, including Plug Power's massive 45 ton liquid green hydrogen plant in Texas, as well as Exxon鈥檚 blue hydrogen hub in Baytown set to take a final investment decision later this year. Some say the US stands to lose critical ground as other countries race to develop and scale up energy transition technologies.

At a site launch event last week for its latest plant in St. Gabriel, Louisiana, which it operates through a joint venture called Hydrogenii with US-based chemical manufacturer Olin, Plug Power President Sanjay Shrestha told 博彩对冲 that he is cautiously optimistic about what the administration will do. 鈥淲e're an American company; we hope that policy support and the backdrop will get better here,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut look, if things continue to remain challenging, we will also be forced to shift our focus in Asia [Pacific] or Europe in terms of where we need to go as an organization.鈥�

The US became a hub for clean energy investments after the passage of the IRA and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law during the Biden administration, which offered billions of dollars in incentives to jump start nascent industries like hydrogen and carbon capture and storage. Initial momentum was stalled, however, when the last administration took years to release detailed eligibility guidance for the new incentives, which some criticized as too restrictive.

Industry leaders seized on the policy clarity brought by guidance eventually released in the waning days of the Biden administration, only to be thrown back into limbo by spending cuts and funding pauses under Trump 鈥� along with possible congressional repeal of tax incentives like 45V as lawmakers weigh fiscal priorities. Changes to tax credits require congressional approval, although the administration oversees how they are implemented. Loan facilities and grants are more squarely in the hands of the administration, with some legal stipulations.

Cautious Optimism

Plug, which operates its own plants and manufactures everything from electrolyzers to specialty tanker trucks that transport liquid hydrogen, is hoping to see much-needed clarity by the end of the year, as it plans to break ground on what is expected to be the world鈥檚 largest liquid green hydrogen facility in Texas.

Clarity extends beyond the fate of tax credits, with a DOE loan guarantee of $1.6 billion given to the company at the beginning of 2025 under the last days of the Biden administration, underpinning the liquid hydrogen facility in Texas and up to five other plants across the US. Despite the assumed safety of those funds, the company remains 鈥渋n conversations鈥� with the current DOE, which froze mostly all disbursements 鈥� an action that has been challenged in court. 鈥淲e have a continued dialogue with DOE, and there's obviously been a lot of new folks that have come in, and they're going to have to do some of their work to understand exactly what's the next step,鈥� Shrestha said.

Broader Cuts

Aside from tax incentives and DOE loans, another big feature of the previous administration's plan to jumpstart the hydrogen economy is a program to kickstart clean hydrogen hubs. Created by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, it involves $8 billion for seven hubs plus related support measures to create integrated infrastructure.

While hydrogen hasn鈥檛 attracted the same ire as offshore wind and solar from the Trump administration, a proposal to shutter the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) is reportedly under consideration. OCED houses the hydrogen hubs program. A DOE spokesperson previously told 博彩对冲 that, 鈥淣o final decisions have been made, and multiple plans are still being considered,鈥� and that it is 鈥渃onducting a departmentwide review of its organizational structures to ensure operations are best positioned to accomplish the DOE mission.鈥�

Bloomberg reported that even if the plan is adopted, some $10 billion in the OCED's project funding, including $3 billion for clean hydrogen hubs, would be kept 鈥渁s is鈥� and transferred to other parts of the DOE.

Activity Continues

While uncertainty may whittle down the number of projects that make it to fruition, it is unlikely to stunt all of them. Timo Rathjens, director of hydrogen strategy and sustainability marketing at Olin, told 博彩对冲 at the start of the St. Gabriel plant that the project simply making it to the commissioning phase represented an important achievement for the industry amid growing economic uncertainty. 鈥淛ust a lot of bigger hydrogen projects announced, but very few of them actually make it through ... and get built,鈥� Rathjens said, whereas Hidrogenii's plant is now 鈥渘ot just an announcement.鈥�

Even some projects at the center of planned hubs that are in limbo, like green developer Aternium, an anchor in the Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub, plan to move forward. Aternium鈥檚 Andrew Cottone told 博彩对冲 that the company has 鈥渁 unique business model鈥� that doesn鈥檛 rely solely on government subsidies. With that in mind, his company will be moving forward 鈥渨ith or without hub funding.鈥�

Competition Mounts

The global hydrogen economy at large has also been struggling to take hold as widely as previously anticipated, with demand proving slow to materialize in many regions and sectors like mobility failing to take hold without the build-out of infrastructure. Still, rivals to the US are aiming to secure leadership roles in the sector.

According to an April 2025 S&P Global Commodity Insights report titled Hydrogen in Asia, Australia is positioning itself as a leading green hydrogen exporter through production schemes and tax credits. The report also highlights Japan and South Korea as key areas for demand growth driven by policies like contracts-for-difference and clean hydrogen portfolio standards.

China is also making significant strides, boasting the largest renewable electrolysis production and installation capacities, and is it also targeting 500,000 fuel-cell vehicles by 2035 with $20 billion for refueling networks. India aims to become a major exporter of renewable hydrogen derivatives. Meanwhile, the EU has allocated 鈧�1.2 billion ($1.4 billion) in 2025 for cross-border hydrogen infrastructure via the Connecting Europe Facility, among other incentives.