LOS ANGELES, Nov. 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of
their commitment to support California's climate goals and their mission
to become the cleanest, safest and most innovative energy companies
in America, Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) and San Diego
Gas and Electric (SDG&E) today announced the creation of a
Hydrogen Blending Demonstration Program. This program would be the
first in California and among the
first in the nation.
Blending hydrogen with natural gas is part of a multi-pronged
strategy both utilities – subsidiaries of Sempra Energy – are
undertaking to decarbonize their natural gas grid. The vision is to
leverage surplus renewable electricity generated in the middle of
the day to produce green hydrogen, which then can be injected into
the natural gas grid for storage and use. Power-to-gas technology
is being developed to do just that. SoCalGas, in partnership with
the National Fuel Cell Research Center, and University of California Irvine, is leading the way
in developing this technology, launching the first power-to-gas
demonstration project in the United
States in 2015. Hydrogen blending is another important
milestone for providing the clean fuel needed to achieve
California's climate goals while
maintaining an affordable, resilient and reliable energy
system.
When adopted by the California Public Utilities Commission
(CPUC), the demonstration program will provide an understanding of
how to safely incorporate hydrogen, a zero-emission fuel, into the
gas grid. This is the first step toward the establishment of a
statewide hydrogen injection standard.
"Our California-based utility businesses are helping build
California's 21st century energy
system through deliberate investments in hydrogen, renewable
natural gas, fuel cells, and carbon capture and storage," said
Kevin Sagara, group president for
Sempra Energy and chairman of SoCalGas and San Diego Gas &
Electric. "This hydrogen blending program is a key milestone in our
efforts to decarbonize our energy system, while delivering
affordable and reliable energy to 22 million California customers."
"Green hydrogen is a game-changer, not only for our power and
energy needs, but also for our industrial and transportation
sectors," said Sen. Nancy Skinner
(D-Berkeley). "And green hydrogen
can support existing, good-paying jobs as our state and communities
take steps to transition to a zero-carbon economy."
"Today's announcement is an exciting development for
California's emerging renewable
hydrogen market," said Bill Zobel,
Executive Director of the California Hydrogen Business Council.
"The Hydrogen Blending Demonstration Program will help the public
understand that renewable hydrogen is important and a valuable tool
for our carbon neutral future."
SoCalGas and SDG&E are planning multiple hydrogen blending
projects throughout their respective service territories. The first
proposed project will blend hydrogen into an isolated section of
primarily polyethylene (PE) plastic distribution system in
SoCalGas' service territory. The initial hydrogen blend level is
planned at 1% and may increase to as much as an industry-leading
20%.
SoCalGas expects to choose the location of the initial project
in early 2021.
Subsequent projects are scheduled in SDG&E's service
territory and will build upon the knowledge learned in the first
demonstration. This includes blending hydrogen into an isolated
section of mixed plastic and steel natural gas distribution system,
and an isolated steel pipeline demonstration.
In addition to these hydrogen blending projects, SDG&E
announced in October that it intends to pilot two hydrogen projects
by 2022 as part its comprehensive sustainability strategy to
advance carbon neutrality. These two projects would use a
combination of technologies such as renewable resources,
electrolysis and fuel cells to demonstrate increased system
resiliency, long-duration storage, power-to-gas hydrogen fuel
blending, and vehicle hydrogen fueling, among other
applications.
SoCalGas is helping to build California's 21st century energy
system with investments in hydrogen, renewable natural gas, fuel
cells and carbon capture and storage. These innovations will help
the utility decarbonize its pipeline system. Last year, SoCalGas
set a goal to deliver 5% renewable natural gas (RNG), produced from
organic waste, to its core customers by 2022 and 20% by 2030.
SoCalGas and SDG&E are also seeking CPUC approval of a program
that will offer customers the option to purchase RNG as part of
their natural gas service. The program is set to be voted on by the
CPUC in December.
The Hydrogen Blending Demonstration Program is part of a joint
application filed with the California Public Utilities Commission
(CPUC) by SoCalGas, SDG&E, Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E)
and Southwest Gas in accordance with the Biomethane Order
Instituting Rulemaking (Biomethane OIR). The filing can be found
here.
About SoCalGas
Headquartered in Los
Angeles, SoCalGas® is the largest gas distribution
utility in the United States. SoCalGas delivers
affordable, reliable, clean and increasingly renewable gas service
to 21.8 million customers across 24,000 square miles of
Central and Southern California, where more than 90 percent of
residents use natural gas for heating, hot water, cooking, drying
clothes or other uses. Gas delivered through the company's
pipelines also plays a key role in providing electricity to
Californians— about 45 percent of electric power
generated in the state comes from gas-fired power plants.
SoCalGas' vision is to be the cleanest gas utility
in North America, delivering affordable and increasingly
renewable energy to its customers. In support of that vision,
SoCalGas is committed to replacing 20 percent of its traditional
natural gas supply with renewable natural gas (RNG) by 2030. By
developing renewable gas from our state's abundant organic waste
streams, we can help to meet our climate goals sooner, while
diversifying our carbon-free energy sources, improving energy
resilience and reliability, while also creating additional
renewable fuel and jobs for our communities. SoCalGas is also
committed to investing in its gas delivery infrastructure while
keeping bills affordable for our customers. From 2014 through 2018,
the company invested nearly $6.5 billion to upgrade and
modernize its pipeline system to enhance safety and reliability.
SoCalGas is a subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE), an
energy services holding company based in San Diego. For more
information visit socalgas.com/newsroom or connect with
SoCalGas
on Twitter (@SoCalGas), Instagram (@SoCalGas)
and Facebook.
About SDG&E
SDG&E is an innovative
San Diego-based energy company
that provides clean, safe and reliable energy to better the lives
of the people it serves in San
Diego and southern Orange
counties. The company is committed to creating a sustainable future
by providing its electricity from renewable sources; modernizing
natural gas pipelines; accelerating the adoption of electric
vehicles; supporting numerous non-profit partners; and, investing
in innovative technologies to ensure the reliable operation of the
region's infrastructure for generations to come. SDG&E is a
subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE). For more information,
visit SDGEnews.com or connect with SDG&E on Twitter (@SDGE),
Instagram (@SDGE) and Facebook.
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SOURCE Southern California Gas Company; San Diego Gas &
Electric