LOS ANGELES, April 27, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern
California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) today announced the company will
provide $200,000 in funding for Zero
Emission Industries' (ZEI), formerly Golden Gate Zero Emission
Marine, hydrogen fuel cell technology project that aims to
develop a zero emissions solution for small commercial marine
vessels by modifying a commercial boat with a hydrogen fuel cell in
place of a combustion engine. Once brought to market, the fuel cell
technology could vastly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and
air pollution from thousands of small commercial boats throughout
California including patrol,
fishing, fire, rescue, ferry, taxi, recreational and other
vessels.
"SoCalGas is committed to helping California reach its climate goals, and we
look at how we can support reducing GHG emissions in every sector,"
said Neil Navin, vice president of
clean energy innovations at SoCalGas. "We recently announced our
pledge to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions in our operations
and delivery of energy by 2045, and our work with the CEC and ZEI
to develop fuel cell technology for commercial boats could aid this
commitment. This innovative technology has the potential to
decrease pollution in California
in a meaningful way."
"This project exemplifies our approach at Zero Emission
Industries, which is to solve difficult challenges with hydrogen in
ways that make it accessible for everyone," said Dr. Joseph Pratt, CEO of ZEI. "With California being
home to over 1 million vessels, 98% of which are under 40 feet
long, developing a small fast zero emission vessel solution will
have a profound impact on the market, the economy, and air quality.
The support from SoCalGas on low- and zero-emission efforts like
this project play a large role in the ongoing effort to eliminate
California's and ultimately, the
world's emissions."
"As California works to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from
various sectors within our state, I am thrilled to see SoCalGas, in
partnership with the CEC and Zero Emission Industries, leading and
supporting the development of innovative technologies to help meet
the state's goals," said Mario
Cordero, Executive Director, Port of Long Beach. "The Port of Long Beach is proud to be one of two locations
in which this technology will be utilized."
The project will test a commercial marine vessel modified to
incorporate a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain. While boats are
typically propelled with a combustion engine, the hydrogen fuel
cell powertrain will use the latest automotive-style fuel cell
technology and will be designed to optimize overall performance,
with boat speeds ranging from a few knots to over 50 knots. The
boat will be fueled with hydrogen through mobile, portable systems
developed by ZEI for marine vessel fueling. These portable fueling
systems will be built as part of the project, using hydrogen
sourced from California's retail
hydrogen stations. The project will demonstrate the vessel for six
months, split between the San Francisco Bay and Long Beach.
This project will be led by Zero Emission Industries with the
following ports and commercial boating companies assisting in
testing the technologies; Port of San
Francisco, Red and White Fleet, Port of Long Beach and Harbor Breeze Cruises. The
California Energy Commission (CEC) will provide $2 million for this project.
On March 23, SoCalGas announced
its commitment to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
in its operations and delivery of energy by 2045, reducing not only
the company's own direct emissions, but also those generated by its
customers to support a carbon neutral economy.
SoCalGas is demonstrating this commitment by also advancing
numerous low- and zero-carbon energy technologies. Late last
year, the company announced it will build a home to demonstrate, in
a microgrid setting, the use of hydrogen produced from solar
energy. Called the "H2 Hydrogen Home," the project will
use solar panels to create electricity that can be used to produce
green hydrogen via electrolysis. The hydrogen will be blended with
natural gas for the home's appliances as well as converted back to
electricity using a residential fuel cell.
In addition, SoCalGas will field test a new
technology that separates and compresses hydrogen from a blend
of hydrogen and natural gas, allowing hydrogen to be delivered
wherever a natural gas distribution system exists. Details on these
efforts are available here.
SoCalGas' mission is to build the cleanest, safest, and most
innovative energy company in North America. More information
on the company's mission and strategic priorities can be found
at socalgas.com/mission.
About Zero Emission IndustriesTM:
Zero
Emission IndustriesTM formerly Golden Gate Zero Emission
Marine, launched 2017, is a cutting-edge hydrogen technology
company that develops and sells power systems for a range of
applications. The company received a grant in 2018 for $3 million from the California Air Resources
Board (CARB) to build the first hydrogen fuel cell vessel in
the United States, the
Water-Go-Round. For more information on GGZEM:
http://ggzeromarine.com/
About Port of Long
Beach
The Port of Long
Beach is one of the world's premier seaports, a gateway for
trans-Pacific trade and a trailblazer in goods movement and
environmental stewardship. With 175 shipping lines connecting
Long Beach to 217 seaports, the
Port handles $170 billion in trade
annually, supporting more than 575,000 Southern California jobs."
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 consumers across 24,000 square miles of
Central and Southern California. Gas delivered through the
company's pipelines will continue to play a key role in
California's clean energy
transition—providing electric grid reliability and supporting wind
and solar energy deployment.
SoCalGas' mission is to build the cleanest, safest and most
innovative energy company in America. In support of that mission,
SoCalGas is committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas
emissions in its operations and delivery of energy by 2045 and
to replacing 20 percent of its traditional natural gas supply with
renewable natural gas (RNG) by 2030. Renewable natural gas is made
from waste created by dairy farms, landfills and wastewater
treatment plants. SoCalGas is also committed to investing in its
gas delivery infrastructure while keeping bills affordable for
customers. Over the past five years, the company invested
nearly $7.5 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.
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SOURCE Southern California Gas Company