Environmental Expert

The owner of the Hydrogen Energy California (HECA) project in Kern County has filed with the California Energy Commission an amended application for certification of the plant, underscoring its commitment to building the 300-megawatt power plant.

The HECA project is co-funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and administered by the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) under its Clean Coal Power Initiative (CCPI-Round 3). SCS Energy California LLC (SCS), which took over the project and its site in western Kern County from prior owners, said the action will create thousands of construction and permanent jobs, is a major step to promote clean energy and will advance California’s long term climate strategy. The filing resumes a comprehensive regulatory review process which, upon approval, would grant permission for construction and operation of one of the world’s first hydrogen powered plants with carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS). The May 2 submission highlights SCS’s commitment to HECA and the aggressive work performed by the team since the Department of Energy approved SCS to take over the development of this important project for converting fossil fuels into clean power and the production of low carbon products.