A large-scale “green hydrogen” project in Kern County has been announced that would convert 75 megawatts of photovoltaic solar power into fuel for vehicles including heavy-duty trucks.
The joint venture between an Irish-Portuguese designer of electrolysis systems called Fusion Fuel and Electus Energy, a Los Angeles company focused on regional transportation infrastructure, is proposed to be built at an undisclosed, 320-acre location at an estimated cost of about $180 million.
If a planned conceptual study leads to a decision to proceed in early 2024, the project is expected to produce 9,300 tons of hydrogen per year, enough to power more than 1,000 Class 8 trucks of buses per day starting in the first half of 2025, according to a news release finalized Monday morning.