  Hydrogen can play an important role for decarbonization. While hydrogen is
usually produced through SMR, it can also be produced through water
electrolysis which is cleaner. The relative cost and carbon intensity of
hydrogen production through SMR and electrolysis vary throughout the United
States because of differences in the grid. While many hydrogen cost models
exist, no regional hydrogen study has been conducted across the US. We studied
how the Levelized Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH) and carbon intensity for producing
hydrogen vary across the US. We looked at electrolysis technologies (Alkaline,
PEM, and SOEC) and compared them to SMR. In 2020, SMR with 90 percent CCUS has
a lower average LCOH and carbon intensity for hydrogen production than
electrolysis by SOEC. For states with cleaner grids, hydrogen produced through
SOEC has a lower carbon intensity than hydrogen produced using SMR with 90
percent CCUS. Washington has one of the lowest carbon footprints and the lowest
LCOH to produce hydrogen through electrolysis (alkaline). We predict that the
LCOH for hydrogen production will be 3.2 USD per kg for Alkaline, 3.1 USD per
kg for PEM, and 2.6 USD per kg for SOEC by 2050 with constant electricity
prices. These projected LCOHs are still higher than the LCOH for hydrogen
produced through SMR with 90 percent CCUS. If electricity costs decrease to 2c
per kWh, we expect to reach cost-parity with SMR with 90 percent CCUS. The
results suggest that significant investment in decarbonizing the grid and
lowering the cost of electricity needs to be made to make electrolysis more
competitive compared to SMR.
