Hydrogen Fueling Station For Port Houston
Project Will Involve Pipeline-Based Hydrogen Refueling Station For High Fueling Throughput With Convenient, Publicly Accessible Fueling Options
The Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) awarded nearly US$25 million in grant funding to the Port of Houston Authority (Port Houston) as part of a public-private collaboration between Port Houston, Linde Inc. (Linde), GTI Energy, Center for Houston’s Future, and the Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). The award will be used to construct and operate a hydrogen (H2) fueling station for heavy-duty trucks.
The project, known as Bayport Hydrogen Refueling Station (Bayport HRS), will involve a pipeline-based hydrogen refueling station which will offer high fueling throughput with convenient and publicly accessible fueling options, further enabling supply chain development in Texas and the Gulf-Coast region. Linde will design, construct, own, and operate the new facility, creating a cost-effective heavy-duty truck hydrogen fueling station in Bayport, Texas.
The project will be a coordinated public-private collaboration between Port Houston, a public agency leading the busiest port in the United States, a major industrial gas company involved in HRS and hydrogen supply (Linde), an energy innovation company (GTI Energy), a non-profit with extensive experience in the energy transition (Center for Houston’s Future), and an organization that has modeled hydrogen delivery infrastructure (ANL). The project supports Port Houston’s Sustainability Action Plan and ambitious goal of net zero emissions by 2050. It also aligns with national strategies for transportation decarbonization and clean hydrogen.
“The Houston Ship Channel is the busiest waterway in the nation,” said Port Houston chief executive officer, Charlie Jenkins. “As one of the channel’s leading advocates, Port Houston is committed to fostering sustainability, resilience, collaboration, and quality of life for the community and nation we serve.”
“Partnering with Linde, one of the largest hydrogen producers in the world and owner of a major pipeline complex that serves the Houston region, is in line with the Port’s strategy of engaging the Houston Ship Channel industry on projects that benefit the community, promote sustainability, decarbonization, and clean transportation” said Port Houston chief infrastructure officer Rich Byrnes. “This project exemplifies Port Houston ‘walking the talk’ of sustainability and Net Zero. Port Houston’s sustainability roadmap and grants strategy is about accelerating and de-risking business decisions supporting decarbonization and energy transition.”
Close to 200 hydrogen refueling stations around the world are equipped with Linde technology. Some of the company’s hydrogen-based bus depots feature IC 50-P compressors, which enable infrastructure costs around US$1 per kg of H2 dispensed based on a utilization level of 80% and excluding the cost of the gas. The company has built specialized hydrogen stations around the world. In Alstom, Bremervörde, Germany, Linde has a solution featuring 3 twin IC 50/60 compressors that fuel up to 12 passenger trains per day, with up to 10,119 pounds (4590 kg) of hydrogen stored on site.
“Linde welcomes the opportunity to work with Port of Houston to develop key hydrogen infrastructure and support the future decarbonization of heavy transport in Texas,” said Richard Minter, president of hydrogen mobility at Linde. “We look forward to working with our partners, contributing Linde’s extensive experience, world-class technology and network of hydrogen production assets.”
“The Houston/Gulf Coast’s regional clean hydrogen economy continues to gain momentum, including with announcements such as this,” said Brett Perlman, managing director at the Center for Houston’s Future. “We are excited to be part of this important work to build out a clean hydrogen transportation network. This is also another great example of collaboration among business, government and community to get things done.”
“Hydrogen has tremendous potential to reduce emissions in hard-to-abate sectors like heavy-duty trucking,” said Kristine Wiley, vice president, low carbon energy solutions, GTI Energy. “The Bayport HRS project demonstrates how collaboration and innovative infrastructure can accelerate hydrogen’s integration into a low-cost, low-carbon future. We look forward to contributing to this project, leveraging the Houston area’s energy resources to drive tangible progress in decarbonization, energy security, and economic resilience.”
The collaboration supports the US National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization, the National Zero Emission Freight Corridor Strategy, and US National Clean H2 Strategy and Roadmap.
Last year, Port Houston’s grants team secured nearly US$57 million in grant funding further supporting the port’s sustainability plan to lead, partner with others, or support to produce tangible results.
“With this US$25 million grant award, Port Houston’s highly effective grants program is off to a strong start in 2025,” said Jenkins.
