A ribbon-cutting event was held on Wednesday to welcome the new Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2) to West Virginia with a special appearance from U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV).
During the event, which took place inside the WVU Innovation Corporation, the $30-million dollar award announcement that made this launch possible was celebrated. ARCH2’s new program office was also officially opened.
“The first major step has been crossed successfully,” Senator Capito said. “And so, 30 million dollars coming to the second phase, which should be about 18 months.”
Capito said that one of the best things about this project coming to fruition is the partnerships that have begun since it first kicked off. She said that non-profit science and technology company Battelle has been in the lead, adding that WVU and Marshall University are critical aspects of this project.
“But all the private sector partners and then of course the government partners, you can’t do something like this alone, it’s too massive,” said Capito. “And I think technology’s moving along too so, I’m excited that we are not just at the beginning of the pack—that we’re leading the way.”
Capito believes that ARCH2 will impact West Virginians in a couple of ways, adding that hydrogen is “a fuel of the future.” She said that some of the uses for hydrogen hubs include power generation, construction and development, which will create jobs in West Virginia.
“That’s using the great graduates at WVU and the labor community to increase our economic benefits from using hydrogen in all the different ways that it can be used,” Capito added.
“We talk a lot about how much power are we gonna need to run AI and data centers and Bitcoin mining,” said Capito. “It’s unimaginable and that’s where I think hydrogen will have the best and brightest future, and it’s gonna be right here in Appalachia.”
You can learn more about ARCH2 by visiting its website.