Observations from the Hydrogen Americas Summit

It was nice to see old friends and meet with new ones. Here are my observations from the Hydrogen Americas Summit in Houston, October 6-7, 2026. The optimism of early clean hydrogen gatherings has given way to industrial pragmatism. Over two days, executives, financiers, and policy advisers kept returning to the same point: speculative greenfield mega-projects are being shelved in favor of fast, commercially viable, localized infrastructure.

Two forces shaped almost every conversation:

  1. The 45V clock. Projects must begin construction before January 1, 2028, to qualify for up to $3.00/kg in clean hydrogen production tax credits. With roughly 450 days left, capital is moving to the U.S. Gulf Coast, where existing pipelines, salt caverns and export docks lower execution risk.
  2. The AI power race. Data center developers are asking utilities one question: “When can you give me service?” Sites of 1 to 2 GW want power in 12 to 18 months, faster than the grid can expand. The bridge taking shape is behind-the-meter natural gas paired with fuel cells, with hydrogen blending along the way.

Other points that stayed with me: Offtake is the real shortage. As Jason Morker of Electric Hydrogen put it, what makes a project bankable is stable, long-term cash flow. Electricity is about two-thirds of the cost of green hydrogen, so projects need power below $0.04/kWh. In steel, converting blast furnace off-gas into hydrogen can cut emissions without leaning on the grid. In transport, biofuels lead in the near term, while e-fuels lag and feedstock limits approach by 2035. Dr. Tian Yi of EDF offered a valuable reminder: a hydrogen label does not make a molecule clean. Methane leaks, fugitive hydrogen, and combustion emissions all count. Waste-to-fuel deserves more attention. NYSERDA is directing more than $40 million into hydrogen and low-carbon fuels.

My takeaway: the winners of the next five years will not be the largest projects on paper. They will be the ones that secure firm offtake, co-locate with low-cost resources, and solve real power bottlenecks.

Thank you to the organizers and to everyone who shared their insights in Houston.

Ayfer Veziroglu, PhD
President, IAHE

 

Also published at: https://lnkd.in/p/eqUMDcY7