Clean Hydrogen Developer Bakken Energy Announces Alliance With BNSF Railway

January 04, 2023 05:00 AM Eastern Standard Time BISMARCK, N.D.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Bakken Energy, an innovative developer of affordable clean hydrogen, announced today the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with BNSF Railway to work together on the design of the Heartland Hydrogen Hub, specifically the role of railways as consumers and transporters of clean hydrogen.

BNSF Railway is one of North America's leading freight transportation companies, with a rail network of 32,500 route miles in 28 states and three Canadian provinces. BNSF is one of the top transporters of the products and materials that help feed, clothe, supply and power communities throughout America and the world.

In collaboration with the States of North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Montana, Bakken Energy is working on the design of the Heartland Hydrogen Hub, a regional clean hydrogen hub competing to obtain federal funding through the Department of Energy's $7 billion Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs program announced on September 22, 2022 as part of the larger $8 billion hydrogen hub program funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The foundation of the industry-led Hub is Bakken Energy's large scale affordable clean hydrogen production using natural gas that would otherwise be flared, including carbon capture and sequestration.

'It is a privilege to be partnered with BNSF' said Bakken Energy Founder and Chairman Steve Lebow. 'Railways could play a critical role in distributing our clean hydrogen production, and could also be consumers as trains transition from diesel. BNSF is the ideal partner to work out the role of railways in our Heartland Hydrogen Hub.'

'For Bakken Energy, and our Heartland Hydrogen Hub, it is all about making clean hydrogen abundant and affordable' said Bakken Energy CEO Mike Hopkins. 'Part of the equation is production, but the other part is distribution and that's where BNSF will be invaluable. Being able to transport our hydrogen by rail would dramatically reduce our distribution costs and therefore the cost to consumers.'

'We see our work with Bakken Energy and the Heartland Hydrogen Hub as part of our commitment to a more sustainable energy and transportation system, including exploring the role railways can play in a hydrogen economy' said John Lovenburg, VP of Environment and Sustainability at BNSF.

About Bakken Energy

Bakken Energy is an innovative clean hydrogen company working to become the largest producer of affordable clean hydrogen in the U.S. Its mission is to decarbonize the hard to decarbonize sectors of the economy with affordable clean hydrogen and to develop the future hydrogen economy that leads toward a low-carbon future.