Hy Stor Energy partners with Key Gulf Coast Port on hydrogen

Hy Stor Energy LP (Hy Stor Energy) partnered with the Hancock County Port and Harbor Commission (HCPHC) to provide zero-carbon, zero-methane hydrogen to Port Bienville Industrial Park and Stennis International Airport, accelerating the decarbonization of land, air, sea, and space.

Through this partnership, Port Bienville will be the first port in the Gulf Region to integrate renewable hydrogen as a fuel into its operations. During the first phase of the partnership, the hydrogen hub is expected to produce an estimated 350 tons/day (320,000 kg/day) of renewable hydrogen and store more than 71,000 tons (69 million kg) of hydrogen in underground salt caverns.

The existing Port Bienville infrastructure will expand to enable decarbonization efforts better and will be in a premium location to allow for new manufacturing of circular hydrogen infrastructure – the first of its kind in the United States. Port customers striving to meet their respective ESG goals will be able to create new industry jobs – strengthening the port’s position as a workforce hub of industry and technology.

Together Hy Stor Energy and HCPHC will work to sustain economic growth in Hancock County and provide reliable, renewable, and carbon-free energy to coastal Mississippi and the Gulf Coast Region. Currently, Port Bienville Industrial Park is home to leading companiess, including SABIC Innovative Plastics, DAK Americas, SNF Polychemie, Calgon Carbon, and Jindal Tubular USA, among others.

“Hancock County Port and Harbor Commission is committed to growing economic opportunities in a responsible way,” said CEO Bill Cotter, HCPHC. “Hydrogen is emerging as a way to cut carbon emissions in energy-intensive sectors like manufacturing and transportation. As we continue to grow our maritime, rail and aerospace operations, hydrogen provides options to fuel growth and innovations.”

Hancock County, Mississippi, is located in a prime position on the Gulf Coast with access to inland waterways, rail, and highway corridors. Located a short distance east of New Orleans, Hancock County is home to Port Bienville, Stennis International Airport, and NASA’s John C. Stennis Space Center, which enable domestic and global reach. Hy Stor Energy will develop the renewable hydrogen from its Clean Hydrogen Hub from offices in Jackson, Gulfport, and Kiln at Port Bienville.

“We are proud to partner with the Hancock County Port and Harbor Commission to provide renewable hydrogen access to Port Bienville Industrial Park, including some of the world’s most recognized companies,” said Laura L. Luce, CEO of Hy Stor Energy. “This partnership provides a strategic opportunity for companies who are looking for innovative ways to meet their decarbonization goals to co-locate operations in Hancock County in the Gulf Region. We are focused on developing zero-carbon, zero-methane renewable hydrogen technology for a broad array of applications, including manufacturing and industrial processes, port operations, and long-duration energy storage that will benefit communities while providing reliable clean power.”

The Richton Dome in Perry County, Mississippi, was a previously selected expansion location for the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and its central US and Gulf Coast location will serve as a Strategic Hydrogen Reserve connected to new, dedicated, dual bi-directional pipelines that will extend from Richton in Perry County to Hancock County and the Port of Bienville.

Hy Stor Energy’s infrastructure will enable 24×7 renewable green hydrogen to be delivered to and from the port in addition to underground salt storage domes within approximately 100 miles of the port – providing resilient, zero-carbon, zero-methane hydrogen on demand.

These long-term renewable hydrogen storage salt domes in Richton will be interconnected to new pipeline infrastructure and will further connect multiple salt domes from Louisiana to Jackson, Mississippi to Simpson County to Smith County to Perry County – and on to Hancock County to provide resilient, clean energy to coastal communities as well.

This will allow Mississippi to serve as the US centrally located and highly connected strategic hydrogen reserve to connect multiple underground salt domes with Richton where the first salt dome caverns will be developed purpose-built for the safe storage of renewable hydrogen at scale.