LS Power plans to invest up to $400m into projects developed by Monarch, marking a commitment to the newly established Clean Hydrogen Fuels platform
Scaling up green hydrogen production will help in transition to net-zero. (Credit: Maxim Tolchinskiy on Unsplash)
Monarch Energy, a green hydrogen project developer based in California, has teamed up with LS Power, a North American Power and Energy Infrastructure manager headquartered in New York. Together, they are forging a partnership aimed at implementing a range of green hydrogen projects across the US. LS Power is set to allocate investments of up to $400m into projects developed by Monarch, marking a significant commitment to the newly established Clean Hydrogen Fuels platform.
LS Power has extended its support to Monarch Energy by providing $25m in preferred equity financing and securing a seat on Monarch’s Board of Directors. This substantial investment is earmarked for advancing Monarch’s project pipeline, expanding into new regions within the US, and attracting top talent to strengthen the Monarch team.
Monarch Energy’s strategic focus involves the pursuit of large-scale electrolyser projects, aiming to deliver cost-competitive green hydrogen to clients in sectors such as refining, chemicals, fertiliser, long-haul transport, and other challenging-to-decarbonize industries. The collaboration under the Clean Hydrogen Fuels partnership positions Monarch to leverage LS Power’s extensive expertise across various domains, including project development, commodities, environmental attributes and credit risk management, power marketing, public policy and market development, and project finance. This collaboration is poised to drive innovation and progress in the green hydrogen sector.
Monarch Energy CEO Ben Alingh said: “Executing one of the largest pipelines of green hydrogen projects in the US requires access to deep pools of capital, diverse skillsets, and a commitment to innovation.
“LS Power consistently operates at the vanguard of new technologies and exemplifies a brand known for building complex projects at industry-leading scale. Together, we unlock the potential to achieve great outcomes in hydrogen and eFuels for our customers.”
LS Power Equity Advisors president David Nanus said: “Corporations and policymakers are seeking advancements in clean fuel solutions to accelerate the energy transition.
“Green hydrogen can play a leading role in this effort. Given their team’s first-mover development efforts in the clean hydrogen space and deep skill set, we are excited to partner with Monarch Energy to advance its project pipeline and build on our successful efforts in other clean fuel categories such as renewable natural gas.”
As outlined in the September 2022 National Clean Hydrogen Strategy and Roadmap by the US Department of Energy, there is a significant projection for the annual production of low-carbon hydrogen. Currently standing at less than 1 million tons, the aim is to scale this production to 10 million tonnes by 2030 and further to 50 million tonnes by 2050. This envisioned growth plays a crucial role in the nation’s transition to a net-zero environment, facilitating the integration of more renewable generation into the grid through long-duration energy storage and various other use cases.