APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY
CITY ATTORNEY’S OFFICE
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL
RESOLUTION NO. _______________ C.M.S.
INTRODUCED BY COUNCILM
EMBER REBECCA KAPLAN &
COUNCILMEMBER DAN KALB
RESOLUTION:
1) SUPPORTING THE ALLIANC E FOR RENEWABLE CLEAN
HYDROGEN ENERGY SYSTEMS (ARCHES) AND ITS MISSION TO
ACCELERATE GREEN HYDROGE N’S CONTRIBUTION TO
DECARBONIZING THE ECONOMY IN CALIFORNIA;
2) HIGHLIGHTING OAKLAND’S LEADERSHIP IN HYDROGEN
ADOPTION AND REQUESTING THAT OAKLAND BE CONSIDERED
AS A LOCATION FOR A POTENTIAL STATEWIDE GREEN
HYDROGEN HUB TO ACCE LERATE HYDROGEN’S
CONTRIBUTION TO DECARBONIZING THE ECONOMY USING
ELECTROLYSIS POWERED BY RENEWABLE ENERGY;
3) DECLARING THE CITY’S INTENT TO ENTER INTO A
MEMORANDUM OF COMMITMENT (MOC) (ATTACHED HERETO
AS EXHIBIT A) TO JOIN ARCHES; AND
4) AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINIS TRATOR TO EXECUTE THE
MOC AND TO NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE A MORE FORMAL
AGREEMENT WITH ARCHES H2 LLC ON THE CITY’S BEHALF
WHEREAS, on October 6, 2022, the Governor’s Of fice of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) announced the formation of the Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems (ARCHES), a shared not-for-prof it LLC public-private pa rtnership designed to accelerate hydrogen’s contribution to decarbonizing the economy in California; and WHEREAS, ARCHES H2 LLC is the legal name of ARCHES; and
2 WHEREAS, through collaboration with govern ment, industry, non-governmental organizations, research institutions, and communiti es, ARCHES aims to establish a federally co- funded renewable hydrogen hub in California, a nd create an economica lly sustainable and expanding, renewable hydrogen market; and
WHEREAS, ARCHES will submit California’s st ate-wide application for federal hydrogen hub funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill (BIL), which made available $8 billion for six to ten hubs nationally; and
WHEREAS, California is poised for a hydrogen hub, as the State invested a historic $53.9 billion in climate solutions in the 2022 budget, and specifically $100 million to scale up hydrogen projects that produce, process, deliver, stor e and use hydrogen from renewable energy sources; and
WHEREAS, Oakland wishes to be considered as a potential location for the statewide green hydrogen hub to accelerate hydrogen’s contribution to decarbonizing the economy; and
WHEREAS, today, over 98% of all hydr ogen is produced from foss il fuels, in a manner that creates significant greenhouse gas emissions and local air pollution; and
WHEREAS, colloquially, “green h ydrogen” means hydrogen gas produced through electrolysis powered solely by renewable electricity and does not include hydrogen gas manufactured using steam reforming or any other conversion technology that produces hydrogen from a fossil fuel feedstock; and
WHEREAS, green hydrogen is one of the few technologies that could be used as a renewable fuel source for some hard-to-electrify sectors; and
WHEREAS, just as California has led the natio n in promoting hydrogen technologies, Oakland has led the State in hydr ogen adoption, formi ng strong public-private partnerships to leverage state and local fundi ng for hydrogen delivery, storage, and end-uses, developing and implementing policies that scale up early-marke ts in hydrogen, and ce ntering the voices from communities directly impacted by the harmful effects of mobile source emissions; and
WHEREAS, in 2021, the Center for Transportation a nd the Environment, in partnership with the City of Oakland and 15 other public and private organizations secured $54 million to build and deploy 30 fuel cell electric trucks and a supporting hydrogen fueling station at the East Bay Municipal Utility treatment plant, adjacent to the Port of Oakland (Port); and
WHEREAS, the NorCal ZERO project is the largest commercial deployment of Class 8 Fuel Cell Electric Trucks in North America, hi ghlighting Oakland’s leading efforts to embrace hydrogen technology; and
WHEREAS, in alignment with the hydrogen hub’s focus on efforts to improve public health for communities with the largest pollution burden, the Norcal ZERO project will eliminate 100% of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and cr iteria pollutants associated with vehicle 3 operations in West Oakland communities that are directly affected by heavy-duty trucks moving to and from the Port; and
WHEREAS, in addition, for more than 20 years, Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (AC Transit) has been a leader in the adoption and advancemen t of zero-emissi on technology, mandating its entire bus fleet’s transition to zero-emission by 2040; and
WHEREAS, AC transit has expanded their hydrogen fueling capacity to serve up to 78 buses between its Oakland and Emeryville divi sions, and has also secured funding to expand hydrogen fueling capacity to 130 buses at the Oakland division alone; and
WHEREAS, as one of California’s earliest adopters of ze ro emission technology, AC Transit has propelled ahead of other agencies across the state, reducing greenhouse gasses, logging more than 5 million zero emis sion miles, and elimin ating nearly 13,000 me tric tons of carbon dioxide; and
WHEREAS, Oakland is well-positioned to scale up hydrogen projects that produce, process, deliver, store and us e green hydrogen; for ex ample, in partners hip with East Bay Community Energy (EBCE) and the Port, use of so lar and wind power to pow er an electrolyzer could be used to fuel trucks and ships at the Port; and
WHEREAS, the City also wishes to partner with the East Bay Municipal Utility District to implement the electrolytic treatment of wa stewater, which would pr oduce local, sustainable energy, and reduce methane emissions; and
WHEREAS, as AC Transit buses, heavy-duty truc ks and ships all move throughout the Port and the East Bay, Oakland has a clear market for green hydrogen, and would also benefit from building out hydrogen fueling infrastructure; and
WHEREAS, producing hydrogen near Oakland’s end markets is cost-saving, more efficient, and better for the environment becau se hydrogen will not need to be transported over long distances; and
WHEREAS, Oakland clearly exemplifies the prio rities guiding ARCHES, leading the State in hydrogen adoption, coll aborating across sectors and i ndustries for hydrogen delivery, storage, and end-uses, developi ng and implementing policies that scale up early-markets, and centering the voices from communities directly impacted by the harmful effects of mobile source emissions; and
WHEREAS, the City of Oakland wishes to enter into a Memorandum of Commitment (MOC) (attached hereto as Exhibit A) to join the ARCHES network to create a sustainable statewide clean hydrogen hub, utiliz ing local renewable resources to produce hydrogen with the objective of fully decarbonizing the regional econom y, while prioritizing e nvironmental justice, equity, economic leadership and workforce development; and
4 WHEREAS, ARCHES asks its network participants to enter into a more formal agreement in addition to the MOC that includes protections for proprietary information; and
WHEREAS, the City is amenable to entering into a more formal agreement subject to the City’s obligations under the California Public Records Act a nd the City’s Sunshine Ordinance; and
WHEREAS, as a term of the MOC and in the more formal agreement, ARCHES asks its network participants to refrain from working on any other California Hydrogen Hub proposal or with any other entity developing an alternative Hydrogen Hub proposal in the State of California, including preparing alternative concept papers, websites, or other Hydrogen Hub proposal-related materials; and
WHEREAS, ARCHES asks its network participants to commit to a term of two years and the MOC is for a term of two years; and
WHEREAS, entering into a MOC with ARCHES greatly enhances Oakland’s opportunity to receive federal funding from the Bipartis an Infrastructure Law which will generate local jobs,
as well as investments in local hydrogen projects that produce, de liver, process, store, and use hydrogen; and
WHEREAS, to be eligible for Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: Additional Clean Hydrogen Programs: Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs Funding, th e City must first become a partner in the ARCHES network, which provides the City the opportunity to be a collaborator and potential hub should ARCHES secure the funding; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED: That the Oakland City Council ex tends its support to ARCHES and its mission to accelerate green hydroge n’s contribution to decarbonizing the economy in California and eliminating air pollution; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City of Oakland welc omes the opportunity to be a location for a California green hydrogen hub and hereby requests to serve as a statewide location; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City of Oakland call s on ARCHES to take action, promote, and fund green hydrogen, including local and sustainable energy production that relies on zero emissions processes, addresses potential risks from storage and transportation, and restricts this precious resource to truly hard to decarbonize and non-combustion end uses; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City of Oakland call s on ARCHES to ensure the voices of frontline communities that are directly impacted by the harms of mobile source and industrial emissions – including emissions from current fossil fuel hydrogen production – be, not only included, but fully informed, uplifted and centered as the State pursues federal funding; and be it
5 FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council authoriz es the City Administrator to enter into a Memorandum of Commitment (MOC) (A ttached hereto as Exhibit A) and a more formal agreement to join the ARCHES network to create a sust ainable statewide clean hydrogen hub, exclusively utilizing local renewable resour ces to produce hydrogen with the objective of fully decarbonizing the regiona l economy and reducing air pollution, while informing communities that represent environmental justice, and prioritizing equi ty, economic leadership, and workforce development; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby authorizes the City Administrator to execute the MOC, to negotiate and execute a more formal agreement to join the ARCHES network with ARCHES H2 LLC, and to submit all documents and take all actions on behalf of the City consistent with the authorization set forth in this Resolution so that the City may join the ARCHES network.
IN COUNCIL, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA,
PASSED BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE:
AYES – FIFE, GALLO, KALB, KAPLAN, REID, TAYLOR, THAO,
PRESIDENT FORTUNATO BAS
NOES –
ABSENT –
ABSTENTION –
ATTEST:
ASHA REED
City Clerk and Clerk of the Council of the
City of Oakland, California
3228764v3 / SW