Green Success Stories puts Pete Rocha, Green Hydrogen and Biofuels Expert with LEC Partners, in The Green Spotlight. Pete describes his green energy awakening, his efforts in supporting customer needs with low-carbon hydrogen energy solutions, the availability of great renewable energy solutions, and how individuals need to follow their heart in their own green energy awakening.
After returning from Iraq in 2004, I began thinking about United States energy policy and its role in foreign policy. I was convinced that there had to be ways to develop more sustainable energy resources domestically. That thought started my journey of exploring biofuels production and I joined a renewable oil startup, Solazyme, Inc., in 2009. Since then, I have worked for biofuels refiners, like Chevron-Renewable Energy Group, and then moved into the clean hydrogen space with my own startup venture, Hydrogen Works, and eventually landed at LEC Partners, where I lead the Low Carbon Hydrogen Center of Excellence practice.
Tell us a bit about the product or solution you offer.
LEC Partners’ LCH Center of Excellence is designed to support customer needs in developing projects for low-carbon hydrogen and its derivates like ammonia and methanol. We are a group of diverse experts covering numerous specialty areas like regulatory incentives for hydrogen production, market analysis, technology assessment, pre-FEED studies, feasibility studies, site selection, and owner’s engineer services. We provide clients with a holistic approach to project and market development and provide continuity from Front-End-Loading (FEL) Stage 0 through FEL-3.
Share a green success story with us – how have you helped customers or other businesses in the fight against climate change?
In addition to our project development work, we assist clients in developing approaches for corporate sustainability. For example, we helped a major cruise line operator understand options for reducing the carbon footprint of their fueling operations. We performed an assessment of the availability, pricing, and global logistics for biofuels, green ammonia, green methanol, and green hydrogen over multiple time periods to help the client understand both current and future options for decarbonizing operations. This analysis allowed the client to develop a short and long-term procurement strategy for cleaner marine fuels.
What would you do with $1 billion dollars?
Continue to invest in renewable energy generation because that will literally power the energy transition. But also invest a significant amount in long-duration energy storage systems (greater than 100 hours). The penetration of renewables on the grid will never exceed 60% if LDES systems don’t develop. Battery technology simply isn’t good enough for that application. Reversible hydrogen storage systems can store energy over weeks and months, which can smooth out the supply of renewables to provide consistent power. However, these systems are currently very expensive and need further R&D as well as scaling to reach their potential.
What do you envision your industry looking like in ten years?
In ten years, low-carbon hydrogen will be a significant part of the hydrogen ecosystem. Blue hydrogen (Steam Methane Reforming with Carbon Capture) will be well established and have a significant market share. Green hydrogen projects will be accelerating rapidly with advancements in electrolysis technology and renewable energy integration enhancing production efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Government policies and incentives, such as a tax on carbon, are required to catalyze low-carbon hydrogen adoption, while public-private partnerships will facilitate infrastructure development.
What would you like readers to take away from this article?
First, follow your heart. If I hadn’t listened to a voice in my head about 20 years ago, I wouldn’t be where I am today – in a position to assist companies navigate the energy transition. Additionally, there are a lot of great potential solutions out there to help decarbonize the economy. However, the energy markets and government policies for renewable energy can be confusing. It pays to get the right team of advisors on board early in the project development stage so that multiple options and contingencies are considered; an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
How should readers get in touch with you and/or your organization?
Readers can find out more about LEC Partners at https://lee-enterprises.com/. There they will find the practice areas we serve, the breadth and depth of over 180 LEC experts, and numerous case studies of projects where we have assisted our clients in realizing their low-carbon goals.
Kudos
Many thanks to Pete Rocha and LEC Partners. Green Success Stories is happy to support and highlight your efforts! We invite you the reader to do the same.
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