Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Multi-Year Program Plan

The Multi-Year Program Plan (MYPP), published in May 2024, set forth the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office's (HFTO's) mission, goals, and strategic approach relative to broader energy priorities of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Aligned with the priorities in the U.S. National Hydrogen Strategy and Roadmap, the MYPP identified the challenges that must be overcome to realize the full potential of hydrogen and fuel cells and explained how HFTO's research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) activities would help to overcome those challenges in the near-, mid-, and longer-term. 

The 2024 MYPP was organized as follows. 

1. Executive Summary
2. Introduction and Program Implementation
3. Hydrogen Production
4. Hydrogen Infrastructure
5. Fuel Cell Technologies
6. Systems Development and Integration
7. Systems Analysis
8. Safety, Codes and Standards

The MYPP served as an operational guide and a valuable resource to communicate HFTO's priorities and RD&D activities to stakeholders and the public. It provided an overview of HFTO's priority areas—and relevant pathways—for RD&D critical to advancing and de-risking technologies primed to accelerate the emergence of the hydrogen economy. 

Specific targets outlined in the MYPP included the following examples: 

• Hydrogen production cost of $2 per kilogram by 2026 and $1 per kilogram by 2031. 
• Electrolyzer system cost of $250 per kilowatt (low-temperature electrolyzers) and $500 per kilowatt (high-temperature electrolyzers) by 2026.
• Dispensed hydrogen cost for heavy-duty vehicles of $7 per kilogram by 2028.
• Fuel cell system cost for heavy-duty transportation of $80 per kilowatt by 2030.

The following sections summarize the technical areas covered in the MYPP and include links to technical targets and resources for these technologies.