COLUMBUS, Ind. — Congress could help accelerate the development and adoption of green hydrogen and other cleaner energy as companies, including Columbus-based Cummins Inc., confront the challenges of curbing greenhouse gas emissions in a world shifting away from fossil fuels.
That was among the main points in Cummins Vice Chairman Tony Satterthwaite’s testimony before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Tuesday, where he discussed areas where the federal government could make a difference and the Columbus-based company’s path to zero emissions.
Satterthwaite, who attended the Senate hearing virtually, said significant public support is needed from the federal government, national labs and research institutions for the U.S. to “achieve this path to zero in a way that is cost effective, timely and promotes U.S. jobs and manufacturing.”
“This is critical to success on our path to zero emissions,” Satterthwaite said.
Cummins, as well as many companies that sell or use diesel engines, find themselves at a crossroads of sorts now, as alternative fuel technology grows in viability and concerns about climate change continue to reshape how companies and policy makers think about energy consumption.
Diesel fuel is refined from crude oil and is used to fuel compression-ignition engines named after their inventor, Rudolf Diesel, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Most freight and delivery trucks, buses, farm and construction vehicles, as well as some cars and pick-up trucks, use diesel engines, the U.S. Energy Information Administration says.
Hydrogen can be burned without emitting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and “green hydrogen” is hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources.
Two of the clean energy technologies that Cummins officials have discussed publicly include electrolyzers — which use electricity to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen — and hydrogen fuel cells — which essentially put the two elements back together to produce electricity and power a motor.
For more on Satterthwaite’s testimony before the Senate committee, see Wednesday’s Republic.
