NEW YORK – Greater clarity on tax credits and a commitment to rigorous rules on certification are two critical components in the effort to make clean hydrogen a viable and productive force in the U.S. energy mix, a new industry report from U.S. law firm Troutman Pepper has found.
The report, Fueling Up: How to Make U.S. Clean Hydrogen Projects Happen, draws upon the views and expertise of a range of sector specialists to explore what proactive steps must be taken to transform clean hydrogen’s vast potential into a practical reality.
The report argues that – in addition to the above – the U.S. should boost exports to provide additional routes to market, bolster domestic manufacturing for hydrogen technologies, and prioritize ‘backbone’ infrastructure to reduce project risk.
The Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law have generated considerable commercial interest in American clean hydrogen projects. But the legislation, and implementation of those regulations, come with complexities and caveats that require navigation.
One such issue is tax credits. Designed as incentives to encourage companies to produce clean hydrogen, helping them transition from early-stage development and planning to construction, the arrival of proposed IRS regulations on Section 45V in December 2023 have been considered too stringent by many, offering up more questions than answers.
For hydrogen to be considered ‘clean’ and eligible for credits it must meet three criteria: additionality, time matching, and deliverability. These “3 Pillars” require that hydrogen facilities cannot draw power from a source more than three years older than the hydrogen project, electricity producing hydrogen must be generated within the same hour as the hydrogen, and the electricity source and hydrogen facility must be in the same geographical area, as defined by the DOE’s transmission needs analysis.
Concerned by the perceived strictness of the regulations, many developers and utilities are halting progress, warning that it will drive up costs and make it harder to get projects funded and constructed in this nascent sector, as they cautiously await further clarity from the IRS on its finalized rules.
Meanwhile, off-takers are asking for improved clean hydrogen certification standards to offer transparent reassurance that they are getting the product they think they are. To stimulate demand, the Biden Administration made $7 billion available to support seven regional clean hydrogen production hubs across the country, encouraging users to transition from gray to clean energy sources.
However, businesses inclined to follow this route, such as chemical and metal producers, oil refineries, and transportation and utility companies, are feeling uneasy about the potentially ambiguous nature of hydrogen classifications. Faced with directives to reduce their environmental impact, businesses are struggling with a lack of visibility, guidance, and uniform certification to verify how green any available fuel actually is.
The report notes that more states could encourage greater uptake of clean hydrogen by taking various actions, similar to what numerous states previously did with regard to renewable portfolio targets. For instance, only California, Oregon, and Washington have introduced low-carbon fuel standards thus far. State-led commitments along these lines would provide clean hydrogen users with greater confidence to support the development of a robust domestic clean hydrogen market.
Beyond the domestic market, some commentators within the report argue there is the opportunity to establish the U.S. as a clean hydrogen exporter, particular to Europe and Asia, including in the form of ammonia. Industries globally are under regulatory pressure to decarbonize. Many countries outside the U.S. face greater challenges in relation to their regional energy transition policies, making U.S. hydrogen a potentially attractive proposition, bringing in capital and off-take certainty from around the world, while developing a spot market for clean hydrogen and related products.
Back on U.S. soil, report commentators have encouraged the building out of U.S. manufacturing facilities for hydrogen technologies, while prioritizing nationwide ‘backbone’ infrastructure to reduce project risk. Bloomberg New Energy Finance recently reported that 68% of global electrolyzer manufacturing is in China. In the short-term, this represents a reassuring level of access to equipment, but in the longer-term the federal government has committed to growing domestic production to counteract that reliance.
Equally, interviewees point out that the government needs to unlock investments to support infrastructure, helping producers store and move their product more efficiently and economically. The DOE recognized this challenge in its June 2023 National Clean Hydrogen Strategy & Roadmap, where it reported that between $2 billion and $3 billion of investment annually is needed in hydrogen infrastructure projects between 2023 and 2030 to enable the U.S. to achieve annual production of 10 million metric tonnes by 2030.
Mindy McGrath, a regulatory and finance Partner in the energy practice group at Troutman Pepper, says: “When compiling this report, we found that most commentators and sector specialists agreed about the vast potential of clean hydrogen to become a highly useful non-fossil component of America’s energy mix. And it’s been encouraging to see government incentives and financial support acknowledging that potential in an effort to drive both production and demand.
“What is less clear at present is how these mechanisms and stimuli will play out in the real world. Regulators are justifiably concerned about doing things the right way. That said, if the rules surrounding the sector are too onerous or ambiguous it is going to stifle progress. Major energy businesses – developers, producers, utilities, and investors – are rightly wary of this uncertainty. In this report we look at why there needs to be a concerted effort to demystify complex regulatory matters, and why clear guidance is needed to create a cohesive framework of strategies to properly advance the sector.”
Fueling Up: How to Make U.S. Clean Hydrogen Projects Happen can be downloaded here.
Troutman Pepper’s market-leading energy and environmental practice groups help clients with their most important and complex matters throughout the United States. From renewables to conventional and emerging technologies, the cross-disciplinary teams have extensive experience across the energy landscape. The firm regularly advises independent power producers, banks, utilities, private equity funds, and large corporations. Learn more at energylawinsights.com.
About Troutman Pepper:
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,100 attorneys strategically located in 20+ U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from start-ups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
NEW YORK – Alex Rovira, a seasoned restructuring attorney, has joined Troutman Pepper’s New York office as a partner in the firm’s Finance and Restructuring Practice. He joins the firm from Sidley Austin LLP.
“We are thrilled to welcome Alex to our team at Troutman Pepper. His extensive experience across various industry sectors will enhance our Finance and Restructuring practice,” said John Leonti, chair of Troutman Pepper’s Regulatory and Finance Department. “Alex’s diverse background in complex distressed situations and his proven track record in corporate restructuring and insolvency matters align perfectly with our commitment to providing our clients with effective solutions.”
Rovira has over 20 years of experience advising financial institutions, private credit lenders, hedge funds, bondholders and distress investors, as well as private equity owners, their portfolio companies and boards in all aspects of complex distress situations both in and out of court. With a career spanning across various international offices, including London and Hong Kong, Rovira has cultivated a broad and diverse range of experience in representing clients on a multitude of corporate restructurings and workouts, financings, distressed M&A, creditors’ rights, bankruptcy, and insolvency matters.
Rovira’s practice includes advising on liability management transactions, structuring finance transactions, exercising and enforcing lender remedies and all aspect of distress asset sales and purchases. His work encompasses representing both debtors’ and creditors’ rights in complex U.S. Chapter 11 and Chapter 15 cases, solvent and insolvent schemes of arrangements proceedings in England, Hong Kong, and the Cayman Islands, and cross-border reorganizations.
“I am excited to join Troutman Pepper,” Rovira said. “I look forward to working alongside the exceptional team here and contributing to the firm’s dynamic Finance and Restructuring Practice. My focus remains steadfast on delivering unparalleled service and strategic guidance to my clients in this ever-evolving financial landscape.”
Rovira earned his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, LL.M. year-long course work in Corporate Insolvency from University College London, and his A.B. from Harvard University.
“Alex’s addition to our New York office is a significant asset,” said Steven Khadavi, managing partner of the firm’s New York office. “Alex’s vast experience and in-depth knowledge of complex insolvency matters will be invaluable in serving our diverse client base. His arrival amplifies our commitment to being a leading firm for financial restructuring and insolvency issues, meeting the needs of our clients both in New York and across the country.”
Troutman Pepper’s Financial Restructuring + Insolvency Practice Group provides clients with creative solutions in financial restructuring and insolvency matters that prioritize recovery or return on investment. The team’s deep understanding of pre- and post-insolvency issues from every stakeholder’s perspective enables the group to help clients prevent and prepare for financial crises and to serve as trusted advisors to effectively respond to financial distress.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with 1,100+ attorneys strategically located in more than 20 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
CHARLOTTE/RALEIGH, N.C. – A distinguished group of Troutman Pepper attorneys has been named to the 2023 North Carolina Attorney Pro Bono Honor Society by the North Carolina Pro Bono Resource Center (PBRC). The honor society acknowledges attorneys who have demonstrated outstanding commitment to legal service by providing 50 or more hours of pro bono contributions within the state of North Carolina.
Troutman Pepper attorneys recognized are Elizabeth Holt Andrews, Jacquelyn Arnold, Adrian Boddie, G. Lee Cory, Holly Ingram, Edward Nogay, Michael Peretz, Cassidy Webb, and Anais Jaccard.
The North Carolina PBRC is dedicated to fostering and promoting pro bono legal services across the state. With a deep commitment to bridging the justice gap, it connects attorneys, law firms, and legal organizations with meaningful pro bono opportunities that address critical legal needs in underserved communities. The organization has partnered with the Supreme Court of North Carolina to recognize attorneys who dedicate substantial and impactful time to pro bono services.
Each year, Troutman Pepper attorneys dedicate thousands of pro bono hours in support of nonprofits, immigrants, military veterans, children, the wrongfully convicted, civil rights and social justice initiatives, and so many more. Learn more at troutman.com/pro-bono.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with 1,100+ attorneys strategically located in more than 20 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
NEW YORK – Troutman Pepper client Hudson Glade LLC, a private investment firm focused on consumer, industrial, and services companies at the lower end of the middle market, recently announced that it has completed its first platform acquisition with the purchase of essential home services provider Quality First Home Improvement, Inc. Read a company press release about the acquisition.
Founded in 2005, Quality First Home Improvement is known for providing a broad range of essential home services including roofing, windows, exterior doors, exterior coatings, concrete and gutters. Through the acquisition, Hudson Glade plans to partner with Quality First Home Improvement Founder Gary Kluck, who will remain a significant owner, and his team to build upon his vision to expand the business and its services. Hudson Glade will make investments in sales, marketing, and infrastructure to accelerate Quality First Home Improvement’s growth.
The Troutman Pepper team advising Hudson Glade was led by partners Jeremy Levy and Stephanie Pindyck Costantino and included Thomas Bright, Matthew Morris, Matthew Divis, Jonathan Homer, Theodore Edwards, Morgan Klinzing, and Christopher Stock.
Consistently recognized as a top-tier national practice, Troutman Pepper’s corporate attorneys regularly handle multimillion- and multibillion-dollar transactions. Core areas of service include capital markets transactions and other significant domestic and cross-border transactions, mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, securities laws compliance, and corporate finance. The firm has particular expertise in the private equity and private fund services space, advising clients on matters from fund formation to investments and exit transactions.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with 1,100+ attorneys strategically located in more than 20 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
WILMINGTON, DEL. – Evelyn Meltzer, a partner in Troutman Pepper’s Financial Restructuring + Insolvency Practice Group, has been named among Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Global Bankruptcy and Restructuring Lawyers. The list includes traditional bankruptcy lawyers, specialists in leveraged finance and restructuring, and litigators well-versed in financial litigation and distress.
The guide researches and compiles information on veteran bankruptcy and financial restructuring lawyers across the United States, as well as litigators who specialize in resolving financial failures. To be included in the guide, a lawyer must have at least 10 years of practice experience, serve as a partner, and possess decades of experience in significant roles within the largest and most complex reorganizations.
Meltzer focuses her practice on corporate bankruptcy, distressed M&A and creditors’ rights. She has significant experience guiding corporate debtors, creditors’ committees, secured and unsecured creditors, and others through all aspects of complex Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 proceedings. Meltzer routinely represents companies, assignees and key constituents in connection with assignment for the benefit of creditors (ABC) proceedings in the Delaware Chancery Court and throughout the United States. She regularly represents sellers and purchasers in distressed M&A transactions, including Article 9 sales, asset sales conducted as part of an ABC, and sales conducted pursuant to section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code. Her clients also include both plaintiffs and defendants in bankruptcy-related litigation matters, including avoidance actions.
Troutman Pepper’s Financial Restructuring + Insolvency Practice Group provides clients with creative solutions in financial restructuring and insolvency matters that prioritize recovery or return on investment. The team’s deep understanding of pre- and post-insolvency issues from every stakeholder’s perspective enables the group to help clients prevent and prepare for financial crises and to serve as trusted advisors to effectively respond to financial distress.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with 1,100+ attorneys strategically located in more than 20 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
RICHMOND/VIRGINIA BEACH – Fourteen Troutman Pepper attorneys have been named to the 2023 Virginia State Bar Pro Bono Honor Roll. This annual recognition by the Virginia Access to Justice Commission honors Virginia attorneys who report $1,000 or more in financial contributions or 40 or more pro bono service hours in the past year.
The recognized Troutman Pepper attorneys are Sami Leigh Alsawaf, Sarah Bennett Bures, Iyanna Draper, Bonnie Gill, Emily Guillaume, Abby Hylton, Molly James, Michael Jordan, Timothy McHugh, Matthew Morris, John Morrissett, Trey Smith, Dixon Wallace, and Xijia Yuan.
Additionally, Sarah Bennett Bures, Troutman Pepper’s Pro Bono Director and Counsel, has been named a 2023 Pro Bono Service Champion. Bures is one of eight Virginia attorneys recognized for reporting the highest number of pro bono service hours for the year.
Each year, Troutman Pepper attorneys dedicate thousands of pro bono hours in support of nonprofits, immigrants, military veterans, children, the wrongfully convicted, civil rights and social justice initiatives, and so many more. Learn more at troutman.com/pro-bono.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with 1,100+ attorneys strategically located in more than 20 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
NEW YORK – Troutman Pepper and six firm attorneys have been recognized in IAM’s directory featuring the world’s leading patent service providers, the IAM Patent 1000 2024. According to the report, “Troutman Pepper’s roster of IP attorneys possess a diverse reservoir of industry experience that makes them well placed to monetise and enforce their clients’ most valuable IP assets.”
Firm Rankings
United States: Georgia
Recommended – Firms: prosecution
Bronze – Firms: litigation
Attorney Rankings
William Belanger (United States: Massachusetts – Individuals: Litigation – Bronze)
Christopher Forstner (United States: DC Metro Area – Individuals: Prosecution – Recommended)
Puja Patel Lea (United States: Georgia – Individuals: Litigation – Silver)
Jim Schutz (United States: Georgia – Individuals: Prosecution – Recommended)
Gwendolyn Tawresey (United States: Massachusetts – Individuals: Litigation – Bronze)
Tate Tischner (United States: New York – Individuals: Prosecution – Recommended)
The IAM Patent 1000 seeks to identify world-class, private practice patent expertise. The report is compiled after an extensive, five-month research process. The latest edition involved 1,800 interviews with industry specialists around the world. Only those identified by market sources for their exceptional skillsets and profound insights into patent matters feature in the directory.
Troutman Pepper’s nationally recognized Intellectual Property Practice provides the complete range of services for patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets and assists clients with litigation and dispute resolution, licensing, and other transactions. Clients include startups, Fortune 100 companies, academic and research institutes, business incubators, and technology companies in a wide range of industries.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,100 attorneys strategically located in 20+ U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
NEW YORK – Troutman Pepper earned 24 nationwide practice rankings and more than 100 lawyer recognitions in The Legal 500 United States 2024, an independent ranking authority of law firms around the world. View all firm rankings.
Troutman Pepper was ranked in the following nationwide practice areas, notably earning the highest recognition for its Energy and State Attorneys General practices:
- Antitrust: Civil litigation/class actions: defense
- Dispute resolution: E-discovery
- Dispute resolution: Product liability, mass tort and class action: pharmaceuticals and medical devices: defense
- Energy: Energy litigation: electric power
- Energy: Energy regulation: electric power
- Tier 1 ranking
- Energy: Energy regulation: oil and gas
- Energy: Energy transactions: electric power
- Energy: Renewable/alternative power
- Environment: Environment: litigation
- Environment: Environment: regulatory
- Environment: Environment: transactional
- Finance: Commercial lending: advice to borrowers
- Finance: Financial services regulation: Consumer finance
- Finance: Project finance: energy and power
- Government: State attorneys general
- Tier 1 ranking
- Insurance: Advice to insurers
- Labor and employment: Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: design
- M&A/corporate and commercial: M&A: middle-market (sub-$500m)
- M&A/corporate and commercial: Private equity buyouts: middle-market (up to $500m)
- Media, technology and telecoms: Cyber law (including data privacy and data protection)
- Real estate: Construction (including construction litigation)
- Real estate: Land use/zoning
- Real estate: Real estate
- Tax: International tax
In addition, more than 90 firm lawyers earned more than 100 editorial recognitions (mentions in the 2024 edition). Notably, seven lawyers received the top Leading Lawyer and Next Generation Partner rankings:
Leading Lawyer
Clayton S. Friedman – Government: State Attorneys General
Christopher R. Jones – Energy: Energy regulation: electric power
Kevin Petrasic – Finance: Financial services regulation
Next Generation Partner
Mark J. Furletti – Finance: Financial services regulation
Anne C. Loomis – Energy: Energy transactions: electric power
Mindy McGrath – Energy: Energy regulation: oil and gas
Adrienne L. Thompson – Energy: Energy regulation: electric power
The Legal 500 assesses the strengths of law firms in more than 150 jurisdictions, highlighting the practice area teams that provide “the most cutting edge and innovative advice to corporate counsel.” Research is based on client feedback, law firm submissions, and interviews with private practice attorneys.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,100 attorneys strategically located in 20+ U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
BERWYN – Deborah Spranger, practice group leader of Troutman Pepper’s Life Sciences Transactions Practice, has been elected as a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation (ABF). Membership is limited to just 1% of lawyers licensed to practice in each jurisdiction. Members are nominated by their peers and selected by the ABF Board.
The ABF Fellows is a global honorary society that recognizes attorneys, judges, law faculty, and legal scholars whose public and private careers have demonstrated outstanding dedication to the highest principles of the legal profession and to the welfare of their communities.
At Troutman Pepper, Spranger advises strategic acquirers and sellers in mergers and acquisitions. She applies decades of experience to lead deal teams for public, private, and international companies in the life sciences, manufacturing, health care, and technology industries. Spranger has extensive experience managing multijurisdictional cross-border acquisitions, complex divestitures, and carve-outs. Clients value her high-level strategic guidance as well as her relentless focus on the details.
Founded in 1952, the ABF is a nonprofit, independent research institute that conducts cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research that addresses critical questions at the intersection of law and society. The nonprofit is focused on advancing justice and the understanding of law. Learn more at americanbarfoundation.org.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with 1,100+ attorneys strategically located in more than 20 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.
NEW YORK – Troutman Pepper client Southfield Capital, a premier lower middle market private equity firm, recently announced that Security Services Holdings LLC (Protos Security), a tech-enabled vendor managed security services provider in North America, has completed the acquisition of Summit Off Duty Services, an off-duty police officer security provider. Read a company press release about the investment.
Headquartered in Irving, TX, Summit Off Duty Services manages onsite security for clients nationwide, providing security and law enforcement industry expertise through a vast nationwide network of police officers. Summit Off Duty Services’ suite of services and features provides access to more than 60,000 police officers, representing more than 1,400 law enforcement agencies. The acquisition of Summit Off Duty Services represents Protos’ tenth acquisition since partnering with Southfield.
Southfield Capital is a private equity firm that invests in high-growth, lower middle market companies in the outsourced business services sector. The firm targets companies with $4 – 15 million in EBITDA and partners with management to scale the business through a combination of organic and acquisition growth strategies.
The Troutman Pepper team advising Southfield Capital and Protos Security included Nick Stawasz, Matt Greenberg, Taylor Bartholomew, William Mayo, Mike Swallow, and Joseph Cataldo.
Consistently recognized as a top-tier national practice, Troutman Pepper’s corporate attorneys regularly handle multimillion- and multibillion-dollar transactions. Core areas of service include capital markets transactions and other significant domestic and cross-border transactions, mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, securities laws compliance, and corporate finance. The firm has particular expertise in the private equity and private fund services space, advising clients on matters from fund formation to investments and exit transactions.
About Troutman Pepper
Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with 1,100+ attorneys strategically located in more than 20 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from startups to multinational enterprises. The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, and private equity, among others. Learn more at troutman.com.