Pittsburgh Review

This week was the Pittsburgh Manufacturing Summit and Gov. Tom Wolf was on-hand to talk about his support for the manufacturing industry in Pennsylvania.

According to a May 16 release, manufacturing accounts for 11.42 % of the state's economy and 10% of the state’s workforce. Wolf has continuously made it a focal point since he was elected, through the backing of a number of programs devoted to enhancing the manufacturing industry. In 2016 the economic output of the industry was $85 billion and now it is more than $92 billion, according to data from 2021.

“Pennsylvania’s smoke and steel have helped to build many of our nation’s most iconic and ambitious projects – the Golden Gate Bridge, the Empire State Building, and Hoover Dam among them,” said Wolf. “And now our industrial strength, abundant natural resources, and powerful workforce has the opportunity to lead the nation in a transition to a clean energy ecosystem including more reliance on clean hydrogen and carbon capture sequestration and storage.”

Wolf has recently made pushes for the state to be one of the Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs that will be implemented through President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. $8 billion has been made available for four hubs to expand clean hydrogen use in the industrial sector. The goal is to create jobs and also use clean hydrogen to decarbonize the industrial sector. The effort will support the Biden Administration goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 85% by 2050.

“The support and excitement we’ve received from the industry has been overwhelming, and it’s critical to our ability to have a seat at the table and compete for these upcoming opportunities,” said Wolf. “Bringing a Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub to the commonwealth will also bring new jobs and economic growth, it will help to reduce emissions, protect us from the growing dangers of climate change, and improve the quality of life for all Pennsylvanians.”

Wolf plans to work with stakeholders in the industry to work on decarbonizing through deploying clean hydrogen, as well as carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) technologies. He is working with a coalition made up of local and state leaders, energy and organized labor officials to create public private partnerships to made sure that the industry will continue to compete even through decarbonization.

Applications for funding are expected to open this summer.