WASHINGTON, D.C. - A few weeks after Ohio’s state government arranged for ratepayers to fund a $150 million per year bailout of FirstEnergy Solutions’ Perry and Davis-Besse nuclear power plants, the federal government on Tuesday announced it’s giving a $9 million federal research grant to create a pilot program that will allow the Davis-Besse plant to produce hydrogen.

Toledo Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur, who announced the grant, said hydrogen production could present a new energy alternative that would keep America’s aging nuclear power plants competitive for years. According to Kaptur, the United States produces over 10 million tons of hydrogen, nearly one-seventh of the global supply, primarily for oil refining and fertilizer production. Hydrogen infrastructure includes over 1,600 miles of hydrogen pipeline and a growing network of stations across the region.

She said costs of the project will shared between federal agencies, industry-led teams and public and private laboratories. The U.S. Department of Energy will invest $9,184,229 while non-DOE partners will invest $2,299,391, for a total $11,483,620. Under this proposal, FirstEnergy Solutions will develop a light water reactor (LWR) hybrid energy system for installation at Davis-Besse. She said the project was competitively awarded.

“This funding will play an important role in improving Davis-Besse’s capacity to produce useable energy in a way that is more economically sustainable, has more industrial uses, and makes Davis-Besse economically competitive for the long-term,” said a statement from Kaptur. “New energy production that meets the needs of a changing economy and advances science at the highest levels holds the potential to attract new jobs and retain hundreds of highly skilled jobs at Ottawa County’s largest employer for years to come.”

Opponents of the nuclear plant bailout legislation are collecting signatures for a referendum that would overturn it. FirstEnergy Solutions is asking the Ohio Supreme Court to block the referendum petition drive, and supporters of the bailout have placed ads and hired on-the-ground workers to keep people from signing the petitions.