Air Liquide Expands Hydrogen Infrastructure with Eastman Chemical on US Gulf Coast

Air Liquide, the French giant in industrial gases, just doubled down on its partnership with Eastman Chemical Company. They’re tossing more investment onto the table and inked a long-term deal to supply hydrogen to Eastman’s Texas Gulf Coast plant. This month’s announcement is the latest chapter in a decade-long collaboration. Instead of laying brand-new lines, they’re revamping the existing pipelines that tie into the massive underground hydrogen storage cavern at Spindletop, Texas. The move doesn’t just cater to swelling industrial gas needs in Longview—it’s also a big tick under Air Liquide’s ADVANCE plan for performance, operational excellence, and sustainability.

Key insights

• Strategic partnership: After years of working together on oxygen, nitrogen, and syngas, Air Liquide and Eastman are now all-in on a long-term hydrogen supply pact.
• Investment scale: Rather than building fresh pipelines, they’ve earmarked about $50 million to retrofit existing lines, compression stations, and control systems.
• Storage integration: They’ll lean on Spindletop’s cavern capacity to smooth out seasonal swings and handle demand peaks, making the network more resilient.
• Decarbonization: A continuous hydrogen feed helps Eastman cut the carbon intensity of its chemical processes—one of the biggest wins for industrial decarbonization.
• Local economy: This overhaul keeps skilled jobs humming in Longview and sustains service firms across Harrison County.

Technical deep dive

• Pipeline reinforcement: Swapping in high-strength, low-permeability steel rated up to 80 bar, and adding pigging stations for easier inspection and cleaning.
• Compression upgrades: Installing new electric-motor-driven compressors that boost energy efficiency and cut maintenance headaches.
• Advanced controls and cybersecurity: Rolling out next-gen SCADA platforms with cloud analytics, automated leak detection, and beefed-up security protocols to keep everything rock-solid.
• Safety enhancements: More overpressure valves, real-time flow and temperature monitors, and auto-shutdown features—fully compliant with ASME’s hydrogen service standards.
• Purification and filtration: Dual-stage filters and dehydration units ensure hydrogen purity stays north of 99.99%, critical for cracking catalysts and avoiding fouling.
• Pipeline interlocks and direct comms to central control rooms will slash response times when anomalies pop up.

Together, these upgrades ramp up reliability, trim unplanned downtime, and cut maintenance costs—all while sticking to strict industry safety codes.

Roots in a century of energy evolution

Spindletop has quite the backstory—it made worldwide headlines in 1901 with a colossal oil gusher that ignited the Texas oil boom. Years later, that salt dome was repurposed to store hydrocarbons; today it’s the world’s largest underground hydrogen storage site. Its naturally stable temperature and pressure deep underground make it perfect for large-scale bulk storage. Meanwhile, the Longview chemical complex—going strong for 70 years—has grown into the world’s single largest facility of its kind, highlighting the Gulf Coast’s historic leadership in hydrogen production and industrial manufacturing.

Business and strategic angle

Under its ADVANCE plan, Air Liquide is all about smart, targeted investments, squeezing top performance from its assets, and hitting environmental milestones. In 2019, its US Large Industries arm pulled in €5.6 billion, and the group employs over 20,000 people across 1,300 US sites. Globally, they run more than 250 hydrogen production units and 650 fueling stations—so the Houston team can tap into lessons learned in Europe and Asia. Remember the $160 million they invested at Eastman’s Longview site in 2020? That project delivered an Air Separation Unit and a POX syngas plant with CO₂ capture—proof that integrated, low-carbon solutions really pay off.

This new hydrogen-specific agreement locks in stable pricing and capacity, a smart hedge against wild spot-market swings—exactly what Eastman needs for its steam cracking, refining, and polymer processes.

By partnering with Air Liquide rather than rivals like Air Products, Linde, or Messer, Eastman benefits from global best practices in hydrogen infrastructure while keeping control close to home.

Broader implications

This deal couldn’t come at a better time. The US government is ratcheting up support for clean hydrogen through the Inflation Reduction Act and DOE funding rounds. While no federal grant has been confirmed for this particular project, both companies are perfectly positioned to chase production tax credits for low-carbon hydrogen. It’s a stark contrast to other big hydrogen ventures announced in 2025 that got delayed or canceled over financing issues—proof that cost-effective retrofits often outshine greenfield builds.

Plus, a robust hydrogen infrastructure underpins emerging applications in fuel cells, further industrial decarbonization, and even clean ammonia production. With this network in place, sectors from refining and steelmaking to glass and fertilizer can plug in, creating multi-industry hydrogen corridors. Sharing assets drives down unit costs, boosts regional competitiveness in low-carbon products, and accelerates progress toward net-zero goals—retrofits usually come with shorter lead times and fewer permitting headaches than new constructions.

Future outlook

Looking forward, the upgraded network isn’t just for steam-reformed hydrogen—it’s built to handle low-carbon or green hydrogen via electrolysis as more renewable power flows onto the grid. That flexibility paves a gradual path to zero-emission tech across chemicals, refining, transport, and beyond. The Texas Gulf Coast—with its mix of production, storage, and end users—offers a blueprint for other regions eyeing sustainable energy transitions. In short, this collaboration shows how to decarbonize heavy industry today while laying the groundwork for tomorrow’s green hydrogen economy.

About the Company

• Air Liquide: Founded in 1902, Air Liquide is a world leader in gases, technologies, and services for industry and health. Active in 80 countries with around 67,000 employees, the group follows its ADVANCE plan—focusing on performance, selective investments, and environmental stewardship.
• Eastman Chemical Company: A US-based specialty chemicals firm, Eastman runs the Longview, Texas facility—the world’s single largest production site of its kind, operating for seven decades. The company leans on strategic partnerships to drive growth and sustainability in petrochemicals and advanced materials.