Feb 21 (Reuters) - France's Air Liquide said

on Friday that only two out of their six previously awarded

hydrogen projects for the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) might

move forward after President Donald Trump froze funding on clean

energy projects.

Air Liquide was chosen in 2023 as a partner for six clean

hydrogen hubs planned by the DoE, which was to allocate $7

billion for them under the bipartisan infrastructure law signed

by former President Joe Biden.

However, Trump has placed holds on tens of billions of

dollars in congressionally-approved spending, including those

from the bipartisan law and Biden's Inflation Reduction Act

(IRA).

"After meeting with the American teams a few days ago, two

of the hubs around hydrogen from natural gas with carbon capture

are on top of the list to be pursued," CEO François Jackow said

during a media call.

The future of the other four hubs will be largely dependant

on the new administration's decisions on renewable energy

policies, he added.

A beneficiary of the IRA, Air Liquide has been investing big

in the U.S. clean energy transition, including a partnership

with Exxon Mobile to enhance the production of

low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia at the oil major's facility in

Baytown, Texas.

Jackow said that while the project with Exxon was not

"absolutely decided yet", both parties continued to work on it,

with final decision expected in the second half of 2025.

He also noted that Air Liquide's U.S. business was not

limited to hydrogen. Last year it announced investments related

to industrial gas supplies to chipmaker Micron Technology ( MU )

and to LG Chem's U.S. electric vehicle battery

plant.

"It is likely that there will be no major announcements in

the next six months in the battery sector," Jackow said, but

added he was "extremely confident" with the customers whose

projects the company was already working on.

He said Trump's potential tariffs would have "very little

impact" on Air Liquide's U.S. business, which makes up around

one-third of its total sales, thanks to local sourcing of

materials.