Long heralded as the clean energy fuel of the future that will play a key role in decarbonization, attractive hydrogen prices could finally be in sight.

In a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom, executives of 25 multinational companies — including Cellcentric, Cummins and Nikola Motor Co. — called for major new investments in hydrogen infrastructure in California.

Nikola Corp. lost an order to supply sanitation heavyweight Republic Services Inc. with 2,500 battery-electric garbage trucks, the latest setback for the troubled startup.

Since taking the wheel at Nikola Corp. in September, Mark Russell has been adamant the electric-truck startup doesn’t need a deal with General Motors Co. to survive. Now he has to prove it.

China, the world’s biggest market for electric vehicles, isn’t so quick to dismiss the alternative to batteries. Officials are promoting the development of hydrogen-powered cars, trucks and buses, with Beijing offering to reward cities that achieve adoption targets.

Hydrogen will likely end up as the dominant fuel for longhaul trucks one or more decades from now, according to experts at familiar component suppliers and truck manufacturers. Nikola Motor Co. agrees, as one of the first entrants into this arena, with a whole new vehicle architecture.

Three power plants planned in New York, Virginia and Ohio will test whether hydrogen can one day replace natural gas in electric generation.

Commercial trucking is making progress with sustainability, but obstacles and unknowns remain, according to a coalition of industry groups.