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Air Liquide and STNE to develop hydrogen mobility in China
NEWS and gas network operators, aims to operate 3–4 GW in electrolyser capacity by 2030, using the Dutch gas network for transporting hydrogen [FCB, June 2018, p8]. Meanwhile, Kiwa has invested in a highcapacity hydrogen compressor that allows optimal testing of multiple on-tank valves, assisting the trend to integrate components such as pressure regulators, protections and closures in one module. The number of test cells has also been expanded, allowing simultaneous testing at five benches. Netbeheer Nederland: www.netbeheernederland.nl [in Dutch] Download the report [2MB PDF, in Dutch]: https://tinyurl.com/dutch-h2-gas-grid Kiwa: www.kiwa.com
GREEN HYDROGEN
McPhy industrial green hydrogen unit started up for Engie Cofely
E
ngie Cofely – the energy efficiency and environmental services subsidiary of French electric utility Engie – has commissioned clean hydrogen production and storage equipment, supplied by McPhy, at its Utilities Service Unit in Grenoble, in southeastern France. The installation illustrates the potential of zero-carbon hydrogen as a raw material for industry. The industrial production unit for renewable hydrogen at Engie Cofely comprises three electrolyser units and two storage modules supplied by McPhy. These are ideally suited to meeting the significantly increased hydrogen requirements of the Utilities Service Unit, guaranteeing its production performance and energy independence while reducing its environmental footprint. ‘[This installation] provides a compelling demonstration of the potential of carbon-free hydrogen produced using electrolysis as a raw material in industry,’ says Pascal Mauberger, Chairman and CEO of McPhy. ‘The commissioning of the installation fits perfectly with the plan announced on 1 June by France’s minister for ecological and inclusive transition, Nicolas Hulot, to support the rollout of carbonfree hydrogen and make France the world leader in the field [FCB, July 2018, p10]. One of the plan’s aims is to generate 10% of industrial carbon-free hydrogen by 2023, and 20–40% by 2028.’ The hydrogen platform, which is located at the CEA Minatec micro-/nanotechnology centre 12
Fuel Cells Bulletin
at the heart of Grenoble’s science cluster, is operated by Engie Cofely. The three electrolysers will be used specifically for industrial processes at CEA/LETI (the Electronics and Information Technologies Laboratory of the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission), and for zero-emission mobility solutions with Gaz Électricité de Grenoble (GEG) in the framework of the HyWay project [February 2016, p7]. McPhy’s electrolysis solution will provide a nominal flow rate of 30 Nm3/h, and a peak flow rate of 50 Nm3/h. Earlier this year McPhy won a contract with Engie for a hydrogen station to refuel Engie Cofely’s Renault Kangoo ZE-H2 vehicles [February 2018, p7], and logged an order from Compagnie Nationale du Rhône (CNR) and Engie GNVERT for a second refueling station in Lyon [May 2018, p9]. In the spring the company launched the next-generation Augmented McLyzer electrolyser, under its technology partnership with De Nora [May 2018, p13], and subsequently signed an industrial and commercial partnership with EDF to develop zero-carbon hydrogen in France and around the world [July 2018, p10]. McPhy has also just completed tests on its 700 bar prototyping and testing platform, at its headquarters in La Motte-Fanjas, working in collaboration with Toyota [see page 9]. McPhy: www.mcphy.com Engie Cofely: www.engie-cofely.fr [in French]
COMMERCIALISATION
Air Liquide and STNE to develop hydrogen mobility in China
A
ir Liquide and the Chinese startup STNE (Shanghai Sinotran New Energy Automobile Operation Co Ltd) have signed a partnership to accelerate the rollout of hydrogen-powered electric truck fleets in China. This agreement fits in with the Chinese government’s 13th Five-Year Plan (2016–2020), which aims to support the development and sale of hydrogen-powered electric vehicles for clean mobility. The partnership sees Air Liquide acquiring a minority stake of around E10 million (US$11.4 million) in STNE, a hydrogen logistics platform for urban deliveries of goods, which currently operates a hydrogen refueling station in Shanghai and a fleet of 500 hydrogen-powered trucks [FCB, March 2018, p3]. Air Liquide will provide STNE with its expertise in the entire hydrogen supply chain,
from production and storage to distribution, to accelerate the startup’s development. STNE aims to run a fleet of up to 7500 trucks and operate a network of around 25 hydrogen stations by 2020. ‘We are delighted with this partnership with the startup STNE, thus contributing to the development of hydrogen solutions in China,’ says François Darchis, Senior Vice President and the member of the Air Liquide Executive Committee supervising innovation. ‘This investment, combined with Air Liquide’s industrial and technological expertise in the field of hydrogen energy, enables the Group to contribute to accelerating the rollout of concrete solutions for the energy transition in China.’ STNE’s fleet of 500 hydrogen-powered box van trucks have been manufactured by Dongfeng Special Vehicle Co Ltd, and are powered by 30 kW fuel cell engines designed and integrated by Shanghai Reinventing Fire Technology Co Ltd (Re-Fire), featuring Ballard stacks. Air Liquide, Hydrogen Energy: http://tinyurl.com/hydrogen-energy-airliquide
FCHEA report shows fuel cells increasingly key in US communities
A
new free report from the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA) in Washington, DC provides a snapshot of fuel cells in municipal applications in the US, such as wastewater treatment plants and microgrids, as well as an overview of recent public sector deployments. Fuel cells offer a combination of unique advantages: clean, reliable, on-demand power generation; fuel flexibility, with the ability to utilise pure hydrogen, natural gas or renewable biogas; silent operation; and scalability, making them ideally suited for a variety of applications. The private sector is deploying the technology at data centres, retail sites, warehouses, cellular towers, distribution centres and more. Fuel cells are also playing an increasingly vital role in keeping community operations running, with more municipalities across the US integrating them into critical facilities, ensuring that a range of services remain online during emergencies. Local governments, cities and state agencies are using fuel cells to run city halls, public buildings, communications networks, wastewater treatment plants, and transit buses. They are also starting to configure fuel cells into microgrids to ensure reliable, efficient power to
August 2018
GREEN HYDROGEN
McPhy industrial green hydrogen unit started up for Engie Cofely
E
ngie Cofely – the energy efficiency and environmental services subsidiary of French electric utility Engie – has commissioned clean hydrogen production and storage equipment, supplied by McPhy, at its Utilities Service Unit in Grenoble, in southeastern France. The installation illustrates the potential of zero-carbon hydrogen as a raw material for industry. The industrial production unit for renewable hydrogen at Engie Cofely comprises three electrolyser units and two storage modules supplied by McPhy. These are ideally suited to meeting the significantly increased hydrogen requirements of the Utilities Service Unit, guaranteeing its production performance and energy independence while reducing its environmental footprint. ‘[This installation] provides a compelling demonstration of the potential of carbon-free hydrogen produced using electrolysis as a raw material in industry,’ says Pascal Mauberger, Chairman and CEO of McPhy. ‘The commissioning of the installation fits perfectly with the plan announced on 1 June by France’s minister for ecological and inclusive transition, Nicolas Hulot, to support the rollout of carbonfree hydrogen and make France the world leader in the field [FCB, July 2018, p10]. One of the plan’s aims is to generate 10% of industrial carbon-free hydrogen by 2023, and 20–40% by 2028.’ The hydrogen platform, which is located at the CEA Minatec micro-/nanotechnology centre 12
Fuel Cells Bulletin
at the heart of Grenoble’s science cluster, is operated by Engie Cofely. The three electrolysers will be used specifically for industrial processes at CEA/LETI (the Electronics and Information Technologies Laboratory of the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission), and for zero-emission mobility solutions with Gaz Électricité de Grenoble (GEG) in the framework of the HyWay project [February 2016, p7]. McPhy’s electrolysis solution will provide a nominal flow rate of 30 Nm3/h, and a peak flow rate of 50 Nm3/h. Earlier this year McPhy won a contract with Engie for a hydrogen station to refuel Engie Cofely’s Renault Kangoo ZE-H2 vehicles [February 2018, p7], and logged an order from Compagnie Nationale du Rhône (CNR) and Engie GNVERT for a second refueling station in Lyon [May 2018, p9]. In the spring the company launched the next-generation Augmented McLyzer electrolyser, under its technology partnership with De Nora [May 2018, p13], and subsequently signed an industrial and commercial partnership with EDF to develop zero-carbon hydrogen in France and around the world [July 2018, p10]. McPhy has also just completed tests on its 700 bar prototyping and testing platform, at its headquarters in La Motte-Fanjas, working in collaboration with Toyota [see page 9]. McPhy: www.mcphy.com Engie Cofely: www.engie-cofely.fr [in French]
COMMERCIALISATION
Air Liquide and STNE to develop hydrogen mobility in China
A
ir Liquide and the Chinese startup STNE (Shanghai Sinotran New Energy Automobile Operation Co Ltd) have signed a partnership to accelerate the rollout of hydrogen-powered electric truck fleets in China. This agreement fits in with the Chinese government’s 13th Five-Year Plan (2016–2020), which aims to support the development and sale of hydrogen-powered electric vehicles for clean mobility. The partnership sees Air Liquide acquiring a minority stake of around E10 million (US$11.4 million) in STNE, a hydrogen logistics platform for urban deliveries of goods, which currently operates a hydrogen refueling station in Shanghai and a fleet of 500 hydrogen-powered trucks [FCB, March 2018, p3]. Air Liquide will provide STNE with its expertise in the entire hydrogen supply chain,
from production and storage to distribution, to accelerate the startup’s development. STNE aims to run a fleet of up to 7500 trucks and operate a network of around 25 hydrogen stations by 2020. ‘We are delighted with this partnership with the startup STNE, thus contributing to the development of hydrogen solutions in China,’ says François Darchis, Senior Vice President and the member of the Air Liquide Executive Committee supervising innovation. ‘This investment, combined with Air Liquide’s industrial and technological expertise in the field of hydrogen energy, enables the Group to contribute to accelerating the rollout of concrete solutions for the energy transition in China.’ STNE’s fleet of 500 hydrogen-powered box van trucks have been manufactured by Dongfeng Special Vehicle Co Ltd, and are powered by 30 kW fuel cell engines designed and integrated by Shanghai Reinventing Fire Technology Co Ltd (Re-Fire), featuring Ballard stacks. Air Liquide, Hydrogen Energy: http://tinyurl.com/hydrogen-energy-airliquide
FCHEA report shows fuel cells increasingly key in US communities
A
new free report from the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA) in Washington, DC provides a snapshot of fuel cells in municipal applications in the US, such as wastewater treatment plants and microgrids, as well as an overview of recent public sector deployments. Fuel cells offer a combination of unique advantages: clean, reliable, on-demand power generation; fuel flexibility, with the ability to utilise pure hydrogen, natural gas or renewable biogas; silent operation; and scalability, making them ideally suited for a variety of applications. The private sector is deploying the technology at data centres, retail sites, warehouses, cellular towers, distribution centres and more. Fuel cells are also playing an increasingly vital role in keeping community operations running, with more municipalities across the US integrating them into critical facilities, ensuring that a range of services remain online during emergencies. Local governments, cities and state agencies are using fuel cells to run city halls, public buildings, communications networks, wastewater treatment plants, and transit buses. They are also starting to configure fuel cells into microgrids to ensure reliable, efficient power to
August 2018