- Email: [email protected]
Swiss companies link up to accelerate rollout of hydrogen stations
NEWS / IN BRIEF ‘This is the breakthrough we have been working intensively with over the course of the last year,’ says Jon André Løkke, CEO of Nel. ‘As the first pure H2Station delivery from Nel, not only in Korea, but in Asia in general, this is a landmark achievement for Nel, as we continue to position ourselves as a truly global hydrogen company.’ In April, the South Korean government announced the establishment of a Special Purpose Company (SPC) to expand the country’s hydrogen infrastructure, with the goal of installing hydrogen refueling stations along the busiest roads and highways, as well as in Seoul and other major cities [FCB, May 2018, p8]. Nel is participating in this SPC through its joint venture, Nel-Deokyang, along with other participants from major Korean corporations, state-run utilities, and automakers. Nel-Deokyang is a 50:50 joint venture between Nel ASA and Deokyang Co Ltd, Korea’s largest hydrogen supplier, established last year to facilitate the sales, installation, and operation of the H2Station hydrogen refueling station product in Korea [July 2017, p8]. ‘South Korea is currently one of the fastest movers within the industry, with an ambition of having 100 hydrogen fueling stations online by 2020,’ continues Løkke. ‘We are very happy to kickstart our deliveries in South Korea, and expect to continue to further penetrate the market as we move forward.’ The H2Station solution [see the H2 Logic feature in May 2013] will be installed alongside conventional fuels on the existing forecourt of an LPG station, which also marks a first in Korea. The station is supported by the Korean Automotive Environment Association, and installation will commence towards the end of 2018.
a cornerstone of a clean energy and transportation economy. Its Renewable Hydrogen Roadmap explores the most cost-effective and scalable production technologies and feedstocks, such as renewable electricity or biogas, to present viable pathways for industry, government, and consumers. In January, California Governor Jerry Brown committed to building 200 hydrogen refueling stations by 2025. The Renewable Hydrogen Roadmap’s key proposals include: • Increasing financial support and market-building mechanisms to catalyse the development of renewable hydrogen production at scale. • Creating state and federal policies that support the vision of renewable hydrogen and the pathways to develop and scale renewable hydrogen deployment. • Educating policymakers, stakeholders and the public about the benefits of scalable renewable hydrogen production, which will accelerate the adoption and deployment of renewable electricity and clean, zero-emission transportation fuels. ‘At-scale renewable hydrogen production is critical, not only for FCEVs, but also to support fueling of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles like buses and trucks,’ says Jeff Serfass, Executive Director of the California Hydrogen Business Council. ‘This roadmap outlines initiatives to meet the demand for those vehicles.’ The Roadmap was compiled with assistance from the South Coast Air Quality Management District, Toyota Motor Corporation, Honda Motor Company, Southern California Gas, Pacific Gas & Electric, The Linde Group, Nel Hydrogen, Hydrogenics, ITM Power, FuelCell Energy, and Proton OnSite.
Nel ASA: www.nelhydrogen.com
Renewable Hydrogen Roadmap: https://einow.org/rh2roadmap
Deokyang Co Ltd: www.deokyang.com/eng
Energy Independence Now: www.einow.org
Renewable hydrogen roadmap for transport, economy in California
E
nergy Independence Now (EIN), in collaboration with the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation and the California Hydrogen Business Council (CHBC), have released a Renewable Hydrogen Roadmap. This outlines key strategies to promote ‘green’ hydrogen production that will help achieve clean energy and zero-emissions transportation in California. Nonprofit organisation EIN is dedicated to advancing hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles and hydrogen refueling infrastructure in California, as
June 2018
California Hydrogen Business Council: www.californiahydrogen.org Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation: v www.leonardodicaprio.org
Swiss companies link up to accelerate rollout of hydrogen stations
A
group of Swiss companies have formed an association to jointly develop a nationwide network of hydrogen refueling stations in Switzerland. Agrola AG, AVIA Association, Coop Group, Coop Mineralöl AG, fenaco Cooperative, Migrol AG and the Federation of Migros Cooperatives aim to utilise their own infrastructure as a basis
IN BRIEF California station #35 at Newport Beach The 35th retail hydrogen refueling station in California has opened, operated by Shell (www. shell.com/hydrogen) and located in Newport Beach, on the southern edge of Los Angeles. It joins recently added stations in Thousand Oaks and Ontario [FCB, May 2018, p5]. The Newport Beach station, at 1600 Jamboree Boulevard, will be open 24/7. The facility was first opened in 2012 [August 2012, p7], and has recently been upgraded to accommodate retail sales. The California Fuel Cell Partnership provides an up-to-date station map (http://cafcp.org/ stationmap), and a mobile-friendly website (http://m.cafcp.org) that shows station availability and other information. Convion opens €E4m funding round Finnish company Convion (www.convion.fi), a leading developer of solid oxide fuel cell based products for distributed power generation, aims to raise up to E4 million (US$4.6 million) with existing and new investors in Finland, through the offer of equity shares via a round facilitated by Finnish investment firm Springvest. The new funding will provide operating capital to build a reference portfolio, maintain its technology advantage, expand the team, and provide the means to increase delivery capability. The placement will help Convion make substantial progress in validating and improving its offering, along with separate project financing for dedicated business and technology development areas. Convion is supplying two 60 kW units for the new ComSos project, to validate and demonstrate commercial SOFC-based combined heat and power (CHP) solutions in mid-sized power ranges [see page 11]. CleverShuttle begins ride-sharing service in Stuttgart with Toyota Mirai FCEVs The German ride-sharing service CleverShuttle (www.clevershuttle.org) is now also available in Stuttgart, providing rail travellers with environmentally friendly travel connections using a fleet consisting initially of 10 Toyota Mirai fuel cell electric vehicles. The 10 vehicles are part of the ZeroE project, through which the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI, www.bmvi.de/EN) is funding the procurement of 185 fuel cell passenger vehicles with E3.2 million (US$3.7 million) from the National Innovation Programme Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology (NIP, http:// tinyurl.com/nip-h2fc-tech). Last autumn CleverShuttle took delivery of its first 20 Toyota Mirai cars for Hamburg, and 15 to add to its fleet in Munich [FCB, October 2017, p5].
Fuel Cells Bulletin
5
NEWS for the operation of fuel cell electric vehicles, as a pioneering step towards sustainable mobility in Switzerland. The companies anticipate that within five years, parts of their own fleets will be converted to fuel cell propulsion, providing the basis of running the hydrogen refueling infrastructure profitably and without subsidies. The lack of a Swiss hydrogen refueling network means that the technology has not yet been successfully rolled out, so the association’s members have decided to immediately trigger a change. Jointly they operate more than 1500 traditional filling stations and more than 1700 heavy-duty vehicles, which represents an ideal basis for establishing a nationwide hydrogen infrastructure – with an ambitious timeframe of completion by 2023. Compared to passenger cars, heavy-duty trucks need 30–50 times more hydrogen per vehicle per annum, so it only takes 10 fuel cell powered commercial vehicles to allow a hydrogen refueling station to economically break even. In addition, the association has decided to only use ‘green’ hydrogen, exclusively produced via electrolysis with renewable energy (e.g. at a Swiss hydroelectric power plant). Coop Mineralöl and H2 Energy were involved in a Swiss consortium that unveiled a fuel cell powered heavy truck, and the first hydroelectric hydrogen station, in autumn 2016 [see the News Feature in FCB, December 2016, and also October 2017, p11]. The association is initially focused on addressing basic questions regarding development, market dynamics, technical questions, and definitions of standards for hydrogen production, vehicles, and hydrogen refueling stations. It will also ensure that all of the components of this sustainable, zero-carbon system are available in Switzerland, to accelerate the expansion of hydrogen technology. The association does not intend to pursue any commercial gains for itself, and is open to further members. Its members will provide their own funding for investments in vehicles and infrastructure. Agrola AG: www.agrola.ch [in German] AVIA Association: www.avia.ch [in German] Coop Group: www.coop.ch/en Coop Mineralöl AG: www.coop-mineraloel.ch [in German] fenaco Cooperative: www.fenaco.com [in German] Migrol AG: www.migrol.ch [in German] Federation of Migros Cooperatives: www.migros.ch [in German]
Infrastructure company Nemoto Tsusho joins JHyM group in Japan
T
he Japan H2 Mobility consortium has added another infrastructure
6
Fuel Cells Bulletin
developer member, to help accelerate the further development of a network of hydrogen refueling stations across Japan. JHyM now comprises 17 participating companies, including seven that are focused on building out the required infrastructure. Nemoto Tsusho is a local trading company in Fukushima Prefecture, to the north of Tokyo, operating gasoline filling stations. ‘We are delighted to welcome such an active local company, who decided to start the hydrogen refueling station business,’ says Hideki Sugawara, President of JHyM and also project general manager at Toyota’s Tokyo Engineering Division. ‘This participation would gain momentum for developing local companies to deploy hydrogen refueling stations all over Japan.’ JHyM was established by 11 major Japanese companies last summer, representing several industries and the financial sector, to accelerate the deployment of hydrogen refueling stations and fuel cell electric vehicles in Japan [FCB, June 2017, p8 and April 2018, p9]. The founding members are automakers Toyota, Nissan and Honda; infrastructure developers JXTG Nippon Oil & Energy, Idemitsu Kosan, Iwatani [see pages 4 and 9], Tokyo Gas, Toho Gas and Air Liquide Japan; and investors Toyota Tsusho Corporation and Development Bank of Japan. Five additional investor companies have subsequently signed up as investment partners: JA Mitsui Lease, Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Insurance, Mitsui Sumitomo Finance & Leasing, NEC Capital Solutions, and Mirai Creation Fund (SPARX Group). Japan H2 Mobility: www.jhym.co.jp/en
ENERGY STORAGE & P2G
IMechE report says P2G could boost UK renewable energy
A
new report by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers says that government and industry in the UK should boost investment in technology to promote the use of hydrogen as a way of storing energy, which would make the nation’s energy system greener and more efficient. The recommendation is made in the IMechE report, Energy from Gas: Taking a Whole System Approach, which outlines key ways in which gas could be used to make the UK energy system greener, cheaper, and more efficient [see also the HyNet item on page 7].
The report calls for more support for Powerto-Gas (P2G) technology, with excess electricity on the National Grid, from either high levels of renewable generation or low demand, used to produce hydrogen through electrolysis. This can be used locally, or injected into the gas grid at a low hydrogen concentration. Apart from producing ‘green’ gas, it can also be used to balance the electricity grid. This hydrogen can then be used in all areas of the energy system, including producing low-emissions ‘fuel’ for transport, reducing CO2 emissions from heating systems, reused to generate electricity, as well as a greener feedstock for industries such as ammonia and plastics production. Meanwhile, a report published by the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies – Decarbonisation of heat and the role of ‘green gas’ in the United Kingdom – looks at the possible role of hydrogen produced from methane via steam reforming, combined with carbon capture and storage (CCS) to create a low-carbon heating source. However, while the report says that ‘green gas’ appears to be technically and economically feasible, it adds that major practical and policy obstacles make it unlikely that the government will commit itself to developing ‘green gas’ in the foreseeable future. IMechE, Energy from Gas report (PDF): https://tinyurl.com/imeche-energy-from-gas Institution of Mechanical Engineers: www.imeche.org Oxford Institute for Energy Studies report (PDF): https://tinyurl.com/oies-green-gas
Colruyt, Parkwind and Fluxys join forces for Belgian P2G project
C
lean energy producer Eoly – part of the Colruyt Group – is collaborating with natural gas grid operator Fluxys and offshore wind developer Parkwind to boost the sustainable energy landscape in Belgium. The aim is to build an industrial-scale (up to 25 MW) Powerto-Gas (P2G) installation that converts ‘green’ electricity into green hydrogen, which can be stored and transported in the existing natural gas infrastructure. The initial phase of the project – which was initiated within the Power-to-Gas Industry Cluster Flanders – will closely examine the feasibility of the installation [see also the Dutch Hydrogen Coalition item on page 8]. The partners envisage creating one of the first European industrial-scale P2G facilities. The aim is to build a P2G installation that can convert several MW of electricity into green hydrogen, which can be marketed as a zero-carbon fuel or feedstock.
June 2018
a cornerstone of a clean energy and transportation economy. Its Renewable Hydrogen Roadmap explores the most cost-effective and scalable production technologies and feedstocks, such as renewable electricity or biogas, to present viable pathways for industry, government, and consumers. In January, California Governor Jerry Brown committed to building 200 hydrogen refueling stations by 2025. The Renewable Hydrogen Roadmap’s key proposals include: • Increasing financial support and market-building mechanisms to catalyse the development of renewable hydrogen production at scale. • Creating state and federal policies that support the vision of renewable hydrogen and the pathways to develop and scale renewable hydrogen deployment. • Educating policymakers, stakeholders and the public about the benefits of scalable renewable hydrogen production, which will accelerate the adoption and deployment of renewable electricity and clean, zero-emission transportation fuels. ‘At-scale renewable hydrogen production is critical, not only for FCEVs, but also to support fueling of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles like buses and trucks,’ says Jeff Serfass, Executive Director of the California Hydrogen Business Council. ‘This roadmap outlines initiatives to meet the demand for those vehicles.’ The Roadmap was compiled with assistance from the South Coast Air Quality Management District, Toyota Motor Corporation, Honda Motor Company, Southern California Gas, Pacific Gas & Electric, The Linde Group, Nel Hydrogen, Hydrogenics, ITM Power, FuelCell Energy, and Proton OnSite.
Nel ASA: www.nelhydrogen.com
Renewable Hydrogen Roadmap: https://einow.org/rh2roadmap
Deokyang Co Ltd: www.deokyang.com/eng
Energy Independence Now: www.einow.org
Renewable hydrogen roadmap for transport, economy in California
E
nergy Independence Now (EIN), in collaboration with the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation and the California Hydrogen Business Council (CHBC), have released a Renewable Hydrogen Roadmap. This outlines key strategies to promote ‘green’ hydrogen production that will help achieve clean energy and zero-emissions transportation in California. Nonprofit organisation EIN is dedicated to advancing hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles and hydrogen refueling infrastructure in California, as
June 2018
California Hydrogen Business Council: www.californiahydrogen.org Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation: v www.leonardodicaprio.org
Swiss companies link up to accelerate rollout of hydrogen stations
A
group of Swiss companies have formed an association to jointly develop a nationwide network of hydrogen refueling stations in Switzerland. Agrola AG, AVIA Association, Coop Group, Coop Mineralöl AG, fenaco Cooperative, Migrol AG and the Federation of Migros Cooperatives aim to utilise their own infrastructure as a basis
IN BRIEF California station #35 at Newport Beach The 35th retail hydrogen refueling station in California has opened, operated by Shell (www. shell.com/hydrogen) and located in Newport Beach, on the southern edge of Los Angeles. It joins recently added stations in Thousand Oaks and Ontario [FCB, May 2018, p5]. The Newport Beach station, at 1600 Jamboree Boulevard, will be open 24/7. The facility was first opened in 2012 [August 2012, p7], and has recently been upgraded to accommodate retail sales. The California Fuel Cell Partnership provides an up-to-date station map (http://cafcp.org/ stationmap), and a mobile-friendly website (http://m.cafcp.org) that shows station availability and other information. Convion opens €E4m funding round Finnish company Convion (www.convion.fi), a leading developer of solid oxide fuel cell based products for distributed power generation, aims to raise up to E4 million (US$4.6 million) with existing and new investors in Finland, through the offer of equity shares via a round facilitated by Finnish investment firm Springvest. The new funding will provide operating capital to build a reference portfolio, maintain its technology advantage, expand the team, and provide the means to increase delivery capability. The placement will help Convion make substantial progress in validating and improving its offering, along with separate project financing for dedicated business and technology development areas. Convion is supplying two 60 kW units for the new ComSos project, to validate and demonstrate commercial SOFC-based combined heat and power (CHP) solutions in mid-sized power ranges [see page 11]. CleverShuttle begins ride-sharing service in Stuttgart with Toyota Mirai FCEVs The German ride-sharing service CleverShuttle (www.clevershuttle.org) is now also available in Stuttgart, providing rail travellers with environmentally friendly travel connections using a fleet consisting initially of 10 Toyota Mirai fuel cell electric vehicles. The 10 vehicles are part of the ZeroE project, through which the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI, www.bmvi.de/EN) is funding the procurement of 185 fuel cell passenger vehicles with E3.2 million (US$3.7 million) from the National Innovation Programme Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology (NIP, http:// tinyurl.com/nip-h2fc-tech). Last autumn CleverShuttle took delivery of its first 20 Toyota Mirai cars for Hamburg, and 15 to add to its fleet in Munich [FCB, October 2017, p5].
Fuel Cells Bulletin
5
NEWS for the operation of fuel cell electric vehicles, as a pioneering step towards sustainable mobility in Switzerland. The companies anticipate that within five years, parts of their own fleets will be converted to fuel cell propulsion, providing the basis of running the hydrogen refueling infrastructure profitably and without subsidies. The lack of a Swiss hydrogen refueling network means that the technology has not yet been successfully rolled out, so the association’s members have decided to immediately trigger a change. Jointly they operate more than 1500 traditional filling stations and more than 1700 heavy-duty vehicles, which represents an ideal basis for establishing a nationwide hydrogen infrastructure – with an ambitious timeframe of completion by 2023. Compared to passenger cars, heavy-duty trucks need 30–50 times more hydrogen per vehicle per annum, so it only takes 10 fuel cell powered commercial vehicles to allow a hydrogen refueling station to economically break even. In addition, the association has decided to only use ‘green’ hydrogen, exclusively produced via electrolysis with renewable energy (e.g. at a Swiss hydroelectric power plant). Coop Mineralöl and H2 Energy were involved in a Swiss consortium that unveiled a fuel cell powered heavy truck, and the first hydroelectric hydrogen station, in autumn 2016 [see the News Feature in FCB, December 2016, and also October 2017, p11]. The association is initially focused on addressing basic questions regarding development, market dynamics, technical questions, and definitions of standards for hydrogen production, vehicles, and hydrogen refueling stations. It will also ensure that all of the components of this sustainable, zero-carbon system are available in Switzerland, to accelerate the expansion of hydrogen technology. The association does not intend to pursue any commercial gains for itself, and is open to further members. Its members will provide their own funding for investments in vehicles and infrastructure. Agrola AG: www.agrola.ch [in German] AVIA Association: www.avia.ch [in German] Coop Group: www.coop.ch/en Coop Mineralöl AG: www.coop-mineraloel.ch [in German] fenaco Cooperative: www.fenaco.com [in German] Migrol AG: www.migrol.ch [in German] Federation of Migros Cooperatives: www.migros.ch [in German]
Infrastructure company Nemoto Tsusho joins JHyM group in Japan
T
he Japan H2 Mobility consortium has added another infrastructure
6
Fuel Cells Bulletin
developer member, to help accelerate the further development of a network of hydrogen refueling stations across Japan. JHyM now comprises 17 participating companies, including seven that are focused on building out the required infrastructure. Nemoto Tsusho is a local trading company in Fukushima Prefecture, to the north of Tokyo, operating gasoline filling stations. ‘We are delighted to welcome such an active local company, who decided to start the hydrogen refueling station business,’ says Hideki Sugawara, President of JHyM and also project general manager at Toyota’s Tokyo Engineering Division. ‘This participation would gain momentum for developing local companies to deploy hydrogen refueling stations all over Japan.’ JHyM was established by 11 major Japanese companies last summer, representing several industries and the financial sector, to accelerate the deployment of hydrogen refueling stations and fuel cell electric vehicles in Japan [FCB, June 2017, p8 and April 2018, p9]. The founding members are automakers Toyota, Nissan and Honda; infrastructure developers JXTG Nippon Oil & Energy, Idemitsu Kosan, Iwatani [see pages 4 and 9], Tokyo Gas, Toho Gas and Air Liquide Japan; and investors Toyota Tsusho Corporation and Development Bank of Japan. Five additional investor companies have subsequently signed up as investment partners: JA Mitsui Lease, Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Insurance, Mitsui Sumitomo Finance & Leasing, NEC Capital Solutions, and Mirai Creation Fund (SPARX Group). Japan H2 Mobility: www.jhym.co.jp/en
ENERGY STORAGE & P2G
IMechE report says P2G could boost UK renewable energy
A
new report by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers says that government and industry in the UK should boost investment in technology to promote the use of hydrogen as a way of storing energy, which would make the nation’s energy system greener and more efficient. The recommendation is made in the IMechE report, Energy from Gas: Taking a Whole System Approach, which outlines key ways in which gas could be used to make the UK energy system greener, cheaper, and more efficient [see also the HyNet item on page 7].
The report calls for more support for Powerto-Gas (P2G) technology, with excess electricity on the National Grid, from either high levels of renewable generation or low demand, used to produce hydrogen through electrolysis. This can be used locally, or injected into the gas grid at a low hydrogen concentration. Apart from producing ‘green’ gas, it can also be used to balance the electricity grid. This hydrogen can then be used in all areas of the energy system, including producing low-emissions ‘fuel’ for transport, reducing CO2 emissions from heating systems, reused to generate electricity, as well as a greener feedstock for industries such as ammonia and plastics production. Meanwhile, a report published by the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies – Decarbonisation of heat and the role of ‘green gas’ in the United Kingdom – looks at the possible role of hydrogen produced from methane via steam reforming, combined with carbon capture and storage (CCS) to create a low-carbon heating source. However, while the report says that ‘green gas’ appears to be technically and economically feasible, it adds that major practical and policy obstacles make it unlikely that the government will commit itself to developing ‘green gas’ in the foreseeable future. IMechE, Energy from Gas report (PDF): https://tinyurl.com/imeche-energy-from-gas Institution of Mechanical Engineers: www.imeche.org Oxford Institute for Energy Studies report (PDF): https://tinyurl.com/oies-green-gas
Colruyt, Parkwind and Fluxys join forces for Belgian P2G project
C
lean energy producer Eoly – part of the Colruyt Group – is collaborating with natural gas grid operator Fluxys and offshore wind developer Parkwind to boost the sustainable energy landscape in Belgium. The aim is to build an industrial-scale (up to 25 MW) Powerto-Gas (P2G) installation that converts ‘green’ electricity into green hydrogen, which can be stored and transported in the existing natural gas infrastructure. The initial phase of the project – which was initiated within the Power-to-Gas Industry Cluster Flanders – will closely examine the feasibility of the installation [see also the Dutch Hydrogen Coalition item on page 8]. The partners envisage creating one of the first European industrial-scale P2G facilities. The aim is to build a P2G installation that can convert several MW of electricity into green hydrogen, which can be marketed as a zero-carbon fuel or feedstock.
June 2018