Toyota has announced a new highly efficient fuel-cell (FC) system that will enable vehicles to travel 20% further per kilogram of hydrogen than its existing model.The new third-generation system is also more compact and twice as durable as the second generation, “achieving durability comparable to diesel engines and maintenance-free design”, said the Japanese automaker.“The all-new 3rd Gen FC System is designed to meet the particular needs of the commercial sector… Additionally, the new system features significant improvements in performance, including fuel efficiency and a significant reduction in costs compared to the prior version [which was introduced in 2020],” the company explained.Toyota is planning to introduce the new fuel-cell system “in markets mainly in Japan, Europe, North America, and China after 2026 at the earliest”.In addition to road vehicles, the new fuel-cell can also be used in stationary generators, trains and ships.“To further accelerate the use cases and adoption of FC technology to achieve a hydrogen society, the continuous evolution of FC technology is necessary, and this 3rd Gen FC system represents a significant step-change.”The third-generation fuel-cell system will be officially unveiled at the H2 & FC Expo in Tokyo next Wednesday.
Finland’s first industrial-scale green hydrogen plant has started commercial operations, with the developer urging more companies to deploy renewable H2 or its derivatives before mandates come into force.P2X Solutions had installed 20MW of pressurised alkaline electrolysers supplied by Sunfire at its Harjavalta project, with a power-purchase agreement in place which complies with the EU’s rules for electricity supply for “renewable fuels of non-biological origin” (RFNBOs).P2X’s CEO Herkko Plit tells Hydrogen Insight that while Harjavalta has offtake agreements in place, there is still some capacity left for sale.The developer had signed an offtake agreement with Danisco Sweeteners in 2023 for green hydrogen to be used in the production of xylitol, a sugar substitute.Danisco already uses grey hydrogen to make xylitol at its factory in Kotka, which is more than 300km away from Harjavalta.The EU targets 42% of industrial hydrogen to be renewable by 2030, although many member states have yet to transpose this policy into national legislation.Green hydrogen is currently much more expensive to produce than H2 made from fossil gas, with many industrial users apparently reluctant to sign off on large-scale purchase agreements today.However, without offtake agreements, developers will struggle to secure project finance, with the risk that by 2030,…
Auto giant Toyota has signed an agreement with French utility Engie to roll out “the next generation of hydrogen refuelling systems”, which promise to be faster and cheaper than existing technology.As a first step, the partners will demonstrate the new “higher-flow dual nozzle” hydrogen dispenser from French manufacturer Hydrogen Refueling Solutions (HRS), which can output H2 at high speed at both 350 bar (for heavy-duty vehicles) and 700 bar (for light-duty vehicles).“This innovation eliminates the need for two different types of dispensers at each refuelling station,” said Toyota. “The practical benefit is that a 40-tonne truck will be able to refuel for a 600km range in just 8 minutes and for a 900km range in only 12 minutes.”The RHeaDHy pilot project, which is backed by an EU grant worth €4m ($4.17m), will test HRS's Twin Mid Flow Technology on a specially equipped truck at HRS’s Grenoble facilities, with a hydrogen refuelling station to be developed this year and tested in the fourth quarter of this year.“The installation cost of such hydrogen refuelling stations will be significantly lower, which will help accelerate their deployment in line with the target set out by European Union’s Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) to deploy…
Germany’s state-owned rail company Deutsche Bahn has announced that it will build a test centre together with research institute Fraunhofer IFAM to develop and demonstrate the conversion of trains with diesel engines to run on hydrogen at its depot in Bremen.Deutsche Bahn, which is the world’s largest railway operator by size of network, already maintains and overhauls diesel engines and drivetrains at the Bremen depot, for which it has already signed agreements with the city’s government to ensure a future at the site even as railways are increasingly decarbonised.While the rail company is primarily focusing on electrification to decarbonise its networks — with 68% running on renewable electricity at the end of 2023 — it is also considering the use of H2 to continue operations of existing vehicles.“Forward-looking projects like the one here in Bremen are helping us and the rail sector to power today's engines with future fuels, such as hydrogen,” said Daniela Gerd tom Markotten, Deutsche Bahn’s board member for digitalisation and technology.“This means that we don’t have to put functional trains and locomotives on the siding prematurely. This conserves resources and makes economic sense.”However, internal combustion engines that burn H2 are generally much less efficient than fuel…
Japanese oil firm Eneos has taken a final investment decision on an A$200m ($124.5m) liquid organic hydrogen carrier demonstration project in Queensland, Australia, which will export some volumes to Japan.The facility will produce the equivalent of 680kg of green H2 per day — a 34-times scale-up from Eneos’ previous Australian pilot.Eneos will use a technology which converts water (H2O) and toluene (C7H8) to oxygen (O2) and methylcyclohexane (MCH) (C7H14) in a single step.MCH can be transported at room temperature and pressure, making it easier to move large volumes of hydrogen using existing infrastructure compared to ammonia, which has to be stored at sub-zero temperatures or under pressure.Once at the destination, MCH can then be converted back to H2 and toluene via a high-temperature catalytic process, although this requires a large amount of energy.Ammonia exposure is more dangerous than MCH, causing blindness and burns, although the latter can be fatal if it is swallowed or breathed in. Both chemicals are also toxic to aquatic life with long-lasting effects, which could present an ecological risk if a spill occurs while they are shipped long distances overseas.Eneos plans to ship a portion of H2 produced at the facility to Japan via the chemical…
Dutch developer VoltH2 has signed a heads of terms agreement to sell green hydrogen from its proposed 50MW plant in the Netherlands to German chemicals producer Evonik, to replace the use of polluting fossil-based H2 in hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) production.Under the terms of the non-binding agreement, VoltH2 will build its plant near Evonik’s existing facility in the port city of Delfzijl in the northern Netherlands, with a view to beginning supply when the project comes on line in late 2027.Hydrogen peroxide is used primarily as a bleaching agent in the production of wood pulp and paper, as a cleansing agent in manufacturing processes, and as a major input chemical in the production of detergents. It requires significant volumes of hydrogen, as well as power and steam.Evonik said it plans to source a “significant portion” of its total hydrogen demand for the Delfzijl plant from the VoltH2 electrolyser, and in the short term will make up the difference with grey H2 produced on-site with unabated fossil gas.“This solution will ensure uninterrupted supply until green hydrogen capacity grows to fully cover demand at all times,” the company said in a statement.“We want to switch our production over entirely to renewable resources,” said…
US green hydrogen equipment maker and developer Plug Power says it has “boosted its liquidity by approximately $30m” by transferring federal investment tax credits for hydrogen storage and liquefaction equipment at its 40MW green H2 plant in Woodbine, Georgia, to a “major investor”.The investment tax credit (ITC) was included in Section 48 of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which states that developers can reduce their tax burden to the tune of 30% of the cost of investments in energy storage equipment — explicitly including hydrogen storage facilities — constructed before 1 January 2025.The act also allows companies to transfer their investment tax credits to a third party, which then becomes the eligible taxpayer. This enables the developer to monetise the credits far in advance of their tax returns, while the purchaser of the credits can make a guaranteed profit by buying them for less than their true value.Both Plug and the unnamed “major investor” clearly believe that the Trump administration will not prevent the ITC from being claimed, despite the president signing an executive order on his first day in office to “immediately pause disbursement of funds” appropriated through the IRA.As tax credits are not technically a “disbursement of…
A map plotting the likelihood of natural hydrogen occurring at any specific point in the lower 48 US states has been released by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), an agency of the US Department of the Interior.For natural hydrogen — also known as white or geologic H2 — to occur, three “system components” must be present: a source that generates H2 (see panel below), a reservoir that it allows it to accumulate, and a seal that prevents the reservoir of H2 from escaping into the atmosphere.The likelihood of all three components being present and effective at a specific location is presented as a metric called “chance of sufficiency” (COS), which is measured on a scale between zero and one. The results are presented on a publicly accessible map, where the user can click on a specific location to find out its COS.The highest COS in the lower 48 states (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) is 0.85 — a figure that can be found in the Texas panhandle, north-central Kansas, an area on the border between Illinois and Kentucky and a large chuck of the northwestern part of Michigan’s lower peninsula.However, this does not mean there is an 85% chance of…
Indian automaker Tata Motors is targeting the commercial launch of its hydrogen engine-powered truck within 12 to 24 months, a senior executive at the company has said, putting the conglomerate in line to be one of the first to do so.Speaking on the sidelines of a mobility exhibition and conference in New Delhi this week, Tata Motors executive director Girish Wagh also told news agency Press Trust of India that the company is also about to deploy its new hydrogen truck on India’s roads as part of a pilot programme.Tata Motors, part of giant Indian conglomerate Tata, used the Bharat Mobility Global Expo in New Delhi to unveil its new “Prima H 28” hydrogen truck, which will be fitted with a hydrogen internal combustion engine (H2-ICE).The firm has a tie-in with US engine maker Cummins, with whom it is now operating an H2-ICE factory in India.The pilot project, which is being carried out in partnership with state-owned refiner Indian Oil, will see the trucks deployed along three routes: from Mumbai, on India’s west coast, to Pune (150km); from Jamshedpur in the northeastern province of Jharkhand to Kalinganagar (400km); and from Mumbai to the northwestern city of Ahmedabad (520km).Tata did not…
Toyota has begun offering 70% discounts on sales of its Mirai XLE hydrogen car in California, in addition to 0% financing for up to six years and $15,000 of free H2 fuel.The model — which has a manufacturers’ suggested retail price (MSRP) of $50,190 — is now available with a $35,000 discount when using the 0% financing, providing a sales price of $15,190. If including the value of the free fuel, this represents a cost to buyers of just $190.Even without including the free fuel, the Mirai XLE is now the cheapest new car to buy in the US, beating the Nissan Versa, which starts at $18,330.The XLE version of the Mirai had previously been available in California with a $25,000 discount.The more expensive Mirai Limited model is now available in the state with a $43,000 discount (in addition to 0% financing and fuel vouchers), pushing its asking price down from an MSRP of $67,115 to $24,115 — a 64% discount.In the first nine months of 2024, only 441 hydrogen-powered vehicles were sold in the US — with California being the only US state with hydrogen fuelling infrastructure — compared to 2,791 in the same period a year earlier (an…
German technology firm Siemens Energy and British utility SSE have announced plans to jointly develop a massive 600MW turbine capable of burning 100% hydrogen by 2030.If realised on time, the hydrogen-capable version of Siemens’ 593MW-rated SGT5-9000HL gas turbine is set to be the largest hydrogen turbine in the world.The “multi-million-pound” collaboration between the two companies, announced yesterday (Monday), will see Siemens Energy build new facilities at its Clean Energy Centre in Berlin to test the new technology on its large gas turbines.The goal of the so-called “Mission H2 Power” programme is to deploy the new turbine at SSE’s existing 840MW Keadby 2 gas-fired power station in north Lincolnshire, in England’s East Midlands, which is currently fitted with the standard gas-fired SGT5-9000HL gas turbine.A spokesperson for Siemens Energy told Hydrogen Insight that up until now, all its tests for 100% hydrogen-powered turbines have been on smaller-sized models.This includes the 15MW-rated SGT-400 the company successfully tested in October 2023, making it only the second company to burn 100% H2 in a gas turbine.However, it is “too early in the process” to speculate on whether Siemens Energy and SSE’s 100% hydrogen turbine technology would be the largest in 2030, the spokesperson noted, adding…
The first three subsidised Contracts for Difference (CfDs) under the UK government’s Hydrogen Production Business Model programme have now been signed, guaranteeing a “strike price” of £9.49 ($11.86) for every kilogram of green hydrogen produced for 15 years.Another eight contracts are due to be signed early in the new year, according to the Low Carbon Contracts Company (LCCC) — the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) agency tasked with managing the government’s Contracts for Difference schemes.The 11 winning projects were announced more than a year ago — on 14 December 2023 — and more than £90m have already been allocated from the separate Net Zero Hydrogen Fund to support their construction.The three hydrogen projects signing contracts from DESNZ’s Hydrogen Allocation Round 1 (HAR1) are: H2 Energy and Trafigura’s 14.2MW West Wales project near Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire; Scottish Power and Storegga’s 10.6MW Cromarty Hydrogen project in northern Scotland; Scottish Power’s 7.1MW Whitelee Green Hydrogen project, at the utility’s existing 539MW Whitelee wind farm near Glasgow. “As one of the first structured, government-backed frameworks globally, the Hydrogen Production Business Model provides long-term revenue support for hydrogen producers, reducing investment risks and accelerating the development of the hydrogen economy,” said the…
Japanese oil company Eneos has promised to invest A$200m ($130m) into a new type of electrolyser in Queensland, Australia, which can directly produce a liquid organic hydrogen carrier, methylcyclohexane (MCH), from water and a chemical called toluene that is present in gasoline.The Japanese company had previously installed a 150kW pilot “Direct MCH” plant in Queensland in January, to demonstrate a technology which converts water (H2O) and toluene (C7H8) to oxygen (O2) and MCH (C7H14) in a single step.MCH is a clear, colourless liquid that has similar properties to other hydrocarbons, meaning it can be stored and transported using standard oil-industry equipment — a far more attractive proposition, in principle, than transporting highly toxic ammonia or liquid H2 that requires temperatures of minus-253°C.MCH would then be converted back to toluene and H2 at its destination in a high-temperature catalytic process, with the toluene returned to the production site for re-use.A test shipment of MCH had been sent from the pilot plant in Queensland to Japan as part of the trial, which was then used to fill the tanks of fuel-cell vehicles.The new plant will have around 5MW of electrolysis capacity capable of producing the equivalent of 680kg of H2 per day,…
California will spend $1.4bn of public money on building new hydrogen refuelling stations (HRSs) and EV chargers, after Governor Gavin Newsom’s plan was approved by the state regulator, the California Energy Commission (CEC).Details about the hydrogen part of the plan are thin, but an official statement from the CEC hints that the HRSs will be designed to cater for heavy-duty trucks.The CEC stated that “these investments will help deploy infrastructure for light, medium and heavy-duty zero-emissions vehicles across California, expanding the most extensive charging and hydrogen refueling network in the country”.But it adds: “The funds approved today will result in nearly 17,000 new light-duty chargers statewide”, without giving a corresponding number for HRSs.As only light-duty EV chargers will be built using the new funding, and the statement refers to infrastructure for medium and heavy-duty vehicles, this suggests that the H2 infrastructure will cater for the larger vehicles.Last year, plans were approved to ban all diesel-powered heavy-duty vehicles in the state by 2042, with the purchase of new diesel trucks forbidden from 2036.The new funding will become available through the state’s existing Clean Transportation Program “over the next four years and distributed to projects through competitive grants,” the CEC adds.The programme…
German gas company VNG and hydrogen project developer HyCC have announced plans for a 500MW green hydrogen project near the Piesteritz Chemical Park in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.VNG and HyCC aim to reach a final investment decision on the facility, called “GreenRoot”, in 2026, with a start of operations scheduled for 2029.Hydrogen Insight has reached out to confirm whether all 500MW of capacity will be on line by 2029, or if the project will be built in phases.If fully built by 2029, it would be one of the largest in Germany, with nearly five-times more capacity than has been installed in the country to date.Germany targets 10GW of electrolyser capacity by 2030 to meet a share of its expected 95-130TWh of demand by that year. However, green hydrogen projects within the country have been hampered by high power prices and a lack of certainty around offtake.GreenRoot’s site would be in the immediate vicinity of SKW Piesteritz, Germany’s largest ammonia and urea producer, which has already indicated that it is willing to offtake volumes of green H2 for its operations — although no formal offtake agreement appears to have been signed.However, VNG and HyCC suggest that GreenRoot will be connected to…
Tests have begun on the use of green hydrogen in an industrial furnace at bottle-making factory in Sweden — and the preliminary results suggest that using green H2 will have no impact on the quality of glass produced, or on the furnace, the company behind the programme said yesterday (Tuesday).Luxembourg-based Ardagh Group is replacing some of the fossil gas it uses in the furnace at its facility in Limmared, Sweden with green hydrogen produced from a 5MW proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser on-site.The heat from Ardagh’s Limmered furnace is used to melt together raw cullet (ground up recycled glass), sand, soda ash, limestone and dolomite into new glass that can be made into bottles for the drinks industry.So far, Ardagh has burned 109,000 cubic metres of green hydrogen from the electrolyser since the testing programme began at the start of October.However, it has not revealed what proportion of fossil gas this replaces in the fuel mix, although it states that the aim of the programme is to replace 20% of its gas burn with renewable H2.“The testing phase using the hydrogen energy mix is progressing well, with no impact on the quality of the glass or the furnace, said Daniel…
Green steel developer Stegra has agreed two power supply deals for its 700MW renewable hydrogen and steel project, which is currently under construction in Boden, Sweden and due to start operation in early 2026.The deals amount to 8.25TWh of electricity supply, with 6TWh coming from Germany’s Uniper over six years, and a further 2.25TWh coming from Switzerland-based power trader Axpo over three years, both beginning in 2027.Neither company has revealed the generation source of the electricity supplied under the deals, although Axpo currently has around 24TWh of renewable power from wind and solar “under management” in the Nordic region.Stegra — formerly known as H2 Green Steel — has been working to procure vast quantities of power for the first phase of the Boden plant, which will produce 2.5 million tonnes of steel from direct-reduced iron (DRI), which will be made with green hydrogen produced at the site.As well as requiring electricity for 700MW of electrolysers, it must also power an electric arc furnace at the plant.The company told Hydrogen Insight earlier this year that it had secured 40-50% of its power needs for phase one from hydropower and onshore wind.In 2022, it bagged a 14TWh, seven-year power supply deal with…
