LEHIGH
VALLEY, Pa., July 25,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Air Products
(NYSE: APD) unveiled plans to build a network of permanent,
commercial-scale hydrogen refuelling stations (HRSs), strategically
located along major transportation corridors near the
Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T). This vital infrastructure
will help connect key locations across Europe and support the advancement of a safe
and resilient hydrogen ecosystem.
Air Products' commercial-scale stations will deliver enhanced
fueling technology, multiple pressure fuelling options and
ultimately, onsite liquid hydrogen storage, which enables liquid
fueling. As part of a robust European hydrogen network, they will
help ensure reliability and convenience for heavy-duty
transportation powered by hydrogen.
Industrial-scale liquid hydrogen in Europe
Air Products' HRSs will be supplied with renewable hydrogen
from its global hydrogen supply chain network, providing a
dependable energy supply to heavy-duty transportation. This
includes a second hydrogen liquefaction plant the company is
building in Rotterdam, which –
once operational – will double Europe's total liquid hydrogen
capacity.
Progressing from plans to action
Air Products is already making progress. A number of current and
planned stations have already been awarded subsidies by the
European Commission through their Connecting Europe Facility (CEF)
funding programme. These include:
- HRS's in Rotterdam, the
Netherlands and Hürth Germany currently in commissioning phase
- An HRS located at the Volvo Group site in the port of
Ghent, Belgium
- Europe's first
commercial-scale HRS with liquid hydrogen in the port of Zeebrugge,
Belgium
In addition to CEF-funding, the company has also been
awarded funding from the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Industry,
Climate Action and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia,
to build two high-capacity, publicly accessible HRSs in Meckenheim
and Duisburg, Germany.
Driving hydrogen-powered trucks adoption with Daimler
Truck
In collaboration with Daimler Truck, a leader in heavy-duty
transportation and decarbonization, Air Products' latest
mobile fuelling station in Duisburg is being used in their
pioneering hydrogen truck pilot project. As part of
customer-trials, five Mercedes-Benz GenH2 trucks can refuel at the
station enabling it to operate under real, heavy-duty fueling
conditions. This will offer vital insights into the liquid hydrogen
fueling interface and help inform the ongoing development of a
future-ready hydrogen ecosystem.
Aligned with Air Products' commitment to convert its
distribution fleet to hydrogen-powered vehicles, it is
also trialling one of the GenH2 trucks as part of the project.
The vehicle will be deployed in Air Products' existing fleet to
transport cylinder gases, allowing it to gain valuable experience
in the field of industrial gas transportation.
The Mercedes-Benz GenH2 trucks will be fuelled with liquid
hydrogen, which enables a range of over 1,000 kilometers. In this
aggregate state the energy carrier has a significantly higher
energy density and as a result, more hydrogen can be carried, which
significantly increases the range and enables comparable
performance of the vehicle with that of a conventional diesel
truck. Transportation can be significantly reduced with liquid
hydrogen, and liquid hydrogen tanks also offer advantages in terms
of cost and weight compared to compressed gaseous hydrogen. Thus,
the use of liquid hydrogen enables a higher payload. This makes the
Mercedes-Benz GenH2 Truck just as suitable for flexible and
demanding long-haul road transportation as conventional diesel
trucks.
Seifi Ghasemi, Chairman,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Products: "With
thousands of trucks delivering industrial gases to our customers
every day, logistics is an integral part of our business. Trialling
a Mercedes-Benz GenH2 Truck under real conditions is a critical
step in our work to convert our distribution fleet to
hydrogen-powered vehicles. On the pathway to sustainable
transportation, safe and reliable production, transportation and
distribution of renewable hydrogen across the entire value chain is
also essential. This is Air Products' proven area of expertise, and
we're proud to be providing critical refuelling infrastructure and
liquid hydrogen as part of this project."
Martin Daum, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler
Truck AG: "It is important to note that high-performance
CO2-neutral vehicles alone will not be enough to make sustainable
transportation successful. This also requires a corresponding
charging and refuelling infrastructure, as well as cost parity with
conventional vehicles. Although policymakers and energy companies
are already active here, we urgently need even more momentum,
across the entire Europe!"
Accelerating the energy transition around the world
The announcement of a European hydrogen refuelling station
network follows Air Products' recently shared plans to build a
network of permanent, commercial-scale, multi-modal hydrogen
refuelling stations stretching from Northern California to Southern California, U.S. and also between
Edmonton and Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
As the world's largest supplier of hydrogen, Air Products has
hands-on operating experience with over 250 hydrogen fueling
station projects in 20 countries, and the company's technologies
are used in over 1.5 million fueling operations
annually.
To learn more about Air Products' hydrogen fueling solutions and
expertise, visit Air Products' Hydrogen Fueling website.
*Co-funded by the European Union. Views and
opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and not
necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA.
Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held
responsible for them.
About Air Products
Air Products (NYSE:APD) is a world-leading industrial gases
company in operation for over 80 years focused on serving energy,
environmental, and emerging markets. The Company has two growth
pillars driven by sustainability. Air Products' base business
provides essential industrial gases, related equipment and
applications expertise to customers in dozens of industries,
including refining, chemicals, metals, electronics, manufacturing,
and food. The Company also develops, engineers, builds, owns and
operates some of the world's largest clean hydrogen projects
supporting the transition to low- and zero-carbon energy in the
heavy-duty transportation and industrial sectors. Additionally, Air
Products is the world leader in the supply of liquefied natural gas
process technology and equipment, and provides turbomachinery,
membrane systems and cryogenic containers globally.
The Company had fiscal 2023 sales of $12.6 billion from operations in
approximately 50 countries and has a current market
capitalization of over $50 billion.
Approximately 23,000 passionate, talented and committed employees
from diverse backgrounds are driven by Air Products' higher purpose
to create innovative solutions that benefit the environment,
enhance sustainability and reimagine what's possible to address the
challenges facing customers, communities, and the world. For more
information, visit www.airproducts.com or follow us on LinkedIn, X,
Facebook or Instagram.
This release contains "forward-looking statements"
within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are
based on management's expectations and assumptions as of the date
of this release and are not guarantees of future performance. While
forward-looking statements are made in good faith and based on
assumptions, expectations and projections that management believes
are reasonable based on currently available information, actual
performance and financial results may differ materially from
projections and estimates expressed in the forward-looking
statements because of many factors, including the risk factors
described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year
ended September 30, 2023 and other
factors disclosed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. Except as required by law, we disclaim any obligation
or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements
contained herein to reflect any change in the assumptions, beliefs
or expectations or any change in events, conditions or
circumstances upon which any such forward-looking statements are
based.
View original
content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/air-products-trials-first-mercedes-benz-genh2-trucks-as-part-of-pioneering-project-with-daimler-truck-and-announces-plans-for-a-european-hydrogen-refuelling-network-302206625.html
SOURCE Air Products