23 October 2018, Weiterstadt – H2 MOBILITY Deutschland, Shell and Air Liquide today opened symbolically the seventh hydrogen (H2) filling station in Hesse during the Brennstoffzellen Forum Hessen 2018. By commissioning the station at the Shell service station in Weiterstadt, the partners have taken one more step towards a nationwide H2 supply network in Germany.
The service station is located directly on the Weiterstadt motorway exit, a few kilometres from the Darmstädter Kreuz (BAB 5; 67 and 672) junction in the Darmstadt and Groß-Gerau catchment areas. This means that drivers of zero-emission fuel-cell cars now have an additional fuelling option on the important north-south axis between Frankfurt, Mannheim and Karlsruhe.
The owner and operator of the new H2 station at the Shell service station is the joint venture
H2 MOBILITY. The filling-station technology was provided by Air Liquide. The hydrogen station is state of the art. Its operation by the driver is intuitive; refuelling is similar to that of conventional vehicles and is completed in three to five minutes. The facility has a capacity of around 200 kilograms of hydrogen – enough to refuel 40 to 50 vehicles a day.
Hydrogen-powered e-mobility reduces CO2 emissions
Hydrogen offers a climate-friendly way to expand the range of fuels in the transport sector: hydrogen produced with renewable energy can significantly reduce climate-damaging CO2 emissions. The operation of an H2-powered fuel-cell vehicle causes neither local pollutants nor carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The vehicles have a range of 500 to 800 kilometres on a full tank of fuel.
Ensuring that hydrogen-powered electric mobility becomes a success story requires an attractive range of fuel-cell vehicles in conjunction with an appropriate supply infrastructure. The expansion of the network of filling stations is making good progress. A Germany-wide network of 100 stations is to be established by 2019. With the addition of Weiterstadt, it will be possible to refuel at 53 stations across Germany.
The European Commission is funding a total of 17 facilities in the ‘trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T CEF)’, including the Weiterstadt station, with a total of 11 million euros, through its ‘Connecting Hydrogen Refuelling Stations’ (COHRS) project.
The parties involved comment on the opening of the Weiterstadt H2 station at the Hesse Fuel Cell Forum in Darmstadt:
Thomas Zengerly, Chairman & CEO, Shell Deutschland Oil GmbH:
“Hydrogen technology is a promising technology, and H2 a fuel for clean mobility. We expect that from the 2020s, this alternative drive will play an increasingly important role in markets such as Germany, England, the Benelux countries, the USA and Japan. We at Shell are on course.”
Nikolas Iwan, Managing Director, H2 MOBILITY Deutschland GmbH:
“Germany is on its way to becoming a pioneer in hydrogen-powered electromobility. We are currently building the backbone of the hydrogen infrastructure with the first 100 stations in metropolitan areas as well as along trunk roads and motorways. We will take our cue from the demand as we continue its expansion.”
Markus Schewitza, Managing Director, Air Liquide Advanced Technologies GmbH
“This new hydrogen station opened in Germany, like the more than 50 already in operation through the country, shows the determination of all the industrial and public partners involved in H2 Mobility Deutschland. Thanks to this partnership, hydrogen energy can be deployed largely, ensuring then a shift to a cleaner energy for transportation. The hydrogen station infrastructure in place already makes it possible to link the entire territory. Air Liquide is involved in the development of hydrogen for more than 50 years. Today we are convinced that hydrogen is inavoidable if we want to succeed in the energy transition.”
Brigitte Lindscheid, District President of Darmstadt:
“Alternative drives are needed more than ever, so hydrogen fuel cells are therefore an important building block on the road to more sustainable, cleaner mobility. The new petrol station in Weiterstadt closes a large gap between the Main and Neckar rivers. I would like to thank the companies involved, which have made considerable investments here.”
Dr Karsten McGovern, Head of the Hesse State Energy Agency:
“The hydrogen filling station in Weiterstadt is the seventh in all of Hesse. We are already observing that the increasing number of filling stations is also generating higher demand for climate-friendly fuel-cell vehicles.”
Press enquiries
Shell Deutschland Oil GmbH
Axel Pommeränke, +49 (0) 40 6324 5290, shellpresse@shell.com
H2 Mobility Deutschland GmbH
Sybille Riepe, +49 (0) 170 58 70 317, riepe@h2-mobility.de
Air Liquide Deutschland GmbH
Nicola Blumhofer, +49 (0) 211 6699-4242, nicola.blumhofer@airliquide.com
Hessische LandesEnergieAgentur (LEA)
Thorsten Schulte, +49 (0) 611 95017-8114, presse@hessen-agentur.de