TheFuelCellIndustryReview2021 4

The
Fuel Cell
Industry
Review
2021
1 FUEL CELL INDUSTRY REVIEW 2021

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We gratefully acknowledge the contribution of many individuals and companies within the fuel cell
industry in providing information for and assistance with the compilation of the Fuel Cell Industry
Review 2021. The Fuel Cell Industry Review 2021 is based on shipment information between October
and December and news items up to December.
COPYRIGHT & DISCLAIMER

The Fuel Cell Industry Review 2021 is the copyright of E4tech. Material from this publication may be
reproduced without prior permission provided that E4tech is acknowledged as the source and a link
given to www.FuelCellIndustryReview.com.
E4tech endeavours to ensure the accuracy of the information and materials contained within this
report, but makes no warranty as to accuracy, completeness or suitability for any particular purpose.
E4tech accepts no liability whatsoever in respect of reliance placed by the user on information and
materials contained in this report, which are used expressly at the user’s own risk. In particular, this
report and the information and materials in this report are not, and should not be construed as,
an offer to buy or sell or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, any regulated products, securities or
investments, or making any recommendation or providing any investment or other advice with
respect to the purchase, sale or other disposition of any regulated products, securities or investments
including, without limitation, any advice to the effect that any related transaction is appropriate or
suitable for any investment objective or financial situation of a prospective investor. A decision to
invest in any regulated products, securities or investments should not be made in reliance on any
of the information or materials in this report. Before making any investment decision, prospective
investors should seek advice from their financial, legal, tax and accounting advisers, take into account
their individual financial needs and circumstances and carefully consider the risks associated with
such investment decisions. This report does not, and should not be construed as acting to, sponsor,
advocate, endorse or promote any regulated products, securities or investments.
NOTE ON CURRENCIES
The following exchange rates can be used as guidance to convert currencies mentioned in this report.
These are the average mid-point exchange rates from 30th November 2020 to 30th November 2021.
US$1 = € 0.8407 €1 = US$ 1.1899 1£ = US$ 1.3723 1¥ = US$ 0.0092
US$1 = £ 0.7289 €1 = £ 0.8673 1£ = € 1.1536 1¥ = € 0.0077
US$1 = ¥ 108.60 €1 = ¥ 129.17 1£ = ¥ 149.04 1¥ = £ 0.0067
July 2022

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
ABS – American Bureau of Shipping JV – Joint Venture

AC Transit – Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District KEPRI – Korea Electric Power Research Institute
ADL – Alexander Dennis Limited KEPCO – Korea Electric Power Corp.
AFC – Alkaline Fuel Cell kFW 433 – Förderung für das Heizen mit Brennstoffzelle
AFO – Alternate Fuel Organisation of Indian Railways German national mCHP programme)
AI – Artificial Intelligence KIK – Keskkonnainvesteeringute Keskus
AIP – Air Independent Propulsion (Estonia’s Environmental Investment Center)
APU – Auxiliary Power Unit KOGAS – Korea Gas
ARRA – American Recovery and Reinvestment Act KRRI – Korean Railroad Research institute
ASL – ASL Aviation Holdings KSOE – Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co.
ATI – Aerospace Technology Institute kW – Kilowatt
BC – British Columbia (Canada) LCV – Light commercial vehicle
BOC – British Oxygen Company (Linde subsidiary) LH2 – Liquid Hydrogen
BOP – Balance-Of-Plant LIDAR – Light Detection and Ranging Technology
BMW – Bayerische Motoren Werke AG LNG – Liquefied Natural Gas
BMWi – German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy LNVG – Landes Niedersachsen ein bedarfsgerechtes öffentliches
(since 2021 renamed the BMWK) Verkehrsangebot (regional transport authority for Lower Saxony)
BVLOS – Beyond Visual Line Of Sight
BWT – Blue World Technologies LOHC - Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier technology
Capex – Capital Expenditure LPG – Liquefied Petroleum Gas
CARB – California Air Resources Board LRV – Light Rail Vehicle
CCI – California Climate Investments LT-PEM – Low-temperature PEM
CCS – China Classification Society MCFC – Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell
CCS – Carbon Capture & Storage MEA – Membrane Electrode Assembly
CCUS – Carbon Capture, Utilisation & Storage technologies MES-M – Mitsui E&S Machinery
CEC – California Energy Commission METIP – Maritime Emerging Technologies Innovation Park
CEOG – Centrale Électrique de l’Ouest Guyanais MIIT – Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
CHEM – Chung-Hsin Electric and Machinery Mfg Corp MIL-STD – United States Military Standard
CHP – Combined Heat and Power MMC – Shenzhen MicroMultiCopter
CH2 – Compressed hydrogen MOF – Ministry of Finance (China)
COP – United Nations Climate Change Conference MOST – Ministry of Science and Technology
COVID/COIVD-19 – Coronavirus 2019 (SARS-CoV-2) MOU – Memorandum of Understanding
COMAC – Commercial Aircraft Corp o f China MTU – MTU Friedrichshafen (now Rolls Royce Power Systems)
CT – Connecticut (US State) MW – Megawatt
CTE – Center for Transportation and the Environment MZK – Miejski Zakład Komunikacji (Poland)
DAPA – Defense Acquisition Program Administration (South Korea) NASA – National Aeronautics and Space Administration (US)
DC (power) – Direct Current NEDO – New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization
DEEP – Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (US) NEV – New Energy Vehicle (authorized battery and fuel cell vehicles in China)
DG – Distributed Generation NHN – Development Agency Noord-Holland Noord
DLR - German Aerospace Centre NM – Nautical Mile
DMFC – Direct Methanol Fuel Cell NREL – National Renewable Energy Laboratory
DMI – Doosan Mobility Innovation NY – New York (US State)
DOD - Department of Defense (US) NOx – Nitrogen Oxides
DOE – Department of Energy (US) OEM – Original Equipment Manufacturer
DTU – Technical University of Denmark OGE – Open Grid Europe
EAS-HyMob – Easy Access to Hydrogen Mobility (project) Opex – Operational Expenditure
EFOY – Energy For You (SFC Energy fuel cell products) PACE – Pathway to Competitive European fuel cell micro-CHP market
EKPO – JV of ElringKlinger and Plastic Omnium (FCH2 JU project)
EMEC – European Marine Energy Centre PAFC – Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell
EMU – Electric Multiple Unit (train) PBI – Polybenzimidazole Fuel Cell
ENC – ElDorado National-California
ENOVA – Norwegian government enterprise responsible for promotion of PCBFC – Printed Circuit Board Fuel Cell
environmentally-friendly production and consumption of energy PEM(FC) – Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (Fuel Cell)
EPA – United States Environmental Protection Agency PGNIG – Polish Oil and Gas Company
ERDF - European Regional Development Fund POSCO – (formerly Pohang Iron and Steel Company),
ESA – European Space Agency a South Korean steel-making company
EU – European Union PPA – Power Purchasing Agreement
EUDP – Danish Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Program PSA – Peugeot S.A., now Stellantis
EVLOS – Extended Visual Line Of Sight PV – Photovoltaic
EV – Electric Vehicle R&D – Research and Development
FC – Fuel Cell RoW – Rest of World
FAA – Federal Aviation Administration RMB – Chinese Yuan
FCE – FuelCell Energy, Inc. RTG – Rubber-Tired-Gantry crane
FCEB – Fuel Cell Electric Bus SAE (China) – China Society of Automotive Engineers
FCT – Fuel Cell Today SAF – Sustainable Aviation Fuel
FCV/FCEV – Fuel Cell (Electric) Vehicle SAIC – Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation
FCH JU – Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking SARTA – Stark Area Regional Transit Authority
(replaced in 2021 by Clean Hydrogen JU) SATE – Sustainable Aviation Test Environment
FCH2Rail – Fuel Cell Hybrid Power Pack for Rail Applications SCADA – Supervisory control and data acquisition
FCIR – Fuel Cell Industry Review SCAQMD – South Coast Air Quality Management District
FCTS – Toyota SinoHytec Fuel Cell (JV) SFC – SFC Energy AG
FPS – Future Proof Shipping SGN - Scottish Gas Network operator
FRP – FRP Advanced Technologies Aerospace & Defence S.L. SHyFT – Scottish Hydrogen Fuel Tank, composite high-pressure vessel,
FST – Freudenberg Sealing Technologies developed by Innovatus Technologies
GE – General Electric SK – Saskatchewan (Canada)
GM – General Motors Company SK E&S –South Korea’s largest private renewable energy operator
GW – Gigawatt SNCF – Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer français
HD(V) – Heavy Duty (Vehicle): trucks, sometimes also applied to buses SOEC – Solid Oxide Electrolyser Cell
HEART – Hydrogen-Electric and Automated Regional Transportation SOFC – Solid Oxide Fuel Cell
HES – HES Energy Systems SPAC – Special-Purpose Acquisition Company
HEV – Hybrid Electric Vehicle SUV – Sports Utility Vehicle
HTWO – Hyundai Motor Group’s fuel cell brand TESS – Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corp.
HHM – JV of Hyundai Motor and H2 Energy TTSI – Total Transport Services Inc.
HIAL – Highlands and Islands Airports Limited
HI ERN – Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nurnberg for Renewable Energy TU (Delft) - Delft University of Technology
HNH – Development Agency Noord-Holland Noord UAE – United Arab Emirates
HQ – Headquarters UAV – Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
HRS – Hydrogen Refuelling Station UK – United Kingdom
HT-PEM – High Temperature PEM (PBI) UPS – Uninterruptible Power Supply
IAA - Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung (Motor show in Germany) UPS (Company) – United Parcels Service
IAG – International Airlines Group US/USA – United States of America
ICE – Internal Combustion Engine UTC – United Technologies Corp.
IE – Intelligent Energy VDL – VDL Bus & Coach
IMO – International Maritime Organization VTOL/eVTOL – (Electrical) Vertical Take-off and Landing (aerial vehicle)
IPCEI – Important Projects of Common European Interest VTT – VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland
IPHE – International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy W – Watt
IPO – Initial Public Offering WA – Washington (US State)
ISS – International Space Station ZAL – ZAL Centre for Applied Aviation Research GmbH
JAXA – Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency ZECAP – Zero Emissions for California Ports
JIVE – Joint Initiative for hydrogen Vehicles across Europe ZEV – Zero Emissions Vehicle
JLR – Jaguar Land Rover

Table of contents
Acknowledgements 2
Back on the growth curve? 5
About the Review 7
Looking back on 2021 9
Corporate developments 10
Cars and vans 12
Hydrogen refuelling stations – pressure rising 16
Fuel cell buses – going places 18
Shipments by region 25
Medium- and heavy-duty trucks – new growth 27
Hydrogen strategies and roadmaps 33
Shipments by application 36
Trains and trams – also going places 38
Materials handling and forklift trucks 43
Bicycles and motorcycles 45
Boats giving way to ships 46
Aviation – lifting-off 50
Shipments by fuel cell type 57
Stationary fuel cells – growing bigger 59
Portable – sales holding, spawning new plays 70
China – big, and set to get bigger 74
Looking to the future 76
Data tables 77
Notes 79
About E4tech and the authors 80
Can we help? 81
Picture credits 82
1262626

Back on the growth curve?
Despite the late appearance of this year’s Review, Rail appears set on a slow and steady growth
we have tried to focus on what 2021 told us. path, with Alstom and Siemens entrenching
Events in 2022 so far have affected energy further with Cummins and Ballard respectively,
markets dramatically; we have resisted second- and players from India to North America
guessing developments for the rest of the year. exploring the option. Around 50 train units are
anticipated globally by the end of 2022, and more
Our 2019 hope that the industry would ship 2 GW are being ordered.
came true a year late – in fact over 2.3 GW went
out in 2021. Total units were up too – by 4,000 to Fuel cell activity is also increasing in shipping,
nearly 86,000. There is no change in the main with Doosan (using Ceres technology), Prototech/
contributors though – Hyundai and Toyota Clara (Sunfire stacks), TECO 2030 (AVL fuel cells)
dominate the power side and Ene-Farm the units, and Topsøe. Larger SOFC and PEM systems are
though portable power showed an uptick. now being researched actively for propulsion, not
PEM fuel cells for all mobility uses are 86% of the just hotel loads.
MW – even more than 2020.
Timelines in aviation are just as long, but
But the interesting movements are not in these announcements from Airbus with Elring Klinger,
headline figures – though they offer clues. The PowerCell, ZeroAvia and Universal Hydrogen
two car models being shipped are helping prove (with Plug Power) are only a part of the ongoing
the technology for all transport, including activity, with regional flights the initial target.
stimulating the very encouraging uptake of heavy
duty solutions. The increasingly broad PEM supply And Plug is continuing its ‘total system’ mission
chain also plays a development role – offering – it is now the largest global supplier and user of
options for different end-user players and liquid hydrogen, its aviation play is one of many it
gradually reducing cost. has all across transport, and it is looking to scale
up the hydrogen production capability from its
Hyzon continues its meteoric rise in heavy duty, Giner acquisition.
mainly trucks for now, announcing financing,
partnerships and early shipments on a regular That scaling is not just for Plug’s own use.
basis. Ever more Hyundai FC trucks run around Hydrogen roadmaps and targets have not only
Switzerland, quietly getting on with the job of continued to appear but have increased in
delivering goods, and truck numbers nearly ambition. Plug intends to be one of many
doubled in Europe overall, also increasing suppliers of equipment into the emerging market,
substantially in China. Cellcentric and Toyota and likely also of the hydrogen produced. They
continue their development pathways in the are one of only a few players to do both fuel cells
sector, and Nikola seems to have survived its and electrolysers, though that is changing.
near-death experience and is pushing forward Cummins is a long-term player in both; Sunfire
with Iveco. And nearly all the major truck too; Bloom has partially rediscovered its roots and
manufacturers in Europe have now called for the is making SOEC as well as SOFC, and other SOFC
creation of a network of around 300 high- companies like Ceres and SOLIDpower have
performance HRS by 2025, rising to 1,000 by 2030. similar developments ongoing. Even start-ups like
A notable dissenter is Scania, which now seems to Bramble now target this space.
have set its path on renewable fuels and battery This set of multiple target markets and even
electric vehicles. business models partially reflects the earlier days
Global FC bus shipments dropped slightly in of the industry, when Ballard, inter alia, covered
2021, to around 1,100 units, with a fall in Chinese everything from portable power to marine and
demand; Europe saw a doubling to around 220. large stationary.

It also reflects the not-yet-mature state of the Investment in hydrogen companies generally has
sector, where the final integrator is also been very high, and some fuel cell companies
sometimes the system developer, and have benefited. More share offerings (valued at
opportunities to increase sales by serving nearly US$3bn) took place in 2021 than ever
multiple end-users with essentially identical before, while JVs, MoUs and strategic partnerships
technology are valuable. Hyundai and Toyota are proliferate. New entrants are faring well, as are
both increasing their flexibility to provide many established companies. Many are opening
standard offerings across transport and into regional offices, to serve new markets.
stationary settings. The other crucial driver of the
broad array of different end-uses, and especially The dominance of PEM in MW terms helps with
the ‘systems thinking’ approach taken by cost reduction in the technology; the need for
companies like Plug, is those hydrogen roadmaps. MEAs for all of those units should help still further,
as the MEA volumes scale in multiples of stack
Even before the devastating events of early 2022 volume. Other cost reductions come with
savaged the energy markets, COP26 in Glasgow increasing standardisation and from new supply
was sending the latest desperate signals of the chain entrants with know-how in mature markets.
urgency of change away from any emissions of
CO2. Fuel cells have always been an option for Other positive signs come in a variety of regions
better end-use efficiency and lower pollution, but – the number of fuel cell forklifts going to Europe
need clean – ideally renewable – hydrogen to increased by 340% in 2021, to nearly 3,500 units.
complete the low emissions system. By coupling Ever-larger materials handling platforms are
the demand signals of ever-tighter emissions being targeted, such as those at ports. Portable
regulation with the supply signals of hydrogen power from leisure through to military uses
roadmaps, strategies and funding, the dots are remained strong, even growing slightly.
starting to be joined. Micro-CHP remains a tough sell though. Unit sales
Although these roadmaps and strategies to Japan (Ene-Farm) and to Germany (KfW 433)
inevitably have long-term horizons (2030-2040), were muted in 2021, possibly related to ongoing
the required policies will be supportive to the pandemic restrictions. Though from July, German
industry. Green H2 is set to be produced in much grant eligibility was extended to large companies
greater volumes, with trading of H2 as a installing fuel cells in non-residential buildings,
commodity a realistic possibility. Fuel cell players which may have a small positive impact. Korea’s
are responding to deliver ever-larger plants, programme does not seem to have got far off the
designed to be fuelled by H2 rather than natural ground, despite leading in several other areas.
gas. The end-uses are likely to demand more The implementation of the new Hydrogen
hydrogen than can come from green sources for a Portfolio Standards may help.
while, however, so the window for fuel cells using What next? The race to decarbonise, the
natural gas could remain open for some time. unvanquished virus, economic slippage and the
Advent has even launched a fuel cell specifically energy market turmoil thrust upon us render our
to reduce wellhead methane that would crystal ball not just opaque but full of
otherwise be emitted. thunderclouds. The general mood in the industry
The most developed strategies have specific is good, however, with full order books for many
targets for electrolyser capacity, ambitious and a sense that fuel cells offer a good option to
power-to-H2 and e-fuels plans, and commitments address several of the issues above. The ride could
to policy level support, recognising that primary be wild though – is anybody planning a fuel
legislation will be required to reach the targets. cell-powered rollercoaster?
These ambitions start to offer direction, and more
importantly some certainty, for suppliers, end-
users and investors.

About the Review
Applications
To allow year-on-year data comparisons, we base our categorisation of shipment data on that defined
by FCT. For applications, these categories are Portable, Stationary and Transport, defined as follows:
Application type Portable Stationary Transport

Definition Units that are built into, or Units that provide Units that provide
charge up, products that electricity (and propulsive power or range
are designed to be moved, sometimes heat) but extension to a vehicle
including small auxiliary are not designed to be
power units (APU) moved
Typical power range 1 W to 20 kW 0.5 kW to 2 MW 1 kW to 300 kW
Typical technology PEMFC PEMFC PEMFC

DMFC MCFC DMFC
SOFC AFC
SOFC
PAFC
Example • Small ‘movable’ APUs • Large stationary prime • Materials handling
(campervans, boats, power and combined vehicles
lighting) heat and power (CHP) • Fuel cell electric vehicles
• Military applications • Small stationary (FCEV)
(portable soldier-borne micro-CHP • Trucks and buses
power, skid-mounted • Uninterruptible power • Rail vehicles
generators) supplies (UPS)
• Autonomous vehicles
• Portable products • Larger ‘permanent’ APUs (air, land or water)
(torches, battery (e.g. trucks and ships)
chargers), small personal
electronics (mp3 player,
cameras)
Portable fuel cells encompass those designed or able to be moved, including small auxiliary power
units (APU); Stationary power fuel cells are units designed to provide power to a ‘fixed’ location, also
including APUs on e.g. trucks and large vessels; Transport fuel cells provide either primary propulsion
or range-extending capability for vehicles.
Fuel cell types

Shipments by fuel cell type refer to the six main electrolytes used in fuel cells: proton exchange
membrane fuel cells (PEMFC), direct methanol fuel cells (DMFC), phosphoric acid fuel cells (PAFC),
molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFC), solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and alkaline fuel cells (AFC). High
temperature PEMFC and low temperature PEMFC are shown together as PEMFC.
Explanations of these six main types of fuel cells can be found on the archive of the FCT website
https://web.archive.org/web/20220119090819/http://www.fuelcelltoday.com/technologies

Geographic regions
We maintain FCT’s four

main geographic
regions of fuel cell
adoption: Asia, Europe,
North America and the
Rest of the World (RoW).
RoW
Asia
North America
Europe
Reported shipment data Data sources and methodology

E4tech has been publishing this Review for eight We have been in direct contact, either verbally or in
years now. Tables of data can be found at the back writing, with over 50 companies globally for this
of this Review going back to 2016. Editions of the report. Some of these are not yet shipping other
review prior to 2018 included historical than small quantities for tests but of those that are
information from Fuel Cells Today dating back to shipping very few declined to give us primary data.
2012. Data are presented for each year in terms of
For those – but also for others, as a way to sense-
annual system shipments and the sum total of
check our numbers – we have collected and cross-
those systems in megawatts, both divided by
referenced data from publicly available sources such
application, region and fuel cell type as described
as company statements and statutory reports, press
in the section below.
releases, and demonstration and roll-out
Shipment numbers are rounded to the nearest programmes, in addition to discussions with other
100 units and megawatt data to the nearest parties in the supply chain. We do not count
0.1 MW. Where power ratings are quoted, these replacement stacks in existing applications, and
refer to the electrical output unless stated where possible we also do not count inventory, only
otherwise. In general, we use the nominal, not systems that are shipped to users.
peak, power of the system, with the exception of Our dataset is based on firm numbers for the period
transport. Because continuous power depends January to end of September 2021 and in most
heavily on system design and how it is used, we cases as late as December 2021. Where we do not
report peak power for these units. have full year data, we use forecasts shared with us
by individual companies or forecasts prepared by us
The reported figures refer to shipments by the
in discussion with industry. We will revise data for
final manufacturer, usually the system integrator.
2021 in our 2022 edition as appropriate. We have
In transport we count the vehicle when shipped
revised the figures for 2020 in this report: Unit
from the factory. This is because the shipments of
numbers were decreased by 0.8% and MW numbers
stacks or modules in a given year can be
increased by 1.4% compared to our published 2020
significantly different from the shipment of final
forecast. The main changes relate to fewer Ene-Farm
units (e.g. vehicles) in the same timeframe. We use
units shipped, more buses to South Korea, and
stack and module shipment data to help us sense-
slightly fewer trucks shipped to China than initially
check numbers between years. The regional split
forecast, after final data for 2020 became available,
in our data refers to the countries of adoption, or
together with an uplift in the fuel cell stack power
in other words, where the fuel cell products have
applied to commercial vehicles in China.
been shipped to, not where they have been
manufactured. Where possible, we do not include We thank all of the companies that have
shipments for toys and educational kits. responded to our requests for data and
clarification. If you ship – or plan to ship – fuel cell
systems and we have not been in touch with you,
please do contact us so that we can further
improve our coverage for future editions.

Looking back on 2021
2020 was tough for everyone. 2021 was just as And since fuel cell projects are now often part of
tough for some, though vaccines and supply bigger hydrogen energy projects, driven by
chain reconfiguration helped a few regions to governments increasingly demonstrating their
partially recover. Supply chain modifications also realisation that hydrogen is an important
helped the fuel cell industry regain some of its component of a low carbon future, systems
previous trajectory and ship a record amount of thinking will remain essential.
power. Car sales were back up, but particularly
important for the sector was the multitude of At the other end of the spectrum we see more
announcements in the heavy-duty realm. standardisation. “You can have any size fuel cell as
Increased numbers of fuel cell trucks will help to long as it’s 100 kW” could be today’s equivalent of
drive down costs of components, and improve the Model T Ford’s original colour choices (black).
investment in infrastructure. Buses will contribute While this reduces the level of optimisation
some of the same support, while their use also possible, it means the supply chain can be more
informs the public and local authorities of the robust, and costs can come down through repeat
benefits fuel cells can offer. production, which improves the economics from
the other direction.
The ’battery vs fuel cell’ question remains hard to
answer. We maintain that this is partly because it “How much does a fuel cell cost?” is still a tricky
is the wrong question! BEV sales continue strong, question to answer though. While increasing
despite some headwinds from supply chain numbers of companies have some sort of list
development, critical materials availability and a price, pricing remains somewhat confidential in
retrenching of production to reduce geopolitical most cases, and subject to bilateral negotiation.
risk. But a significant number of major players And of course prices vary dramatically by fuel cell
(e.g. Bosch) continues to invest in hydrogen and type and system need. Still, the numbers we see
fuel cells as part of the energy transition, even for are coming encouragingly down a conventional
vehicles. Nothing in the work we do suggests that learning curve, and that should continue with the
fuel cells are going away – quite the opposite. increasing manufacturing capacity announced by
Bosch, cellcentric, Cummins, EKPO, Symbio and
As in all industries, fuel cell actors in 2021 were others. But the ongoing proliferation of joint
partly hampered by travel restrictions. Not being ventures is symbolic of the need to pool talent
able to visit suppliers, installation sites and (and risk), even as the opportunities come ever
conferences slowed development, deployment closer to market.
and discovery. Innovative and sometimes highly
effective online solutions were implemented, but
it seems most people prefer a chance to discuss
face-to-face. A lot of catching up will be
happening through 2022!
‘Big system’ strategies continued to evolve
through 2021. When the industry began, many
players had to do everything because the supply
chain simply didn’t exist. Once hardware supplies
were available, it was often gaps in the business
model chain that required companies not only to
make stacks, but also systems, and organise fuel
provision, and deal with the consumer. Now the
benefit of doing all of those things is to manage 2021 saw just over 2.3 GW of fuel cells shipped
the end-to-end economics. Being able to globally, a 173% increase on 2020, particularly
optimise the system size, the fuel delivery, the impressive given the COVID backdrop. And the
timing and other aspects can make the difference announcements and other signs from 2021
between a bankable project and a loss-making one. bode well for the numbers in 2022.

Corporate developments
More money is flowing into the fuel cell sector, In late 2021, SAIC Motor, China’s largest home-
and more significant partnerships are developing. grown carmaker, announced an intention to spin
What we find interesting is the breadth of off Shanghai Hydrogen Propulsion Technology, its
investments in 2021 (almost every type of fuel cell business unit focusing on H2 fuel cell technologies,
and every end-use market) as well as the by listing it on the Shanghai Star Market. A major
increasing number devoted to raising production competitor, Beijing SinoHytec, is also listed on the
levels or putting units out for sale, rather than Star Market, following its IPO in August 2020.
early-stage research.
In July, HDF Energy raised €132m (US$156m) in an
Fundraising IPO to help develop its first factory for utility-scale
(1 MW+) FC systems, using PEMs from Ballard, and
In January, Plug Power successfully concluded a to invest in the equity of projects, initially in
US$1.8 bn public offering of 28m shares, one of Mexico, Barbados and Chile. HDF’s plants will
the largest primary bought offerings in recent provide continuous or on-demand electricity from
years and right after Plug’s US$972m public wind or solar, combined with fuel cells.
offering in November 2020. It will use the
proceeds to push its transition to the broader Belgium-based Alkaline Fuel Cell Power joined
green H2 market, with fuel cells remaining a key AFC Energy and GenCell as listed companies on
component. At the end of 2021 Plug acquired 16 July, on the NEO Exchange. All three share
Frames Group, a system integrator, mainly for some roots in Belgium’s space industry, though
electrolyser integration. Fuel Cell Power’s focus is on micro CHP systems
based on alkaline FC technology. GenCell also
In February, Ballard’s public share offer brought raised capital, up to US$39.5m through the private
in US$527m. This also followed a November placement of shares, including participants such
offering – US$386m. Funds will go towards growth as the Harel Group and Migdal Insurance.
and acquisitions, like the purchase of the UK’s
Arcola Energy, now Ballard Mobility Solutions, late New South Wales-based H2X Global is
in 2021. targeting a 2022 IPO. Its Warrego Ute, an
H2 FC Ford Ranger derivative to be launched in
Also in February, European HRS designer and 2023, has a claimed range of 750 km and
manufacturer Hydrogen Refueling Solutions over AU$50m (US$36m) in pre-orders from
raised €84.6m in its IPO on Euronext Growth Paris. “enthusiastic early adopters”.
March saw Ceres raise £181m (US$248m) from Joint Ventures and Partnerships
existing investors Bosch and Weichai, and from
a wider share issue to the public. 25% will be 2021 also saw an increase in partnering
used to drive the SOFC activity, 55% to grow the activity, much of which is outlined elsewhere in
solid oxide electrolyser offering, and 20% across the Review.
the business.
In April, EKPO Fuel Cell Technologies, the 60:40 JV
After 20 years, Loop Energy is starting to between ElringKlinger and Plastic Omnium was
commercialise its eFlow FC. An IPO on the launched following antitrust approvals. The
Toronto Stock Exchange in February raised company site in Dettingen/Erms, Germany can
CA$100m (US$79m), and in March the logistics already produce up to 10,000 stacks a year, and
company Rheintal-Transporte ordered 20 units; EKPO aims for 10-15% of the automotive fuel cell
significant given the slowly-building European market by 2030, realising revenues up to €1bn.
market. Loop already had an agreement with a ElringKlinger and VDL Bus & Coach in the
Slovenian actor focused on network resilience, Netherlands have also agreed a strategic
for more than 50 eFlow modules for integration partnership to develop and industrialise fuel cell
with Ecube’s green H2 thermal energy storage stacks and systems for mobile and stationary end
solution, ‘Hydrogenium’. uses, such as gensets.
Hyundai Heavy Industries partnered with AVL to
develop fuel cells of 200 kW to 1 MW for ships by
2025. Bramble Energy and MAHLE continue
collaborating on Bramble’s PCBFC technology.

Acquisitions Standardising products
In March, Advent Technologies purchased 2021 saw more companies pushing scalable FC
UltraCell, the fuel cell division of BrenTronics. modules for a range of cross-cutting applications.
Then in July Advent acquired the fuel cell
businesses of Fischer Group, for €52m, Hyundai’s new sub-brand, HTWO, covers its H2
including SerEnergy. modules for the NEXO and racing cars. It plans a
hybrid powertrain for unmanned air cargo by 2026.
In May, Alstom bought Helion Hydrogen Power,
renamed as Alstom Hydrogène SAS. It is based in In February, Toyota announced a compact
Aix-en-Provence and covers the entire value chain mobility module (trucks, buses, trains and ships,
of high-power PEM FCs: design and development but also stationary power), in four variants. Type I
to manufacturing, engineering support and is vertical and Type II horizontal, power is 60 or
customer training. Helion presently produces 80 kW. This responds to FC system developers
bespoke rather than volume product, for energy looking for standard modules to adapt to their
and transport markets. own products.
And US Hybrid, making FC engines for medium-

and heavy-duty commercial fleet applications,
was acquired in June for US$50m by New York’s
Ideanomics, with a mission to accelerate the
adoption of commercial EVs.
Business Growth
In February, Danish HT-PEM Blue World
Technologies took possession of its Aalborg
production site and closed €6m investment.
Capacity is 5,000 units (50 MW) a year, with initial
pre-series production set for late 2021. BWT also
acquired Danish Power Systems, bringing core
components in the FC value chain in-house.
Vaekstfonden and DEUTZ have each invested Rapid charger application
€7.5m in BWT.
With battery vehicle uptake on the rise, the
In April, Hyzon Motors set out plans to build an somewhat ironic use of fuel cells to deliver
MEA production line for commercial vehicles at its resilience to rapid charging networks is also rising.
new Innovation Centre in Bolingbrook, Illinois. At
full capacity, MEAs for up to 12,000 H2 fuel cell January saw more details of the strategic
trucks a year will be produced. The company also partnership between UK-based AFC Energy and
officially commenced trading on the Nasdaq Global ABB. They plan to launch a bespoke high-power,
Select market in August, following completion of a ultra-rapid EV charging product for distribution
combination with SPAC vehicle DCRB. through ABB’s market channels, for use at
logistic hubs, bus depots, and for marine
September saw Proton Motor announce a markets (ferries).
collaboration with Aumann AG, a specialist in
automated production lines, to expand series AFC Energy is not alone. In November, GenCell
production of hydrogen fuel cells, and in Energy signed an agreement with EV Motors, an
September, Symbio launched Symbio North Israeli importer of BPEVs, chargers and energy
America, to target the US market. storage systems, to create autonomous HEV
charging stations, replacing fossil fuel backup
In October, Plug Power announced a generators with NH3-fuelled AFCs. And Pure ETCR-
new regional HQ in Germany’s North real electric car racing has agreed with WSC
Rhine-Westphalia, to drive sales across Europe. Group and HTWO that the charging process for all
The 70,000 ft2 facility will have 30 employees, cars competing in the world’s first all-electric,
house an innovation centre with engineering labs multi-brand touring car series will be powered by
and technical support and training, and be a HTWO’s hydrogen twin fuel cell generator.
logistics hub. Renault’s main e-mobility factory, at
Flins in France, will assemble fuel cells and
hydrogen refuelling stations for Renault and
Plug’s JV HYVIA, to offer three FC-powered Master
Large Van models.

Cars and vans
Hyundai and Toyota: keeping the pace
2021 saw the highest number of fuel cell
passenger car shipments to date, with global sales
above 15,800 vehicles – almost twice 2020. Not
surprisingly, most deployments came from the
Hyundai NEXO and the new Mirai from Toyota.
Deliveries of the former increased to over 9,300
units in 2021, mainly in South Korea, while the
latter has been well-received in Japan and
overseas. Both vehicles are also in the running for
range records.
In April, the NEXO travelled the then longest Jaguar Land Rover has teamed up with R&D
distance, 887.5 km (551 mi) by a hydrogen partners to develop a fuel cell prototype vehicle,
powered vehicle on a single tank, but a few based on the new Land Rover Defender. Road
months later, the new Mirai set a new Guinness testing was scheduled to begin in the UK in late
World Record with an unprecedented 1,360 km 2021, with a focus on validating key
(845 mi) – three times or more the range of a characteristics such as fuel consumption and
battery-powered car. This may have put the off-road capabilities.
pressure back on Hyundai, which has announced
plans to increase significantly the range of its next In France, in June, start-up Hopium presented the
generation NEXO, expected by 2023. first prototype of its Māchina, a high-end fuel cell
sedan, during the Viva Technology week in Paris.
Honda is out for now The first 1,000 units have been pre-booked,
though the vehicle will not be commercially
In August, Honda discontinued production of its available until 2025.
Clarity Fuel Cell, with the remaining stock being
available for lease through 2022. The less than Danish FC start-up Blue World Technologies
300 units shipped in 2021 barely figure in the (BWT), is collaborating with Karma, the California-
overall volume of fuel cell car shipments for the based luxury electric car company, with plans to
year. The Japanese car maker keeps developing integrate methanol HT-PEM systems in Karma
next generation fuel cell systems together with GS-6 vehicles for testing and validation. This adds
GM, though no news has emerged regarding their to BWT’s partnerships with Chinese electric car
Fuel Cell System Manufacturing joint venture, maker Aiways and German engine manufacturer
initially set to start operations around 2020. Deutz. BWT continues to expand its factory in
Aalborg, aiming for an annual capacity of 500 MW
Meanwhile, GM is working actively to deploy its by the end of 2023.
HYDROTEC fuel cell power cubes beyond cars, in
truck, rail and aerospace. Daimler continues to Europe’s fuel cell car numbers are growing…
keep its fuel cell focus away from cars, in April slowly
announcing the creation of the JV cellcentric with
Volvo Group, focused on heavy-duty trucks. Around 1,000 fuel cell passenger cars shipped to
Europe in 2021, mostly Mirais, with just over 300
New cars on the horizon NEXOs. Building on demonstrators placed with
influential stakeholders, the commonest real-
BMW is testing its iHydrogen NEXT concept car on world use case is emerging as fuel cell taxis, which
European roads and presented its iX5 Hydrogen are slowly building in numbers in major cities
vehicle at the IAA Mobility 2021 motor show in across Europe. 100+ Mirai taxis now run in
Munich. A small series of the iX5 Hydrogen will be Copenhagen, supporting the city’s goal of zero-
produced as demonstrators from late 2022, using emission taxis by 2030. Oslo has similar plans. In
stacks arising from BMW’s product development Paris, H2 mobility operator Hype (with Total as a
cooperation with Toyota. In contrast, the latest 20% shareholder) envisages 10,000 taxis by the
news suggests Audi might no longer include fuel 2024 Olympics. Madrid wants to replace at least
cells in its future product portfolio, which could 1,000 internal combustion taxis with Mirais
terminate the development of the H-tron SUV by 2026.
concept.

Little news from America In Japan, the highly anticipated new Mirai is
selling well, with almost 2,400 deliveries the
Honda shipped around 270 Clarity Fuel Cell cars to country in 2021 out of a global total of nearly
the United States, but this will now fall away. The 6,000 Mirais. The vehicle was showcased during
launch of the new Mirai model boosted overall the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, celebrated in 2021 due
fuel cell passenger car sales to the US to over to the pandemic, where 500 Mirais transported
3,300 units in 2021, mostly destined for California. staff and athletes among venues. Following this
This is a big jump over last year’s shipments of trend, China imported 140 new Mirais to be used
around 940 passenger cars overall to the country. in the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. More than
Canada’s efforts to raise fuel cell vehicle 1,000 fuel cell vehicles including cars, buses and
awareness appears to be paying off. Ride-sharing support trucks.
app Lyft Canada and Toyota Canada are
partnering to make new Mirais available to
Vancouver drivers and riders. Also in British
Columbia, zero emissions courier Geazone
announced the addition of 40 Mirais to its fleet
In August 2021, Symbio North America was
formed, to focus on light-duty, commercial
medium- and heavy-duty vehicle H2 solutions for
the region.
Outside the large number of fuel cell cars now
accreting to the US, vans are very much secondary
to heavy-duty trucks in unit numbers and in
interest. In April, Linamar Corp., the automotive
components multinational, began evaluation of Momentum in China increasing slowly
four fuel cell delivery vans in their contract with
the Center for Transportation and the The Chinese fuel cell car market is growing very
Environment (CTE), the manager of the Next slowly, with around 60 units across the year in
Generation Fuel Cell Delivery Van Deployment 2021, in the context of a growing New Energy
Project for CARB. The vans will be used by UPS in Vehicles sector at 3.3m electric vehicles, out of a
an in-revenue service trial in California. Roush total 21.5m passenger cars across the country.
CleanTech supplied the overall vehicle and system Even light-duty commercial shipments are small,
design, integration, build and commissioning for with the emphasis mainly on buses and medium
the vans, with stacks from Ballard. The UPS vans and heavy-duty trucks.
use a Ford F-59 chassis with a modest 150 mile SAIC is expected soon to scale up production of its
range. Funding for the trial was first announced multi-purpose vehicle, the Maxus EUNIQ 7. The
back in 2018. fuel cell system for the vehicle is produced by
Asia continues to lead SAIC’s H2-focused subsidiary, Shanghai
Hydrogen Propulsion Technology, which is to be
South Korea is now extending its lead in the spun-off, going public, to raise funds for its
manufacture and deployment of fuel cell cars, anticipated growth.
driven by supportive government policy. A record
8,500 NEXOs were shipped in the country in 2021, Great Wall Motor unveiled its H2 energy strategy,
and this figure looks set to increase substantially featuring a holistic view across the H2 value chain,
in the coming years. By the end of 2023, Hyundai planning to roll out its first fuel cell SUV in 2022
plans to ramp fuel cell system production up to and aspiring to become a global leading maker of
100,000 units a year, coinciding with the expected H2-powered vehicles by 2025. Other Chinese OEMs
roll out of the next generation NEXO. The firm’s released fuel cell versions of existing car models,
unveiled fuel cell vehicles extend to the Genesis including GAC’s AION LX Fuel Cell, FAW’s Hongqi
premium brand GV80 SUV concept, seemingly still H5 FCV and Changan’s CS75 Hydrogen. Many of
under development, and the high-performance these cars participated in the first China Hydrogen
sports car Vision FK, as well as the ELEC CITY Bus. Car Super League.
Its Hydrogen Vision 2040 says it aspires to The Chinese capital envisions over 10,000 fuel cell
integrate fuel cells in all commercial vehicles vehicles on its roads by 2025, part of an ambitious
including LCVs by 2028. plan to develop indigenous H2-based capabilities
and industries.

Is the rest of the world moving fast enough? scheduled to launch in 2023 and 2024,
respectively. In terms of rallies, German
FCEVs became available in Australia in 2021, with engineering company FEV is now supporting
tens of cars shipped largely to public entities. The French group Green Corp Konnection on the
governments of the Australia Capital Territory and development of a fuel cell system for its e-Blast H2
Queensland added 20 and 5 NEXOs to their fleets, vehicle, to be introduced in the 2024 Dakar Rally.
respectively. Another NEXO was delivered to the
Queensland police, while the country’s national Big plans for fuel cell vans
science agency took delivery of a new Mirai.
In Europe, a growing market opportunity is for
Elsewhere, fuel cell cars are expected to be on fuel cell vans, alongside heavy-duty trucks. This
New Zealand roads soon, the Mirai made its UAE contrasts with North America, where the sole
debut at the Expo 2020 (postponed to 2021) and focus of domestic fuel cell vehicles is on
the NEXO received type-approval certification heavy-duty, and China, where an initial
in India. medium-duty focus is becoming heavier.
Fuel cell microcars on the go French brands continue to drive the fuel cell light
commercial vehicle (LCV) market in Europe. Most
In February, Welsh FCEV developer Riversimple of the activity is centred on Renault and Stellantis
and Siemens UK signed an MoU with a focus on NV, in vans. Outside of Europe, there is no real
the full-scale manufacture of the Rasa microcar. In activity in this area.
Sweden, micro fuel cell company myFC has been
selected to participate in public funded projects Renault released the fuel cell variant of its
to develop small, clean and efficient vehicles like compact van, as the Kangoo ZE Hydrogen, late in
pod taxis. And in June, H2e Power PVT announced 2019 and planned release of the Master ZE
plans to build India’s first fuel cell three-wheeler, Hydrogen van early in 2020, now abandoned. The
collaborating with Canadian solid state hydrogen designs are light hybrids, with 5 kWe stacks and
storage provider H2M, to serve intercity transport. CH2 storage from the Symbio JV with Michelin
and Faurecia. The range extender offers up to
We are expecting more fuel cell racing 370 km range from a single charge in the Kangoo
Fuel cell car racing keeps hitting the headlines. ZE Hydrogen (140 km more than the all-electric
The China Hydrogen Car Super League kicked off version) and was to be 350 km range in the Master
at the Shanghai International Circuit in ZE Hydrogen (up from 110 km).
September, on the same day as the China Touring By the end of 2020, over 300 Kangoo ZE Hydrogen
Car Championship race. Eight fuel cell cars and vans had been shipped across France mainly, and
trucks from four OEMs took part in the event. in Europe. In contrast, over 57,000 Kangoo ZE all
Despite heavy rain, all the vehicles successfully electric vans were sold in Europe since 2011. In
completed the race, with final victory for the FAW January 2021, Renault announced a new
FAW Hongqi H5 sedan. JV with Plug Power for supply of fuel cell systems,
In the Netherlands, Hyundai formed a partnership seeking to create in France a vertically-integrated
with Forze Hydrogen, a student team from Delft mass manufacturing centre for fuel cells for
University of Technology specialised in H2 electric LCVs. The Hyvia JV with Plug was formalised in
racing (becoming something of an annual event). July 2021.
Students can consult with experts from the Hyvia plans offer to three new LCV models: The
Hyundai Motor Europe Technical Centre while Master Van H2-TECH, a panel van based on the
developing their Forze IX car, expected to be Renault Master (with 12 m3 cargo volume and a
finalised in 2022 as the world’s fastest fuel cell range of up to 500 km); the Master Chassis Cab
racing car. H2-TECH for transporting larger goods (19 m3
In March 2021, the Alpine F1 Team and Plug cargo volume and a range up to 250 km); and the
Power announced the formation of partnership to Master Citybus H2-TECH (able to carry up to 15
explore mobility solutions in motorsport and road passengers, with a range of 250 km). The stack for
cars. The net zero carbon championship Formula E the three van models is upscaled to 30 kW and is
is starting to consider its Gen4 regulations, combined with a 33 kWh battery. The range is set
inviting views on how to shift to hydrogen by the amount of H2 carried: 6 kg in the Master Van
technology to attract new manufacturers to the H2-TECH, 2x 1.5 kg in the Master Chassis Cab H2-
grid in five years’ time. This would add to the TECH, and 4.5 kg in the Master Citybus H2-TECH.
HYRAZE League and MissionH24 competitions,

Having unveiled the Master Van H2-TECH Around 100 Stellantis vans were expected to be
prototype, Renault expects the van to become sold over the year. By the end of 2021, a single
commercially available in 2022, followed by the Peugeot e-XPERT Hydrogen van had been
chassis cab and minibus. The JV foresees stack delivered to Michelin’s green mobility solutions
assembly at Renault’s Flins plant from late 2021. subsidiary Watèa, a single Citroën ë-Jumpy
Hydrogen van to the French utility Suez, and a
Hyvia plans to offer electrolysis solutions (a major single Opel Vivaro-e Hydrogen van to the
competence brought from partner Plug), mobile domestic appliance maker, Miele, in the Rhine-
storage stations and, from the end of 2021, HRS. Main region of Germany. The vehicle will perform
The HRS, also to be assembled in Flins, will be “daily field service” in the firm’s domestic market.
available for purchase or rental. The JV is targeting We can expect to see many more of these vehicles
30% market share in fuel cell LCVs in Europe, with in 2022.
turnkey mobility solutions, including delivery of
fleet management and maintenance services.
Quite independently, Mahle Powertrain is helping
to optimise the integration of Bramble Energy’s
Printed Circuit Board Fuel Cell (PCBFC) technology
within the powertrain of a Renault Kangoo ZE. The
vehicle will showcase the claimed reduced-cost,
high performance potential of Bramble’s high
power density liquid-cooled fuel cells. As with the
mainstream Kangoo ZE Hydrogen, the vehicle is
fitted with a 5 kW stack. At the same event, AVL
and Ford presented a prototype of a fuel cell Ford
Transit, alongside a digital twin to validate the key Finally, there was an unexpected stay of execution
functional features. of production of DHL/Deutsche Post’s all-electric
The French JV Symbio began construction in StreetScooter to the end of 2022, due to increased
March 2020 of its new fuel cell factory at Saint- demand, but this did not extend to the H2 Panel
Fons, next to its Venissieux site, in Lyon, planning Van. However, in June 2021, EKPO Fuel Cell
to extend its current production capacity of 50,000 Technologies was awarded an exclusive, multi-
units a year to 200,000 StackPack units a year by year contract in the high double-digit million Euro
2030. The expansion is in line with its own range, to supply its NM5-evo PEM fuel cell stacks
ambition to become a leader in fuel cell systems to AE Driven Solutions GmbH (the start-up that
for global hydrogen mobility. The 5kW StackPack came out of StreetScooter, as it abandoned its
modules are scalable, to meet the needs of light FCEV programme), for urban delivery vehicles.
commercial vehicles and the 40-300 kW output
range of its H2Motive portfolio for heavy-duty
vehicles. Symbio has a target of €200m (US$238m)
turnover in fuel cells by 2025 (for cars, buses and
trucks) and 12% market share and €1.5bn turnover
by 2030. The Lyon base has access to 6 tpd green
H2 from the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Hydrogen
Valley project.
In September 2020, former PSA Group announced
the launch of a fleet of H2 fuel cell utility vehicles,
fitted with Symbio 45 kW mid-range extenders,
10.5 kWh lithium-ion battery storage and 4.4 kg
H2 storage, delivering 400 km (248 mile) range, for
trade customers in 2021. The Peugeot e-XPERT
van offers a 6 m3 cargo volume, the same as the
diesel and all-electric equivalents. The 3 min
refuelling time is a major advantage over the
all-electric van.

Hydrogen refuelling stations – pressure rising
As the world began to recover from the worst of Also, in December, Nilsson Energy announced an
the COVID pandemic, so the growth in refuelling intention to build out a 24-strong HRS network in
infrastructure began to resume as was anticipated Sweden by 2025, with financial support from The
in last year’s Review. IPHE logs 622 sites amongst Climate Leap (Klimatklivet). The overall budget is
its partners. LBST’s ‘H2Stations’ website suggests estimated as SEK515m (US$52m). In phase one,
685 active HRS sites globally at the end of 2021. nine HRS are to be installed by 2024, with the
We expect to see more consistent growth going remaining 15 to be installed by the end of 2025.
forwards as countries convert H2 strategies
into action. In August, Everfuel announced its intention to
build its first HRS in Sweden, in cooperation with
By early December 2021, 91 H2 refuelling stations Trelleborg Municipality. The initial capacity is
were operating in Germany (mostly with a 700 bar 120 kg/day, set to rise to 500 kg/day by 2027. The
capability), just missing the 2020 goal for a agreement is the first of eight potential stations in
national network of 100; more than any other the Nordic Hydrogen Corridor project, which is
nation except for Japan and South Korea. The goal co-financed by the European Union’s CEF-program.
would have been achieved but for older stations,
with obsolete facilities, being retired. Trelleborg intends to invest €1.5bn in developing
the green H2 value chain in Europe, reaching
€1bn revenue from the sale of H2 to vehicles by 2030.
Away from the road sector, Deutsche Bahn
intends to trial mobile rapid refuelling stations for
use by H2 trains in Germany. Supplied by Wystrach,
these would allow trains to be refuelled within
15 minutes.
The majority of the 86 HRS in operation in North
America are in California, with 60 HRS. In 2021,
11 new stations opened, but the number falls
short of the CARB target of 64 units by 2020. The
target of 200 HRS by 2025, intended to enable
economies of scale and growth without further
We observe that while many new stations globally state incentives, is challenging.
continue to deliver 350 bar H2, more are being
uprated to 700 bar, for use by commercial In the supply chain, FirstElement, California’s
vehicles. The capacities of many HRS are also biggest operator of HRS, announced late in 2021
being uprated, from around 200 kg/day H2, nearer that it had received an investment from Air Water,
to 500 kg/day. the Japanese industrial gases company. This will
be used to accelerate its roll out of HRS but is also
The number of operational stations in the rest of expected to be used to strengthen the means of
Europe also increased, France now at over 50, 18 supplying these stations, including liquid
in the UK (lower in some counts), and Switzerland hydrogen infrastructure and tube trailers.
with nine.
In October 2021, the Hydrogen Heavy Duty
Spain is pushing ahead with its plans to expand Vehicle Industry Group (comprising Air Liquide,
its HRS network, although deployed numbers Hyundai, Nel Hydrogen, Nikola, Shell and Toyota)
remain small (around 10). In December, Air signed agreements with Tatsuno Corp. and
Liquide and Redexis, the gas infrastructure Transfer Oil SpA to industrialise globally standard
provider, agreed to study the potential for a 70 MPa H2 HDV high-flow (H70HF) fuelling
network of up to 100 HRS across Spain. Branded components, which could be an important factor
‘DESIRE H2’, the project will focus on logistics in stimulating uptake.
centres such as Barcelona and Madrid, and access
points to the rest of Europe. The proponents are
seeking IPCEI (Important Projects of Common
European Interest) funding, alongside support
from the Spanish government.

Japan is still ahead of other countries, Hiringa Energy is building a green H2 production
approaching the 2020 target of 160 HRS during and refuelling network across New Zealand,
2021. Continued decreases in capex and opex focused on heavy transport, in partnership with
should keep Japan on target to reach 320 stations Haskel. The first four (350 bar) stations on North
by 2025. The Olympics finally went ahead in 2021, Island are due to open in 2022, supported by
a valuable opportunity to showcase the country’s NZ$20m (US$13m) from the Government’s
commitment to H2. Infrastructure Reference Group.
Meanwhile, Korea’s policy of providing subsidies Elsewhere, Saudi Arabia deployed its first HRS, a
and reducing regulations to stimulate joint effort between Air Products and Aramco, at
construction of new HRS has, as expected, the Technology Center in the Dhahran Techno
facilitated expansion to around 100 units by the Valley Science Park. The Gulf States have major
end of 2021. But the target of 310 HRS by the end plans to expand H2 production and export, and
of 2022, as set out in its ambitious roadmap, looks the HRS installation represents the first evidence
more challenging. for hydrogen’s use locally to decarbonise
transport.
The number of refuelling stations in China nearly
doubled during 2021 from 37 to around 70, short In summary, 2021 provided evidence of gathering
of their goal for 100 units. H2 vehicles were activity in the HRS sector, reflecting a revival of the
targeted in number at the Beijing Winter global economy as the threat of COVID recedes.
Olympics: 1,000 trucks and buses, for on-site This trend looks set to continue into 2022, in line
logistics, with 30 HRS. A 20 MW electrolyser, with developments in the wider H2 mobility sector.
installed by Shell, to support the vehicles started
production in January 2022, just before the start
of the Games.
Having established its hydrogen subsidiary,
Sinopec reiterated its commitment to spend
US$4.6bn over the next 3 years to realise its H2
strategy, targeting a refuelling capacity of
200,000 tonnes by 2025. Sinopec already operates
over 30 HRS and had a further 60 under
construction or in the planning and approval
phase in 2021. By the end of the “14th Five-Year
Plan” (in 2025), Sinopec aims to build 1,000 HRS,
establishing itself as the premier supplier of H2 to
the transport industry in China.

Fuel cell buses – going places
At COP26, 13 governments across the world The most recent projects funded by FCH JU are
committed to the objective that all new medium- JIVE and JIVE 2 (Joint Initiative for hydrogen
and heavy-duty vehicles from 2040 would be zero Vehicles across Europe), aimed at driving down
emission, with 30% as an interim 2030 target. costs through economies of scale. With 300 FCEBs
Buses fall into these categories, and although on order or in service, and series production
some countries and cities/regions have more now established for some models, the target of
ambitious target dates, recognising the €625k (US$725k) for a 12m single-decker bus is
environmental and social imperatives of clean being met comfortably. So far, FCH JU has
transport, the future is indubitably Zero Emission. contributed €57m to the cost of deploying the
buses, over more than 16 cities. 2021 saw FCEBs
Fuel cell electric buses (FCEBs) running on green demonstrated in towns and cities new to the
H2 are one of the few zero emission choices technology, Dublin, Villach in Austria, Brussels,
currently available. The current generation of Cascais in Portugal, Weisbaden, to name a few.
FCEBs being delivered around the world are Operator fleets are now reaching up to 50 units,
superior in almost all respects to those a decade most notably at RegionalVerkehr Koln, which has
ago. Indeed, FCEBs have (literally) travelled a long Europe’s largest operational fleet.
way over ten years: proving the technology; then
demonstrating at least equal operational The JIVE projects have a few more years to run. But
performance; now seeking to become cost- funding is increasingly coming from other sources:
competitive with diesel. FCEBs are gradually being Europe’s LIFE project, the UK’s Ultra Low Emission
seen by operators and governments as an Bus scheme, from national governments like the
emissions solution that is on the cusp of viability, Netherlands, or from the operators themselves.
with an intrinsic rapid charge and long range
compared to pure battery electric buses. FlixBus is also looking at fuel cell coaches, working
with Freudenberg modules in the German project,
Around 150 fuel cell buses, shipped to Europe in Hyfleet. A consortium of 14 partners established
the period 2012-2015, remain in operation. We project CoacHyfied at the beginning of 2021. The
estimate over 3,700 between 2015-2020 in China. goal is to present solutions in the regional and
So, like trucks, China dominates the segment. long distance public transport sectors, developing
But there are plans to reach over 1,200 buses and trialling six fuel cell coaches at two regions in
in Europe by 2025 (more in China), and 2021 was Latvia and France over two-to-three-years.
a bumper year for Europe, with over 200 new
fuel cell buses shipped to the continent (and Back in September 2020, the H2Bus Consortium of
158 registrations). But this compares to deliveries Everfuel, Wrightbus, Ballard, Hexagon Composites,
of 3,282 fully electric buses in 2021, with over Nel and Ryse Hydrogen, aimed to deploy 1,000 H2
8,500 fully electric buses registered in the FCEBs in European cities at commercially attractive
continent since 2012. rates, along with the supporting infrastructure.
The 600 buses in the first phase are meant to
Europe – stepping up the gears reach the focus markets by 2023, supported by
€40m aid from the EU’s Connecting Europe
The European FCEB journey has been driven for Facility (CEF). But no further news was
two decades now by the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen forthcoming in 2021.
Joint Undertaking (FCH JU). A venture between
the European Commission and industry, the JU JIVE’s success may be measured from performance
has set a fuel cell bus fleet in motion. FCH JU has improvements, cost reductions, and in the number
now been replaced by the Clean Hydrogen JU, of bus OEMs entering the market offering choices
with more of a focus on H2 infrastructure, but to operators. From a handful of OEMs in the early
buses continue to be targeted. The journey began years, most now offer a fuel cell product,
with Mercedes-Benz buses in project CUTE (2001- supplying 259 FCEBs to market between 2012-
2006), leading to a series of demonstrator projects: 2021, including Van Hool in Belgium (96 units),
HyFleet:CUTE (2006-2009), CHIC (2010-2016), Wrightbus in the UK (71), Solaris in Poland (38),
HyTransit (2012-2018), High V.LO-City (2012-2019), Caetano (24) in Portugal, Safra in France (19),
and 3Emotion (2015-2022). VDL in the Netherlands, and Mercedes-Benz
in Germany.

WrightBus launched StreetDeck, their fuel cell regional Transforming Cities Fund). In addition,
double-decker with Ballard stacks, in Aberdeen, Hyundai has demonstrated its 500 km (311 mi)
Birmingham and London (all JIVE supported), and range ELEC CITY Fuel Cell bus in Vienna and
also started trials in Dublin. In Brussels, Van Hool Munich.
has begun demonstrations, and has supplied
buses to Pau in the French Pyrenees.
Caetano has sold its H2.City Gold buses into
Düren, Cascais, and Wiesbaden, and has
demonstrated its buses in Paris and Madrid.
Caetano and its stack provider Toyota has also
joined with Snam, to bring buses into Italy’s cities
and regions.
Symbio announced a tie-up in April with the
battery dominant bus OEM, Safra Businova,
targeting 1,500 buses over the next ten years. The
buses will utilise Symbio’s 45 kW module as range
extenders. Symbio has plans to construct Further afield, Russia is looking to fuel cells as a
Europe’s largest fuel cell module factory ZEV solution, as Moscow determined it would no
capable of 60,000 units a year (for all platforms). longer purchase diesel buses. One solution is the
A capacity of 200,000 units a year by 2030 was newly unveiled KAMAZ 6290 FCEB, which will be
announced when the Symbio JV was formed in tested from 2022.
November 2019.
Most converters of OEM chassis are focusing on
Solaris has been busy, demonstrating its electric and fuel cell trucks. But pepper motion
12 m Urbino Hydrogen bus in Frankfurt, Konin in GmbH, formerly e-troFit, plans to offer conversions
Poland with local operator MZK, in the Czech city of buses to fuel cell powertrains from 2024. The
of Ústi nad Labem for operator Dopravni, in the initial focus is on Mercedes-Benz Citaro C1 12 m
city of Villach in Austria, and for ÖBB Postbus, and and Citaro C2 12 m buses, with MAN A21 to follow.
in the town of Neuenstadt am Kocher, in Germany.
Solaris has also shipped its FCEBs to Köln and to
Wuppertal in Germany, to Bolzano in Italy, and to
Gelderland in the Netherlands, all as part of JIVE.
Transdev Normandie is retrofitting a diesel

Iveco Crossway bus, with Amiens based IBF H2,
The latest OEMs to enter the European market aiming to develop retrofit kits which can extend
are Hungary’s GOLDI Mobility, working with the average lifespan of buses from 14 years to
Hy-Hybrid Energy to develop its H12 bus; Italy’s 20-25 years. The German powertrain specialist IAV
Rampini, which launched its E80 hybridised 8 m will contribute expertise in system safety and
bus, of which Cittavecchia has ordered two; and electronic interfaces. When finished, The Nomad
UK’s ADL which has a 20-unit order for its 300-mile Car Hydrogène will have a range of 450 km on a
range double decker, the Enviro400FCEV, for single refill and cover 380 km/day on the
Liverpool (being directly purchased through the Evreux-Rouen Express route.

It takes about three months to retrofit a coach today California Air Resources Board (CARB), three transit
in the IBF H2 workshops (excluding homologation). authorities have led the effort: Alameda Contra
The expected short-term rate will be 10 vehicles per Costa (AC) Transit in the Bay area, Orange County,
month. An HRS will be installed to support the and Sunline in Thousand Palms.
project; the EAS HyMob du Vieil-Evreux station is
expected to have a capacity of 50 kg/day. These transit authorities have operated FCEBs for
more a decade or more, including legacy vehicles,
The fuel cell module of choice remains those of such as Van Hool, plus newer New Flyer’s Xcelsior
Ballard, the latest, eighth generation being the CHARGE H2 and ElDorado National-California
FCmove-HD+. This module is reported to be (ENC), first and (from 2019) second-generation
40% more compact than the previous 100 kW Axess-FC buses, in the 40 ft (12 m) length class.
module, 30% lighter and with 50% fewer parts,
with an increase in life of up to 40%. But with more The latest Xcelsior CHARGE H2 is equipped with a
OEMs seeking fuel cell power systems there are Ballard FCvelocity-HD85 (85 kW) module (as a
growing opportunities for others: Toyota is range extender), with a 160 kW Siemens motor,
supplying Caetano with its Mirai based module and 37.5 kg CH2, coupled with battery storage
(with Toyota making a strategic investment into (with the H2, equivalent to 700 kWh), to give a
CaetanoBus, in December 2020), Safra is using 350-mile (563 km) range. A 60 ft (18 m) variant
Symbio’s modules, and ElringKlinger is working uses a 320 kW motor, 60 kg CH2, and 1,000 kWh
with VDL, independently alongside Ballard, equivalent energy storage. Since 2019, New Flyer
providing modules to the CoacHyfied project. has begun delivering 25 buses to the three transit
agencies as part of California Climate Investments
North America - Moving up the gears? (CCI), a Cap-and-Trade initiative focused on
lower greenhouse and local emissions, and
Fuel cell buses should be more common across the economy.
North America than they are now. Both the USA
and Canada were amongst the first to develop and The original Axess fuel cell bus was fitted with a
trial fuel cell buses from the late 1990s (the Ballard FCvelocity-HD6 (150 kW) module, with a
Georgetown PAFC bus); California deployed bus BAE Systems HDS200 (160 kW continuous, 200 kW
demonstrators across several transit authorities, peak) motor, directly coupled to the fuel cell stack,
while in 2009, BC Transit deployed 20 fuel cell 50 kg CH2, and an 11 kWh smoothing battery. By
buses from New Flyer (still going strong) in July 2018, ENC had supplied 20 FCEBs to transit
Whistler, Canada, the world’s largest at the time. agencies throughout California, and to SunLine
However, more than ten years later, deployments Transit, for Ohio’s Stark Area transit authority.
of FCEBs in in North America has lagged both
Europe and China. That could change. The latest Axess-FC model, dubbed the Battery
Dominant Fuel Cell bus, has a smaller Ballard
In summer 2021, Democrats in the Senate pushed (85 kW) fuel cell and a larger (50 kWh) battery
the Clean Transit for America Plan. An impressive bank, increasing the range from 260 to 300 miles.
US$73bn was proposed to transition the nation’s
transit fleets, replacing over 155,000 commercial California’s transit authorities made further orders
vehicles, from buses to vans, to ZEVs, both electric in 2021: in Autumn, West Covina’s Foothill Transit
and fuel cells, and leading by example to 100% 20 and then 13 New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE H2
ZEV procurements by Federal agencies from 2035. buses; AC Transit will increase its fleet by a further
With this – and critically if passed into law – the 20 vehicles, again the Xcelsior CHARGE H2, plus
number of fuel cell buses could increase hugely. one 60 t articulated bus on trial; Bakersfield
Yet today, FCEBs remain largely a specialist interest Golden Empire Transit followed a 2020 order with
in the US and are down to one vehicle in Canada. five more Xcelsiors in 2021; and Sunline ordered a
similar number of Xcelsior’s to take its fleet to
Progressive California hosts the largest FCEB fleet 26 vehicles, which includes 11 ElDorado FCEBs.
in the US, accounting for over 50 vehicles in 2021. Orange County Transportation Authority obtained
Driven in part by State support, but more so than 10 Xcelsiors in 2020, which it is trialling against full
ever by tightening emissions regulations from the electric buses.

California Innovative Clean Transit Regulation has project to develop an FCEB. In May, BAE Systems
the objective for all State Public Transit agencies to announced a tie-up with Plug Power to develop a
be Zero Emission by 2040. To assist the transition, fuel cell powertrain, competing with Ballard.
Californian buses are supported by a state subsidy,
but are also able to generate carbon credits, while The other challenge, as in all markets, is simply
support from the Federal Transit Administration one of cost, both capital and operating costs.
and the National Fuel Cell Bus Program is available US FCEBs are reported to be selling at US$1.27m a
here and elsewhere in the USA. unit (3x that of an equivalent diesel bus), with a
near-term possibility of US$850k a unit in series
Outside of California FCEBs are found in Ohio, production. This would bring the FCEB prices
reported as 24, and led by Stark Area Regional closer to Europe.
Transit’s (SARTA) fleet; Illinois has four vehicles
deployed with Champagne-Urbana Transit; By other metrics FCEBs are performing well
Las Vegas, Nevada has two due for delivery in against diesel-hybrid and battery electric buses.
2021; while Hawaii is reported to have received its AC transit has conducted a 5x5 study of buses in
first vehicle in the summer. Single or two vehicles its fleet, five sets of vehicles with five different
are found elsewhere. power systems: diesel, diesel-hybrid, battery-
electric, legacy FCEBs and the latest New Flyer
In Autumn, Champagne-Urbana unveiled its Xcelsior fuel cell buses. The Xcelsiors had the lower
‘Riding on Sunshine’ initiative: buses fuelled by emissions and better fuel economy than diesel
100% green H2 from solar power. The MW-scale and diesel-hybrids, and better availability than the
electrolyser will supply 60 ft Xcelsior articulated battery-electric buses. As newer vehicles, with the
buses as well as 40 ft vehicles. The plan is to latest powertrains, the Xcelsiors are clearly
expand to 12 buses in the future, with an HRS performing better than their predecessors but
dispensing 35 kg per vehicle in back-to-back have some way to go on cost.
refuelling.
In Asia, China extends its lead
SARTA continues to operate its ‘Borrow-A-Bus’
programme, its ElDorado buses being loaned to In November 2020, China issued its New Energy
operators in Washington State and Oregon, Vehicle Industrial Development Plan for 2021-
Toronto’s Mississauga transit authority (MiWay) 2035. The New Energy Vehicle (NEV) segment
and Winnipeg Transit. includes battery and fuel cell vehicles. Setting
NEVs a target of 20% of vehicle sales by 2025, it
After six years in the wilderness, and with only one looks like China’s bus OEMs have arrived early.
FCEB still in operation, Canada is beginning to Of an estimated 150,000 buses sold in 2020,
grow its fleets again. MiWay is part of the Pan- 60,000 were NEVs, although a smaller proportion
Canadian Hydrogen Fuel cell Electric Bus were FCEBs.
Demonstration and Integration Trial and is due to
order ten New Flyer Xcelsior buses, with 475 diesel China’s NEV sales, dominated by fully-electric cars,
buses to replace. Winnipeg, home to New Flyer’s and more so by hybrid-electric cars, have been flat
Canadian operations, is expected to follow suit. between 2018-2020 (at over 1m vehicles a year),
Alberta is said to have placed orders for two buses. but surged to 3.5m in 2021, as reduced COVID
The orders are likely to be supported by the lockdowns began to return the economy to
Canadian Government’s C$20bn (US$15.5m) something near normal. But the other factor was
public transit fund, which will support the move policy, especially for trucks and buses, as the
towards all new medium- and heavy-duty vehicles subsidies transitioned from production to
being zero emissions by 2040. delivering holistic changes at regional level.
Ballard remains the main supplier of bus modules,
One of the challenges FCEB deployment faces in but capacity elsewhere is growing fast. From a
North America is the limited number of suppliers. peak of nearly 1,900 fuel cell buses shipped in
Unlike Europe or China, where customer choice 2019 (where bus sales were inflated as
has blossomed in the past few years, the US has manufacturers rushed to beat the subsidy
just two established suppliers with modest sales. change), a fall was seen for 2020 (to 1,265 units)
With growing interest, and more public support and then 2021 (to around 800 units). Between
available, this may change. GILLIG, a bus OEM, is 2015-2021, over 5,500 FCEBs shipped in China.
working with Cummins on a US$3.2m US DOE

Foton (a BAIC subsidiary) is the largest fuel cell
bus and truck OEM in China. It is followed by
Golden Dragon, which sold 288 FCEBs of lengths
8-12m in 2020 (fitted with SinoHytec and Refire
fuel cell modules), Feichi Technology and
Shanghai SAIC. The OEMs playing into the market
change year by year, with Zhengzhou Yutong bus,
Foshan and Shanghai Shenlong Bus, and now
Chery & Wanda Bus active. Many of the domestic
FCEBs in China are minibuses and midibuses
rather than full-sized.
China’s cities continue to deploy FCEBs in larger
numbers than almost anywhere else in the world. (There is a similar trend in trucks, with fuel cells
For example, early in the year Foshan delivered getting bigger as their application moves to HDV).
20 FCEBs for Gaoming district, in Guangdong.
These were Zhongtong 9 m buses using Weichai Chinese bus OEMs have tended to source fuel cell
modules. In March, Dongfeng Electric launched a modules from Western suppliers, notably Ballard,
fleet of 40 FCEBs for the 2021 World University Cummins, and Toyota, either from overseas plants
Games, while Dalian commissioned ten buses. In or from manufacturing JVs in China. 2021 saw
October, Shenzhen started its first FCEB bus route. EKPO (the JV of ElringKlinger and Plastic
Omnium), agree a partnership with DR Powertrain
Skywell delivered at least ten FCEBs to Nanjing, System to jointly develop modules with EKPO
which are reported to have run up 75,000 km over stacks for the Chinese market. Toyota also
45 days by July of this year. Skywell uses Canada’s expanded its Chinese activity, signing-up with
Loop Energy’s eFlow modules, supplied by Beijing SinoHytec to invest US$72m in the JV Huafeng
IN-Power, as 50 kW range extenders. This is part of Fuel Cell, using Mirai stacks.
Nanjing’s plan, reported in 2020, to replace its
entire bus fleet of 7,000 battery buses with FCEBs. State investment in the fuel cell industry is playing
out, but slowly. Despite proven designs and low
A big driver of FCEB deliveries were plans to volume production, cost remains an issue, with
deploy a vast fleet for the 2022 Winter Olympics, very few fuel cell buses being exported: Feichi/
in Beijing. During the event, 655 H2-powered ReFire with a bus to Malaysia in 2019, Wisdom
buses were planned for Zhangjiakou City, the (Fujian) Motor/Ballard to the US in 2021, and an
Beijing Winter Olympics co-host city, to provide order for four buses by Foton Mobility in Australia,
transportation and logistics services for the also for delivery in 2021. This low number
games. Most of these units are from BAIC’s Foton contrasts with the 2,807 battery-electric buses
Motor subsidiary (212 buses), Zhongtong (40), exported globally from China in 2021.
Geely (30) and Yutong (25) are also reported
suppliers. Module suppliers include China’s SPIC Korea
Hydrogen Energy business (for Yutong). Korea’s plans for fuel cell buses are overshadowed
Chinese FCEBs have tended to utilise smaller fuel by those of China, but the plans are ambitious,
cells as range extenders in 8-9 m length buses. and possibly over-optimistic. While it is estimated
However, there is a growing trend in China to that 108 buses were operating on Korea’s roads at
apply larger modules to larger buses, especially the end of 2021 (81 more units than 2020), the
where yet longer range is sought. With Foton 2022 target of 2,000 buses is clearly beyond reach,
Motor’s buses (for example), the 9 m BJ6906 with COVID likely partially responsible. The 2040
model uses 85 kW modules and 35 MPa H2, to give target is for 41,000 vehicles.
a 400 km range, while the 12 m BJ6122 intercity Korea’s automotive giant Hyundai is leading the
bus uses 150 kW modules and 70 MPa H2, to give deployment of FCEBs with its 11 m ELEC CITY Fuel
an astonishing 1,198 km range. Cell bus. This uses two NEXO modules, delivering
180 kW of power, from a 34.5 kg, 700 bar, CH2

storage tank, integrated with a 78.4 kWh battery. Japan
First delivered in 2019, the bus is being deployed
across Korea’s cities. For example, five ELEC CITY Japan’s fuel cell bus ambitions, with a target of
Fuel Cell buses started services from Incheon 1,200 vehicles on the road by 2030, are more
airport in Autumn following the opening of an modest than Korea. At the end of 2021, 110 fuel
HRS at the airport by Air Liquide. Incheon has cell buses were in operation in Japan. These have
plans to replace its current fleet of 2,000 vehicles been primarily in the Tokyo area where 100 plus
with FCEBs by 2030. Other cities have added to vehicles supported the delayed Olympics. The
their FCEB fleets; Seoul placed another four ELEC only domestic OEM is Toyota, which supplies its
CITY Fuel Cell buses in service in December. SORA 12 m vehicle powered by two Mirai fuel cell
modules totalling 228 kW of power, plus a nickel
The ELEC CITY Fuel Cell bus continues to cost metal hydride battery, with the few sales to date
more than pure battery buses from China, and this mainly to meet the demands of the Olympics.
may be behind Hyundai looking to markets
further afield. This year, Hyundai announced trials Although the SORA has performed as expected
of the ELEC CITY Fuel Cell bus with Wiener Linien the issue of costs, capital and operating, remains a
in Austria, and earlier in the summer with an big hurdle. In the summer of 2021, it was reported
operator in Munich, Germany. that the SORA, at a cost of US$900k for a six-year
lease, requires 80% subsidies, while fuel costs
Achieving Korea’s FCEB targets will require more alone were 2.6 times diesel costs. The differential
than one OEM. Edison Motors has ambitions for in fuel costs ignores the societal pricing of
the technology with its current battery electric greenhouse emissions and local pollutants.
bus but has struggled to secure module supplies
from Hyundai. Unsurprisingly, it has sought India
alternative sources and in November 2021 signed India’s urban areas, especially cities such as New
a deal with UK’s Intelligent Energy to access its fuel Dehli, suffer particularly from smog caused in a
cells in motive applications, including buses and large part by vehicle emissions. To date, however,
UAVs, in South Korea. And then, in December the progress of fuel cell buses has been slow, with
2021, Edison came to another agreement with only six FCEBs reported to be on the roads in early
Plug Power, specific to city buses, to bring a bus to 2021. Tata Motors, part of the Tata conglomerate,
market in South Korea. Using the 125 kW ProGen, has developed its H2 StarBus but until this year
the companies expect to have a FCEB prototype there have been few orders. However, in August
completed by H2 2022 and launch mass-market Tata won a tender to supply fifteen of its buses to
platform by H1 2023. the India Oil Corporation for demonstration and
Other Korean businesses have also looked overseas testing. These use Ballard FCmove-HD modules.
for supplies, and in August Canada’s Loop Energy India Oil Corporation will supply the hydrogen.
reached an agreement with Korea’s NGVI business India’s other major bus OEM, Ashok Leyland, was
to supply Loop’s eFlow fuel cell module and other reported in November to be developing a
sub-systems such as DC-DC power conditioning. hydrogen bus, along with other commercial
NGVI supplies NG-fuelled powertrains and H2 vehicles, but no details were provided. By the end
storage systems for heavy vehicle conversions. of 2021, IPHE indicated a leap in FCEB numbers in
Partner to the agreement, Ulsan Metropolitan City, Inida, with 58 units fielded in the country.
has an ambition to replace its 949 strong bus fleet Other Countries
with zero emission buses, including FCEBs by 2030.
Ulsan is to invest ₩2.3bn (US$2m) by 2024 in The FCEB is being pursued by other countries in
testing and certification of H2 bus technologies, Asia and Oceania. In Malaysia, Australia’s H2X was
supplied by a consortium including NGVI. reported to have done a deal with Sarawak
Economic Development Corporation to establish a
Doosan Fuel Cells is intent on entering the heavy local production line, with the first buses
vehicle markets with its fuel cell module offering, earmarked for the Sarawak Transportation System.
PEM and possibly SOFC, but this is yet to start. Sarawak expanded its FCEB bus services in early
Refuelling both buses and other fuel cell vehicles 2021, using Foshan Feichi vehicles imported
requires a refuelling infrastructure. In Autumn from China.
2021, a consortium of Korean and other actors,
including KOGAS and Woodside Petroleum,
agreed to establish an HRS network across
Korea. The first is due to be operational for the
end of 2022.

In Australia, zero emission bus deployment is
accelerating (from a slow start) and FCEBs will be
part of the mix. In February, Foton Motor
announced a strategic partnership with the
impact investment group TrueGreen, to form a
new company, Foton Mobility Pty. The company
plans to introduce a range of FCEBs powered by
Toyota models, commencing in early 2021 with
the first 12.5 m low-floor city bus, with 4 buses
expected over the year in total. It is hoped the deal
will see up to 200 H2 buses a year made available
to the Australian market.
In March, Volgren, a battery electric bus maker
located in Melbourne, announced optimistic plans
to build a FCEB using indigenous components in
the next two years.
In June 2021, Hyzon completed a 15,000 km
(9,321 mi) test run in a harsh, remote region in
Western Australia, keeping the delivery of the ten
coaches agreed in September 2020 on schedule.
The Hyzon coaches have a range of 800 km before
refuelling.
In November 2021, the family-owned regional bus
company, Emerald Coaches, announced it will
switch its 120-strong diesel fleet to H2 fuel cell
powertrains by 2040, starting 2022. How it will
achieve this aim was not enunciated at the time.
Across the Tasman Sea, Auckland Transport
unveiled its first fuel cell bus in March, built by
Christchurch-based Global Bus Ventures. The bus
has a Ballard module. Auckland Transport is
committed to a zero-emission fleet by 2030 and
from this year has banned any further diesel bus
purchases. Hyzon is also active in New Zealand
but the present focus of Hiringa is on filling
stations for heavy-duty trucks, which might
benefit bus fleets.

Shipments by region
Shipments by region of adoption 2017 - 2021 (1,000 units)

100
RoW
80 Asia
North America
60
Europe
40
20
0
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f
Megawatts by region of adoption 2017 - 2021
2500
RoW
2000 Asia
North America
1500
Europe
1000
500
0
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f
2021f is our forecast for the full year, based on firm data from January to September, and in most cases to as late as December.
We have revised the figures for 2020 in this report, now with firm full year data where previously a final quarter forecast was required.

Shipments by region
Each year, we correct our final quarter forecasts Korea strength in SOFC and PAFC for stationary
with confirmed end of year figures. More buses power, and PEM systems in vehicles continues to
shipped in Korea than forecast in 2020, and fewer be driven by the clear policy direction of the
micro-CHP units to Ene-Farm, resulting in a small Hydrogen Economy Law in Korea. The Strategic
change to our overall shipments, with 81,800 units Road Map for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells helps in
shipped in 2020 (down from 82,500 units), Japan, and the New Energy Vehicles and Low
equating to 1,338 MW output (up from the Carbon Development policies of China are
forecast of 1,319 MW). increasingly focused on long-term cluster
development rather than simple volume driven
2020 was a record year, despite the ravages of by subsidy.
COVID. This followed a previous record in 2019, in
which annual fuel cell shipments finally exceeded Second to Asia in MW, with a substantial increase
one-Gigawatt in aggregate power. But 2021 has over previous years is North America (mainly the
been even more remarkable, with 85,850 units USA). Shipments grew from 253 MW to 613 MW in
forecast, equating to 2,313 MW, even with COVID 2021, with Bloom seeing an uptick alongside the
still hanging over markets. increased flow of Mirais. The latter was up fivefold
over 2020, following the release of the latest
Superficially, the 2.31 GW shipped capacity may model. We estimate over 15,400 units shipped in
appear as the beginning of the classic ‘hockey North America in 2021, compared to 10,800 in
stick’ phenomenon often applied to emerging 2020. Materials handling remains an important
markets. But this is not a single industry, and the contributor, with increasing sales in volume terms,
simplification ignores the ever-increasing share of and larger output stacks for use in platforms
shipments of NEXOs and Mirais, which now beyond the traditional ‘Class I’ electric motor rider
dominate the capacity. Hyundai now accounts for forklifts. Across all segments, North America
38% of global fuel cell power shipments, and represented 27% of global shipments by MW
Toyota 33%. The cars have large effects on PEMFC capacity in 2021.
share, share to Korea (NEXOs), and Japan and the
USA (Mirais). Despite nominally favourable policy in Europe, the
lack of specific fiscal incentives to deploy fuel cells
Asia has continued its strong lead, both in unit outside Germany’s KfW 433 initiative means only a
numbers (dominated by Ene-Farm) and in MW. modest increase in MW shipments took place, up
Alongside the 8,500 NEXOs in Korea and 2,450 to 198 MW from 156 MW in 2020, so 9% of global
Mirais in Japan; 1,800 buses and trucks deployed capacity. Unit shipments to Europe increased
in China. The contribution to MW by vehicles is marginally, from 13,200 to 13,950, with gains in
strong, given even the smallest stacks for light forklifts and portable offset by a fall in fuel cells for
hybrids are typically upwards of 30 kW, while the micro-CHP in Germany. Larger fuel cell CHP and
latest Toyota Sora buses are equipped with a total prime power installations remain insignificant,
228 kW from two Mirai stacks. with light duty fuel cell vehicle shipments
Asia overall had similar unit shipments in 2021 relatively flat and bus, truck and other vehicle
(56,100 units) to 2020 (57,600 units). An increase placements doubling to just over 630 units.
from 8,100 to 13,000 vehicles was offset by a fall of Europe’s buses are starting to compete, but trucks
micro-CHP units to Ene-Farm, dropping to 39,800 are at the early demonstration phase. Overall
units from 46,200. In MW, shipments to Asia numbers of medium- and heavy-duty fuel cell
moved to 1,493 MW (65% of global shipments), vehicles are lower than China, albeit with a
dominated by vehicles. Korea got 65% of this, significant increase in capability over recent years.
Japan and China 23% and 12%, respectively. We don’t see any significant regional changes
Deliveries to other Asian countries, including fuel near-term (as we wait for policy to feed through),
cells in telecoms backup systems, remain but are positive about the potential for greater
negligible. heavy-duty numbers in Europe over the coming
years.

Medium- and heavy-duty trucks – new growth
Trucks are gathering momentum. Outside China, Shell intends to rollout an initial HDV H2-refuelling
the focus is mainly on heavy-duty, which are only network by joining three green H2 production
slowly reaching customers, with shipments hubs at the Port of Rotterdam, in the Netherlands,
lagging ever-growing order books. Major players and Cologne and Hamburg in Germany. From
and newcomers are promising consistent series 2024, Shell aims to launch HRS between the three
production is not far away. Partnering between hubs and Daimler aims to hand over the first
major supply chain actors continues and roll-out heavy-duty H2 trucks to customers in 2025.
strategies are being set. And the small EU trials The partners aim to continuously expand the
funded by HFC2 JU, like H2-Share and H2Haul, are H2 freight corridor, to cover 1,200 km by 2025,
giving way to larger shipments of fuel cell trucks. with 150 HRS meeting the needs of around 5,000
heavy-duty fuel cell trucks by 2030. This is in a
Major players want to lead the way… context of huge and advancing plans for
Daimler and Volvo announced their 50:50 joint increased used of H2 across NW Europe.
venture in 2020, and details were confirmed in .. but the newcomers mean serious business
2021. Named cellcentric GmbH & Co KG, the
JV formed as Volvo Group acquired 50% of Hyzon Motors, a relative newcomer, is now a
Daimler Truck Fuel Cell GmbH for approximately leading potential player. In July, Hyzon merged
€600m (US$714m), cellcentric intends to be the with Decarbonisation Plus Acquisition
leading global PEM fuel cell manufacturer for Corporation, in a deal which generated around
mobility. cellcentric will develop and manufacture US$600m in cash, supporting company growth,
systems from the Daimler site near Stuttgart, and was later publicly listed, at a value suggested
primarily for use in HD trucks, reaching to be as high as US$2.7bn.
customers in 2023.
Hyzon is expanding fuel cell production facilities
in Honeoye Falls, close to its HQ in Rochester NY,
and plans to build the largest US membrane
electrode assembly (MEA) production facility in
Bolingbroke, Illinois, at Hyzon’s newly built
Innovation centre for fuel cells, H2, electric drive
and autonomous driving technologies. The
facility, coming online in Q3, will have an MEA
capacity for 12,000 vehicles a year, clearly stating
Hyzon’s ambitions to compete at scale. Until
online, the company will continue to obtain
stacks for trucks from Horizon in Singapore.
Hyzon Motors’ small volume truck production is
Little additional activity has been publicised by underway in Holland, delivering refuse collection,
Volvo so far, whereas Daimler Truck has had more sewer-cleaning and heavy-duty delivery vehicles
to say. Daimler announced it has started testing for the Municipality of Groningen. The facility
its GenH2 truck on roads ahead of customer produced the first trucks for Hiringa Energy in
testing. The trucks use CH2 storage now but will New Zealand, as part of its supply agreement of
move to prototype LH2 tank systems during 2022. 1,500 vehicles by 2026. Hiringa itself
Daimler signed agreements with Linde and Air commenced the construction phase of four, high
Liquide to develop the refuelling and supply of capacity, green HRS in the country as part of the
the LH2. The group is now working towards a same agreement.
global standard for refuelling with sub-cooled
LH2. Over 2021, Daimler has partnered with
energy companies Shell New Energies and
TotalEnergies to ramp up deployment of HRS and
to encourage vehicle adoption for customers in
Northern Europe.

In August, Hyzon signed a trial agreement with
Total Transport Services Inc (TTSI), a prominent
port trucking company in Southern California.
Under the agreement, Hyzon was to provide a
Class 8 heavy-duty truck for a 30-day trial in Q4
2021. The truck, built on a 2022 Freightliner
Cascadia chassis, has so far appeared at three
trade shows. The truck offers a peak 600 HP
(447 kW) and a range of up to 400 miles (644 km).
In September, Hyzon received an order to supply
five 154-ton trucks from Ark Energy Corporation,
the Australian subsidiary of the world’s largest
zinc, lead and silver producer, Korea Zinc. Hyzon is
obligated to deliver the trucks by the end of 2022.
Hyzon had a busy 2021, with 87 deliveries of Also, in September, Hyzon signed an MoU with
18-49 t heavy-duty fuel cell trucks. A further the logistics company, Shanghai Hydrogen
20 vehicles are scheduled for delivery in the HongYun Automotive Co Ltd, for purchase of
Netherlands in 2022 and 70 vehicles in Austria 500 H2 fuel cell trucks. The trucks are fitted with
from 2021 to 2024. The Netherlands is emerging 170 kW stacks. The first batch was to be delivered
as a major mobility centre, given Utrecht’s over 2021 and the remaining 400 trucks in 2022.
commitment to adopt 300 fuel cell trucks,
In November, Hyzon indicated it would deploy
1,500 light duty vehicles, 2-5 coaches, and up to
49 t trucks to Sha Steel Group’s operating base in
10 HRS across the province by 2025.
the Port of Zhangjiagang for 60-day trials. In the
The number and pace of agreements entered by same month, delivery of the first 29 units to
Hyzon in 2021 far exceeds those of its competitors. HongYun was announced, destined for a major
Only a flavour of the supply agreements is listed steel conglomerate in China. HongYun placed an
below. The agreements range from vehicle supply order for a further 33 units.
to strategic linkages to build the H2 truck market.
In December, Hyzon Motors signed an exclusive
In May, Hyzon announced it will enter a JV with supply contract for H2-powered fuel cell trucks
Raven of Pinedale, Wyoming, to build waste-to-H2 with the Dutch waste collection truck builder,
hubs. Raven, a renewable fuels company, with a Geesinknorba. 300 trucks or more are expected to
proprietary steam/CO2 reformer, will help Hyzon be supplied by Hyzon during the three-year
install 250 hubs across the US and globally. The first contract. It also contracted to deliver a Class 3
hub, at Republic Services’ West Contra Costa commercial service truck to SoCalGas by 2022.
Sanitary Landfill in Northern California, is expected The truck is expected to reach a maximum power
to become operation from summer 2022. of 200 kW, with a range of 300 mi, and will be
built on an existing chassis OEM used by
In June, Hyzon Motors signed an agreement to SoCalGas. In the same month, Hyzon entered into
supply up to 70 H2 fuel cell powered heavy trucks an MoU with the MiTAC-Synnex Group, an
to a MPreis, Austria’s leading grocery store chain industrial conglomerate, to jointly develop
with ~300 locations, through JuVe Automation, commercial FCEV and distribution models
an MPreis spin-out. The trucks will be delivered optimized for the Taiwan market. Hyzon
over a three-year period. anticipates orders from municipalities and
private business, targeting commercial shipments
In July, Hyzon signed an MoU with TotalEnergies in 2022.
to evaluate and develop hydrogen refuelling and
vehicle supply solutions for long-haul transport Liquefied as well as compressed hydrogen is on
to customers across Europe. A second MoU Hyzon’s roadmap. In July 2021, Hyzon indicated it
commits TotalEnergies to secure support to is working with Chart Industries to create an
produce 80 H2 fuel cell-powered trucks for onboard storage tank to deliver a 1,000 mile
TotalEnergies’ French customers. Also, in July, (1,600 km) range. In December, Hyzon indicated it
Hyzon signed an MoU with Superior Pak, a would work with Woodside to develop green H2
leading Australian manufacturer of waste production hubs to support growth in Australia
handling equipment, for the supply of up to and the US, supplying LH2 to onboard mobility
20 refuse trucks in 2022, starting in Brisbane, use cases.
Melbourne and Sydney, where H2 supply
infrastructure exists. The first five trucks are
expected to be operational in Q2 2022.

Hyzon is unique now in starting to deploy heavy- In May, Nikola signed a letter of intent to test two
duty trucks in numbers over four continents. A BPEVs and two FCEVs in 2022 with TTSI at the Port
short-selling report on Hyzon from Blue Orca, of Long Beach and Los Angeles, with potential for
published in September, however, was less than 70 follow-on fuel cell truck orders in 2023.
complimentary, though largely inconsistent with
events on the ground and the company balance In September 2021, Nikola announced
sheet of more than US$500m in cash and cash agreements with Bosch targeting Nikola Class 7
equivalents. Whether Hyzon’s accomplishments in and 8 fuel cell trucks. Bosch will supply fully
2021 gather pace in future years is yet to play out. assembled modules as well as major components
to Nikola for assembly at its manufacturing facility
Daimler, Volvo, Hyundai and Hyzon are vying for in Coolidge. The parties will work together for
European market share through various sourcing of remaining components for the
programmes. H2Accelerate, which includes Volvo, assemblies.
Iveco, Shell and OMV, aims to deploy hundreds of
trucks in Europe before 2025 and thousands each Nikola shows intent to focus on gaseous H2, in
year in the latter part of the decade. Hyzon joined April signing a multi-year agreement with
the HyTrucks programme alongside Air Liquide, Hexagon Purus to take more than €200m
DATS 24 and major ports in northern Europe (US$238m) of storage tanks. True to its mission to
pledging 1,000 vehicles by 2025, and Hyzon provide energy solutions as well as vehicles,
joined The Covenant on Hydrogen in Mobility in Nikola is establishing partnerships with refuelling
Utrecht, Netherlands, targeting 300 trucks, 1,500 station providers, like TravelCentres of America for
light duty vehicles and 10 refuelling stations by two US sites, and with the German pipeline
2025. These numbers present a big escalation network operator OGE for supply of CH2 to filling
over units that are presently fielded. stations in Germany.
With a global focus, Hyzon announced the Hyzon In January 2021, Navistar said it would partner
Zero Carbon Alliance, which includes existing with General Motors to develop fuel cell trucks for
customers and infrastructure providers Ark and long-haul duty. The Navistar regional haul
Hiringa, but also adds fuels companies Raven SR International RH tractor will use GM Hydrotec 80
and ReCarbon Inc, and finance and insurance kW FC cubes to create a H2-powered variant of the
players Bank of America and AXA. Joining the Class 8 truck. Navistar expects commercial
alliance are Saudi companies Modern Group and production in 2024.
NEOM, intending to set up a facility for 10,000
vehicles, with detailed plans to be set out in the
next 18 months.
Nikola also reached a pivotal step in its journey,
by opening its 50,000 m2 manufacturing facility in
Ulm, Germany. Through the JV with Iveco, Nikola
Tre fuel cell vehicles built on the Iveco S-Way
chassis will start road testing in 2022 and could
be produced at a rate of 1,000 per shift, per year,
from 2023 and ramping up in the following years.
Nikola’s facility in Arizona, US will also build the
500-mile range Tre and, additionally, the longer,
900-mile range Two, a sleeper variant
specifically for the US market, planned for
production in 2024.

Quality and quantity for Asian truck OEMs Toyota has spent several years designing a fuel
cell heavy-duty truck, relying on Paccar’s
In May, HHM, the joint venture of Hyundai Motor Kenworth brand as a vehicle partner. The
and H2 Energy, outlined its Xcient redesign, now companies are in the process of building about a
fitted with a 180 kW fuel cell, consisting of two dozen trucks for testing at the Port of Los Angeles.
stacks of 90 kW (previously two stacks of 95 kW). The latest vehicles have more compact CH2 tanks
The longevity of the fuel cell and the overall fuel and a larger battery, with a 300 mile range.
efficiency have been improved. The 350 kW
electric motor offers about 2,200 Nm of torque, Toyota’s truck subsidiary Hino announced its
assisting driving on inclines in mountainous plans to also develop a fuel cell truck last October.
regions. The new Xcient is available as a 6×2 The automaker will launch a fuel cell module
chassis with a double rear axle from the 2021 assembly line for H2-powered, heavy-duty
model year, in addition to the 4×2 variant. commercial trucks at its Toyota Motor Kentucky
factory in 2023, unveiling its Class 8 XL8
The Xcient stores 31 kg H2 in seven tanks, with prototype in August 2021.
three 72-kWh high-performance batteries acting
as an additional energy source. The heavy-duty In Japan, commercial LDVs are more the focus
truck can travel around 400 km (250 mi) on one for Toyota and Hino, with a trial ongoing for 3 t,
tank of H2. Depending on the ambient 250-mile range delivery vehicles for grocery stores.
temperature, the seven tanks can be completely
refilled in 8-20 minutes. China is a key focus country for Toyota, with a first
JV in the country in June 2020, creating United
Hyundai delivered 46 Xcient units to Switzerland Fuel Cell System R&D, with FAW, Dongfeng, GAC,
in 2021. As part of its plan to deliver 1,600 units to BAIC and SinoHytec. The JV was set up to create
Europe by 2025, Hyundai expects to ship another open R&D architectures to shorten the time to
140 units to Switzerland by the end of 2022. develop fuel cell stacks, controls and systems for
commercial vehicles. Building on the first JV,
Hyundai is in talks with several local governments Toyota signed a further contract with SinoHytec,
and logistics companies in the US to establish a in March 2021, to form a 50:50 JV with a capital
possible joint operation of H2-powered trucks. In injection of ¥8bn (€62m). The new company will
July 2021, Hyundai was also awarded a US$500k be based in Beijing and will begin operations in
grant from the SCAQMD to demonstrate two 2023 with a capacity of 3,000 fuel-cell
Class 8 Xcient heavy-duty trucks in Southern components per year. The JV will deliver both
California. Hyundai’s fleet partner planned to buses and trucks to China.
operate the trucks from August. The trucks will be
used for long-haul freight between warehouses In July, Air Products and Cummins announced an
for a year. Hyundai is working with First Element MoU to accelerate the integration of H2 fuel cell
Fuel to utilise three HRS in the region to refuel trucks in the Americas, Europe and Asia. Cummins
the trucks. will provide powertrains integrated into selected
OEM partners’ heavy-duty trucks for Air Products.
Also, in July, Hyundai announced its participation Assuming a successful demonstration and pilot,
in the NorCAL ZERO project. Hyundai is to deploy Air Products plans to convert its global fleet of
30 Xcient trucks to the fleet operator, Glovis nearly 2,000 distribution trucks to operation with
America, starting Q3 2023, for regional freight H2 fuel cells. The demonstration is expected to
distribution in California. The driving range of the begin in 2022. The partners will also work to
US trucks will be 500 miles (800 km) to meet increase the accessibility of green H2, including
market needs, achieved by moving from 350 to H2 infrastructure opportunities to promote H2
700 bar CH2. After six years operation is reached, mobility futures.
the fuel cell trucks are expected to exhibit a
similar total cost of ownership as diesel. The In addition to the efforts of the major truck OEMs,
project has been granted US$29m funding from there is a growing momentum on powertrain
the CARB, the CEC, Alameda County conversions, using third-party diesel chassis, led
Transportation Commission and the Bay Area Air mainly by established electric vehicle converters.
Quality Management District and will be the
largest commercial fleet trial to date in the US.

It has been a busy year for Proton Motor, with truck, and a municipal waste collection truck. An
orders and interest ranging from maritime to rail. initial deployment of the fuel cell trucks in
In July, E-Trucks Europe made an order for seven Germany is scheduled for the second half of 2022.
HyRange 43 (42.6 kW) H2 fuel cell modules to be
deployed in refuse collection trucks, following a
previous order in January 2020 for five modules.
The trucks are fully electrified (drive train and
waste collector) with 136 kWh batteries, the
Proton modules as range extenders delivering
near continuous daily usage. The refuse trucks
have been used in Groningen, Best, Breda,
Eindhoven and Helmond. Proton is also
contracted to deliver maintenance services for
the next five years.
In July 2021, H2GVMids began, a 9-month study

led by EDF R&D UK, with partners Cenex, Arcola
Energy, Toyota, Intelligent Energy and ITM
Motive. Funded by Innovate UK through the
In June, Proton Motor signed an MoU with the UK Zero Emissions Road Freight Competition,
company Electra Commercial Vehicles, to develop pre-deployment work for a 44 t H2 fuel cell truck
the fuel cell truck market in the UK and Ireland. demonstration in the Midlands will take place,
Electra will place an initial order for five Proton involving the full value chain for H2 HGV
fuel cell systems and a prototype refuse collection operation, development and refuelling, with a
truck will be developed for serial testing. Electra lease-based delivery model. A Green Book ready
will act as system integrator to integrate Proton’s business case, with preliminary engineering
systems into its existing electric truck portfolio. designs, site surveys, a full costing, and
Proton will provide engineering support and identification of risks and pre-authorisations, will
training during the development and be core deliverables.
qualification of the trucks. The companies also
committed to joint sales and marketing activities
in the UK.
In September, Ballard and Quantron AG formed a
strategic partnership for the development of H2
fuel cell electric trucks. The initial collaboration
will focus on the integration of Ballard’s FCmove
family of heavy-duty power modules into
Quantron’s electric drivetrain and vehicles. Fuel
cell truck platforms currently in development
include a 7.5 t delivery truck, a 44 t heavy duty

Liverpool-based ULEMCo offers a range of clean Hyundai plans to set up a ‘business cluster’ which
transportation solutions: hydrogen ICEs, dual fuel covers H2 vehicle sales, lease programmes and
engines, and fuel cell designs. In August, ULEMCo HRS, noting China as one of the global H2 markets
was awarded an Innovate UK award for HySPERT, with the most growth potential. The second MoU
a fuel cell electric powertrain engineering design is with Advanced Technology & Materials
leading to a fire-fighting truck. This follows an Company and HBIS Group, based in the Beijing-
OZEV (Office for Zero Emission Vehicles) award in Tianjin-Hebei economic zone, for the supply of
February for a lightweight ambulance design, 1,000 H2 trucks.
with a fuel cell range extender, now going to
prototype. The Technology Roadmap for Energy-saving
& New Energy Vehicles (Version 2.0) released by
China SAE in 2020 suggests a 1m cumulative
FCEV target by 2030, with Hyundai Motor
positioned to play a central role. At the end of
2020, Hyundai said it aims to export 64,000 H2
commercial vehicles per year by 2030, comprising
27,000 to China, 25,000 to Europe and 12,000 to
the US.
In April, Symbio unveiled its multi-stack system at
Auto Shanghai, rated 150 kW, 225 kW (3x 75 kW),
and 300 kW (2x 150 kW), to fit all trucks to 44 t.
The stacks are claimed as compact and efficient,
with low pressure and losses, controlled hydrogen
recirculation and operating temperatures that are
China, still king of the road compatible with the cooling requirements of
HDVs.
2021 showed a significant uptick in activity in fuel
cell HDVs and in vans, but China remains king in
medium- and heavy-duty deployments, with
nearly 1,200 trucks of all sizes produced in the
country in 2021. Around 800 of these were sold in
the year, representing 99% of truck shipments to
Asia, and 64% of all truck shipments globally.
The Chinese government is increasingly
supportive of H2 for regional mobility, with an
emphasis on trucks and buses. Consequently, a
lot of the global OEMs remain focused on China,
with several JVs in play.
At the end of 2020, Hyundai signed agreements
with two groups of Chinese actors. The first MoU,
with Shanghai Electric Power Co, Shanghai
Sunwise Energy Systems Co, and Shanghai
Ronghe Electric Technology Financial Leasing Co,
was for the supply of 3,000 H2 FCEVs in the next
five years, to be operated in the Yangtze River
Delta region.

Hydrogen strategies and roadmaps
As part of global efforts to implement the Paris public dissemination. On the latter two, Japan
Agreement towards a low-carbon economy, the continues to organise the Hydrogen Energy
fuel cells and hydrogen industry has gained Ministerial Meeting, and exhibited its fuel cell
unprecedented political and business and hydrogen technology in the Tokyo 2020
momentum, with an increasing number of Olympics, held eventually in 2021 because of the
countries revealing their long-term hydrogen COVID pandemic.
ambitions. By the October 2021, more than
20 jurisdictions worldwide had published South Korea’s pathway to a hydrogen economy
hydrogen strategies or roadmaps, and several South Korea’s Hydrogen Economy Roadmap sees
more were in development. hydrogen as leading to environmental benefits
By and large, these strategies provide a vision and and economic growth, setting the world’s most
a supportive policy framework for the ambitious deployment targets to date including
development and rollout of hydrogen 2.9m FC cars (plus 3.3m for export), 80k FC taxis,
technologies. The focus is often on hydrogen 40k FC buses, 30k FC trucks, 1.2k HRSs, 8 GW of
production and utilisation in hard-to-decarbonise FC large-scale domestic power generation (plus
sectors, with fuel cells seen generally as a key 7 GW for export) and 2.1 GW of FC domestic power
enabler to decarbonise heavy transport. generation for homes and buildings by 2040.
Further to the main objective of reducing carbon The Hydrogen Act, claimed to be the world’s first
emissions, many hydrogen strategies highlight hydrogen-related law, took effect in February
country-specific opportunities, often related to 2021, while hydrogen pilot cities Ulsan, Ansan and
the establishment of activities across the Wanju-Jeonju will use hydrogen as their primary
hydrogen value chain. In consequence, different energy source starting in 2022. The Hydrogen
strategies may have distinct strategic goals, Economy Committee, chaired by the Prime
depending on local comparative advantages, Minister, is set to supervise the development of
which results in a somewhat fragmented global the hydrogen economy.
approach. Hydrogen to play a key role in the EU
The combined impact of this raft of strategy Multiple hydrogen strategies have recently
announcements is a pipeline of over 500 clean emerged in Europe, at EU and national levels. The
hydrogen projects on the drawing board today, European Commission’s Hydrogen Strategy for a
with spending plans that could reach more than Climate-Neutral Europe recognises the pivotal role
US$700bn to 2030. that green hydrogen could play in achieving
Japan envisions a hydrogen society climate neutrality, targeting 40 GW of installed
electrolyser capacity by 2030 and large-scale fuel
Japan was the first country to call for the adoption cell deployment in hard-to-abate sectors by 2050.
of a hydrogen-based society, in the aftermath of These ambitions are largely supported by the
the 2011 earthquake and tsunami leading to hydrogen strategies from Member States, which
Fukushima’s nuclear accident. But a national also touch on country specific drivers and
vision for H2 had been around for decades. The objectives as discussed below.
nation’s Basic Hydrogen Strategy aims for a
hydrogen society in the 2050 timeframe, with On top of this, industry association Hydrogen
FC deployment targets on the way, including Europe suggests importing hydrogen from North
800k cars, 1.2k buses, 10k forklifts, 900 HRS and Africa and Ukraine in its supplementary 2x40 GW
5.3m Ene-Farm units by 2030. Initiative. The organisation has also published its
Hydrogen Roadmap Europe, which outlines an
Based on strong public-private support and ambitious scenario with 3.7m FC cars, 500k FC
collaboration, the country seeks to promote the light commercial vehicles, 45k FC trucks and
utilisation of hydrogen across multiple sectors, buses, 570 FC trains and 3.7k HRS by 2030, as well
together with international cooperation and as 2.5m FC CHP units by 2040.

Laying the foundations in the US France plans to foster hydrogen-based mobility
for commercial applications, providing
Although a US hydrogen strategy is not yet opportunities for local companies to develop
available, the Department of Energy (DOE) has key components and capabilities, targeting
released its overarching Hydrogen Program Plan, 20-50k light duty vehicles, 800-2,000 heavy duty
seeking to provide strategic direction to all DOE vehicles, and 400-1,000 HRS by 2028. Symbio’s
hydrogen activities. The objective is to accelerate location reflects this emphasis, benefiting from
the development, demonstration and adoption favourable national policy.
of hydrogen-related technologies, envisioning
these as an integral part of multiple sectors across The UK seeks to build ‘world-class’ low-carbon
the economy. hydrogen supply chains to underpin the
deployment of hydrogen technologies, including
Like in Europe, US industry representatives hydrogen buses, trucks and rail, together with
have put forward a Road Map to a US Hydrogen early-stage commercial shipping and aviation.
Economy, including an ambitious pathway that
would lead to 1.2m FCEVs, 300k FC forklifts The Netherlands strives to become a hydrogen
and 4.3k HRS by 2030. Meanwhile, the long- energy hub, capitalising on its ports and location,
standing California Fuel Cell Partnership envisages with a target of 300k FCEVs by 2030.
1m FCEVs, including cars, buses and trucks, and
1k HRS in the State by 2030. And Denmark aspires to play an important role in
Power-to-X, building on its currently strong
Significant progress in China position throughout the value chain, comprising
wind turbine and electrolyser manufacturers as
While a national hydrogen strategy is not yet well as e-fuels consumers.
available, China has recently made significant
hydrogen-related policy announcements. The The race for green H2 production
nation’s 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) identifies
hydrogen as a frontier development area, as well Not surprisingly, the strategies tend to promote
as one of the six industries for future focus. 1m green H2 production, often looking to capitalise
FCEVs by 2030 remains a widely-accepted goal, on favourable renewable energy resources.
based on technological roadmaps released by In Europe, many nations have reported plans to
industrial and government-affiliated stakeholders. increase their electrolyser capacity, setting
significant targets by 2030: 6.5 GW in France,
Broad-brush subsidies for FCEVs have now been 5 GW in Germany and Italy, 4-6 GW in Denmark,
replaced by demonstration rewards under the 4 GW in Spain, 3-4 GW in the Netherlands and
Pilot Cities programme, intended to support a 2 GW in Portugal.
selection of local governments in developing
hydrogen value chains. Furthermore, multiple Elsewhere, the Australian hydrogen strategy
provinces and municipalities have formulated recognises the country’s potential to become a
their own hydrogen development plans, often major green hydrogen producer (built on its solar
driven by promising hydrogen production resource), with a current focus on demonstration
potential or existing industry presence. projects and building supply chains and hydrogen
hubs. South Africa is attempting to become a
Pursuing technology leadership global player in green H2, hoping this will help
address the country’s poverty, inequality, and
As previously mentioned, hydrogen strategies in unemployment challenges. Chile sees green
different countries may include distinct drivers H2 as a unique opportunity, comparable to the
and aspirations. One of the common targets country’s prominent mining sector, with
among industrialised countries is the pursuit of ambitious plans to deploy 25 GW of electrolyser
technology leadership, looking to create global capacity by 2030. And India and Morocco have
market opportunities for local players. This is built reported big plans regarding green hydrogen
into the strategies of Kapan and South Korea, and production too.
also to Germany’s strategy, which aims to develop
a market for hydrogen technologies, with specific
measures to establish a competitive fuel cell
supply chain for the automotive industry.

Blue hydrogen still on the table The impact on fuel cell players
Despite the existing focus on green hydrogen, the None of this has been lost on fuel cell producers.
generation of blue hydrogen is also considered, Plug Power has reinvented itself, from a supplier
especially in regions with large natural gas mostly of forklift battery box replacement units
reserves. The Canadian hydrogen strategy is with a small-scale refuelling ability, to a major
intended as a call to action, urging stakeholders green hydrogen player, spanning electrolytic
to seize the opportunities related to producing production, storage and supply of H2.
both green and blue hydrogen. Norway draws on In December 2021, as part of its transition
the country’s resources and sectorial experience strategy, Plug Power closed its acquisition of
to produce both green and blue hydrogen, calling Frames Group for €115m (US$137m). Plug’s plan is
for equal competition between the two in the to combine its PEM electrolyser stack technology
European market. The UAE is set to develop green with Frames’ systems integration capabilities to
and blue hydrogen production capabilities, offer turnkey electrolyser solutions, ranging in size
looking for new growth opportunities within the from 1 MW containers to 1,000 MW standalone
low-carbon economy. And the UK and others plants. The PEMEL platform itself arose from Plug’s
have set low-carbon hydrogen production acquisition of Giner ELX, in July 2020.
targets, which may include using CCUS or
biomethane, especially in the near term. Plug aims to achieve an installed electrolyser
capacity of 3 GW by 2025 and will also seek to
Increasing focus on exports produce over 1,000 tonnes of green hydrogen
daily by 2028. In September 2021, Plug also
Several hydrogen strategies put an emphasis on committed to the build of a 30 tpd LH2 plant in
export opportunities, given the potential for Fresno County, California. The plant should
hydrogen production in certain geographies, complete commissioning in early 2024. The plant
notably with high solar insolation to create joins the company’s growing national network of
low-cost electricity, combined with the expected plants in New York, Tennessee, and Georgia that
high hydrogen demand in other areas. In Europe, will together supply 500 tpd green LH2 by 2025.
Spain and Portugal see themselves as future
hydrogen exporters to Germany, which does not Likewise, a raft of SOFC players, including Ceres,
anticipate meeting its hydrogen demand only are now targeting electrolysers, either to create
from domestic production. North African hydrogen directly or (as with Sunfire) for efuels
countries like Morocco are also well positioned to manufacture. There is also a small but discernible
export into Europe, as reflected in Hydrogen move by some fuel cell players to target
Europe’s 2x40 GW Initiative. renewable ensembles, from green H2 production,
to buffering, to arbitrage using fuel cells to create
In addition, Australia is set to make hydrogen its power, from domestic homes to industrial
next major energy export, having already signed a embedded systems.
cooperation agreement with Japan and a letter of
intent with South Korea. Chile claims it will be
able to produce the cheapest green H2 worldwide,
from its abundant and cheap renewable power.
And the UAE aspires to capture 25% of the
low-carbon hydrogen market share in key export
markets including Japan, South Korea and
Germany.

Shipments by application
Shipments by application 2017 - 2021 (1,000 units)
100
Portable
80 Stationary
60 Transport
40
20
0
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f
Megawatts by application 2017 - 2021
2500
Portable
2000 Stationary
Transport
1500
1000
500
0
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f

The several-year trend continues, with the two Most of the balance is in the US, led by Bloom,
fuel cell cars dominating the MW count, at 72% of with negligible shipments of large units to
capacity shipped. Including buses and trucks the Europe. There is an increasing focus, particularly
figure rises to 83%, and to 85% when materials in Korea, in large hydrogen-fuelled units,
handling vehicles are included. This increase to integrated with chemical works, over natural
nearly 2 GW of total shipments contrasts with the gas-fuelled units.
much slower growth in stationary and portable
applications, which together account for 348 MW Shipments of smaller fuel cells for domestic CHP
of the overall 2021 total. have fallen somewhat over 2021, at nearly 44,000
units, from over 52,000 units globally in 2020. The
As noted in the 2020 Review, the large fall may be partly due to the COVID pandemic, in
contribution from only two car models (from two terms of access to residential premises. Japan still
just OEMs) contributes to major volatility in leads Europe in micro-CHP by a 10:1 ratio, with
shipments. Hyundai and Toyota contributed to a negligible shipments outside these two areas.
near doubling of fuel cell cars from 2020, and
without the NEXOs and Mirais the global fuel cell Fuel cells for telecoms backup is seeing renewed
market would be back at around 680 MW, roughly success, and in some remote areas is even used as
the total in 2017. the primary energy supply. The commercial
argument for fuel cells may improve in this sector
The case for fuel cells is also being proven in other as costs continue to drop.
markets, notably in portable APUs for consumers,
remote power (monitoring, telecoms, control and Portable remains patchy – in leisure, APUs are
works units), and increasingly in prime power (led used as battery chargers when camping in
by Bloom and Doosan). The latter, as with pristine locations, but commercial applications
domestic micro-CHP, is still driven by policy and are increasing: chiefly monitoring and temporary
incentives, and without them would likely signage and works. Dominated by SFC Energy,
collapse. Energy markets and emissions drivers with smaller sales from BOC’s Hymera, Adapative
have changed over the two decades of small Energy and others, over 6,000 portable fuel cells
volume manufacture and cost reduction, were sold in 2021. The military continues to buy
meaning the path to profitability for the portable fuel cells for evaluation purposes, but
companies selling these devices remains elusive. also applies tens of units in silent watch and other
niche areas.
Bus shipments increased slightly over 2021, with
lower units in China offset by more in Europe and Educational kits continue to be sold by Inenergy
elsewhere. Truck shipments tripled in number, and Horizon Fuel Cell but we do not publish these
with the MW capacity increasing six times, as as part of the overall FCIR figures. Mind you, this
China increasingly targets heavy-duty segment is probably one of the very few volume
commercial vehicles over medium-duty applications in which fuel cells presently make a
models. Our ‘Transport – Other’ count includes true profit!
a growing contribution from maritime, train and
aviation fuel cell units.
Fuel cells in prime power now overhauls large
CHP. South Korea remains the largest market, with
Bloom shipments growing fast, but overall
shipments of larger (100 kW+) units to Korea have
declined slightly in 2021, as industry waited for
the supportive Clean Hydrogen Energy Portfolio
Standards to be written into secondary legislation
flowing from the Hydrogen Energy Act. The 2021
market in this area is around 146 MW out of a
global market of 298 MW.

Trains and trams – also going places
Fuel cell and hydrogen trains hit the limelight in Several other German rail operators and public
2021 at Glasgow’s COP26. Two UK fuel cell and transport authorities are looking at deployment
hydrogen trains were on display: the HydroFLEX, of fuel cell trains as a replacement to diesels. An
and the Arcola Energy static conversion of a iLint started in Baden-Wurttemberg in May 2021,
retired class 314. These are just two of many with tests on the Tübingen to Sigmaringen line. In
projects either underway or announced in 2021. spring 2021, the Brandenburg Government
Activity in this area is now accelerating from a announced a €25m package to reactivate the
slow start, begun decades ago. Heidekrautbahn line on the outskirts of Berlin.
€9m is earmarked for six fuel cell trains, as diesel
Capable of similar performance to diesel-electric trains are no longer considered acceptable.
powertrains, fuel cell trains offer an affordable ENERTRAG will provide H2 for refuelling, drawing
and potentially emission free future for non- upon the regions’ wind farms as a power source
electrified lines across the world’s rail networks. for electrolysis.
They are not, yet at least, perfect substitutes, but
with tighter emissions regulations due over the Outside Germany, Alstom has continued to
next five years for leading economies diesel heavily market the Coradia iLint to other
fuelled trains have a limited shelf life. Most of the European rail operators. Following trials in the
fuel cell train trials use compressed H2 fuel. Netherlands and Austria last year, there were
further tests at Östersund in Sweden, and trails
Europe – full ’steam’ ahead began this September at the Centre d’Essais
Europe has led the application of fuel cells in Ferroviaires rail research centre at Valenciennes,
trains, though activity is now growing elsewhere. Northern France.
Alstom, with its Coradia iLint, estimates that 5,000 France’s SNCF Voyagers placed a €190m order for
passenger trains in Europe currently running on 12 Alstom Polyvalent Régiolis units (the French
diesel will be replaced by fuel cell or electric trains version of the iLint) in April. These will be dual
by 2035. The primary markets are Germany, mode vehicles capable of operating on catenary
France, Italy and the UK. Looking ahead, Morgan systems and under fuel cell power offering a
Stanley estimates the European H2 rail sector range up to 600 km (375 miles) on non-electrified
could be worth €24-48bn (US$28.5-57m) by 2050. sections. The units will be operated over four rail
While the first two Coradia iLints continue systems across France, in Occitanie, Bourgoyne-
commercial service on the Elbe-Weser line in Franche-Comté, Gran Est and Auvergne-Rhône-
Lower Saxony, the next 14 are still on order. They Alps. Trials are due to start in 2022 in the Centre-
are operated on behalf of LNVG, the regional Val de Loire. These are forerunners of potentially
public transport authority. With 126 diesels on its many more units, as France still operates a fleet of
books and an intent not to buy further diesels, 1,200 diesel units, while 45% of its lines are not
LNVG will need to look further alternative drives yet electrified.
sometime in the future. Alstom also started testing the iLint at the rail
The iLint uses Cummins (formerly Hydrogenics) research facility at Zmigrod, Poland, from June.
HyPM HD 180 modules, hybridised with batteries, Interest in the train stems in part from Poland’s
with 89 kg CH2 storage. Cummins is setting up National Recovery Plan which has earmarked
module manufacturing in Herten, Germany, not funds for 30 low emission trains for regional
far from Saltzgitter where the hydrogen iLints are operators by 2026. The diesel version of the
manufactured. With an estimated order book of Coradia LINT is currently manufactured in the
over 50 units, these include 27 units for the country at Chorzow.
Rhein-Main rail system for use around Frankfurt. However, Alstom faces competition from Poland’s
Alstom is the market leader at present, though indigenous rolling stock business, Pesa
with customers still assessing the potential of the Bydgoszcz. Pesa has designed its electric Regio
iLint, including total cost of ownership and 160 to be able to operate on H2 fuel cells or just
(proven 95%) reliability, and few actual sales.

batteries. Tests are expected in 2025/26. In the January 2021 saw the EU FCH2Rail (Fuel Cell
meantime, Pesa unveiled its fuel cell shunter at Hybrid Power Pack for Rail Applications) project
the Trako 21 rail fair in September. The new SM42 begin. Spain’s CAF is converting a three-car Class
Dn shunter was designed in cooperation with 463 Civia EMU to a fuel cell powertrain for Renfe.
Polish State Railways PKP SA and the refiner PKN Toyota Europe will provide Mirai-based modules
Orlen, and uses two 85 kW Ballard fuel cell to the €14m project, which is supported by
modules, hydrogen tanks with a 175 kg capacity, €10m from FCH2 JU. The powertrain will
and a 167 kWh lithium titanate battery. Once tests incorporate lithium-titanate batteries to deliver the
have been completed, it will be operated at a power needed to overcome the inertia of the train.
refinery.
The Czech company CZ LOKO is working on the
concept of a shunting locomotive powered by H2.
The decision was prompted by the assumptions
of the European Green Deal, promoting emission-
free solutions. The locomotive will be based on
the HybridShunter 1000, which has batteries with
a capacity of 600 kWh. The HydrogenShunter 800
locomotive will have an 800 kW engine. The CZ
LOKO hydrogen locomotive is expected to be
certified throughout the EU and is expected to be
competitive in terms of total cost of ownership.
Elsewhere in Europe, the three-car Mireo Plus H
passenger train continues to be developed by
Siemens through the German H2goesRail project, Talgo, another Spanish trains business, has fuel
with construction of body units starting this year. cell ambitions, and in October placed an order for
Based on the diesel electric Mireo platform, the eight Ballard 70 kW FCmove-HD modules for its
Mireo Plus H will be powered by Ballard fuel cell Vittal-One train. This is now expected to begin
modules, and capable of 160 km/hour (99 mph) testing in 2023. In addition, Talgo is converting an
with a range of up to 1,000 km (621 miles) before electric locomotive to operate with a fuel cell,
refuelling. The timeline appears to have been although due to locomotive space constraints the
bought forward in July 2021 when Siemens H2 will be stored in carriages. In Julu, Talgo also
signed an MoU with the Bavarian Government to announced an agreement with Repsol, the
build a two-car unit. Testing will now begin in Spanish energy business (which is also an
2023 on the Augsburg-Füssen route, a year earlier H2 producer), to promote a H2 train in Iberia.
than the previous agreement with Deutsche Bahn
to test in Tübingen, Horb and Pforzheim. Service Elsewhere, in Southern Europe, AECOM, the
entry is expected from 2024. infrastructure multinational, and Iberdrola, the
European renewables business, announced a plan
to upgrade the 300 km (186 mile) Apennine line
in Italy using hydrogen. This too is being
supported by the EU, through the European
Clean Hydrogen Alliance. Russia too has been
looking at fuel cell trains for the future; the State
Railways stating that it would not purchase any
diesel fuelled vehicles after 2025.
The UK continues to operate a fleet of 2,500 diesel
fuelled trains, with only 38% of the rail network
electrified. The UK government has set 2040 as
the date by which diesel will be phased out, and
the UK’s Hydrogen Strategy of August 2021
acknowledges the role that H2-fuelled trains can

play in the future. To this end, three projects are Also, in July, Siemens Mobility and the Helmholtz
focused on converting older EMUs to fuel cell Institute Erlangen-Nurnberg for Renewable
powertrains, delivering emissions savings and Energy (HI ERN) signed an MoU to conduct joint
extending the asset lifetimes: HydroFLEX is based research on the use of liquid organic hydrogen
on the 30-year old Class 319s, undertaken by carrier (LOHC) technology in rail transport. The
Porterbrook (a train leasing business) and LOHC technology is from Hydrogenious.
University of Birmingham; Eversholt (another
leasing business) has developed the Breeze in a In August 2021, Eversholt Rail partnered H2
venture with Alstom and uses the former 321 Green, the Edinburgh-based green H2 supply
class; and, in Scotland, where the Government is facilitator, to establish the production and filling
looking to phase out diesels by 2035, Arcola infrastructure needed to support wide-scale
Energy is working with Angel Trains on the deployment of H2-powered rolling stock fleets,
conversion of a class 314 EMU (following its focusing on low-cost green H2. H2 Green has an
conversion, now reclassified as a 614). Arcola has exclusive deal with SGN (the Scottish gas network
another prospective conversion, a class 158, for operator) to develop otherwise redundant assets
Highlands and Islands Transport. for H2 production and storage.
A key objective of the Arcola work on the 314/614 Finally, in April, in Germany, HeiterBlick in Leipzig
on the Bo’ness and Kinneil Railway is to establish announced it would collaborate with Chemnitz
opportunities for the Scottish rail supply chain to companies Hörmann Vehicle Engineering and
industrialise the technology and develop skills. Flexiva Automation & Robotik to develop an H2
The powertrain is based around Arcola’s A-Drive fuel cell powered tram. The four-year project is
fuel cell platform, developed in the Dundee subject of €2.1m funding award from the
manufacturing facility. Arcola’s new class 614 has Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital
a Ballard 70 kW module under each driving car, Infrastructure (BMVI).
plus the 210 kg 700 bar H2 total tanks; the centre- Asia – All change
car is fitted with lithium-titanate batteries in place
of the transformer. Asia’s interest in fuel cell trains can be traced back
to at least the late 1990s with projects
A challenge facing all the UK’s fuel cell undertaken in Japan. While Japan’s efforts
conversions is loading gauge, which is smaller continue, it is clear Korea is now leading the way.
than the rest of Europe. Finding the space for the A major driver for Korea is the Government’s
fuel cell modules, batteries and less energy dense ambition to eliminate diesel passenger trains by
CH2 is challenging. The HydroFLEX (itself now 2029. There is also activity in fuel cell heavy rail
reclassified as the 799), uses space inside the and trams in China.
passenger cabin for its single Ballard FCveloCity-
HD 100 kW fuel cell (as a range extender) and Many of the projects underway in Korea include
277 kg H2 storage within 36 pressure tanks, not an the Korean Railroad Research Institute (KRRI) as a
ideal solution. A HydroFLEX 2 is planned, to partner, to facilitate trials, and Hyundai Rotem,
improve the layout and increase the power and the rolling stock business of Hyundai Motor
performance. Group, with direct access to the NEXO fuel cell
module.
The HydroFLEX and Breeze trains started tests,
but it is not clear whether any orders for either As 2021 opened, KRRI was already working with
train is due, though the Tees Valley in North East Hyundai Rotem to develop a fuel cell train,
England has been mentioned as a possible first capable of 110 km/hour (68 mph), and a 600 km
pilot site. (373 mile) range from a charge of CH2. A pilot is
expected to run from 2022 on a restored section
Hydrogen availability is a key factor in the of the Donghae Bukbu Line, between Gangneung
viability of the fuel, whatever the domain. In July and Jejin.
2021, Alstom signed an MoU with Plastic
Omnium, setting up a joint team to manage the
technical and commercial development of
on-board H2 storage solutions for the railway
market, with development projects already under
way. The partners aim to launch these solutions
for regional trains in France and Italy from 2022.

established a ₩18.6bn (US$15.8m) project to
develop a 2.7 MW module-based fuel cell light
rail vehicle capable of 150 km/hour (93 mph),
using LH2, claimed to deliver a 1,000 km
(621 mile) range, much greater than other
energy storage systems in development in Korea.
The aim is to test the full system in 2024, with
commercial operation from 2025. Rotem is
aiming at LH2-fuelled high-speed trains
from 2030.
Japan’s Hybari EMU set, powered by Toyota Mirai
fuel cells and Hitachi batteries, has been under
development with East Japan Railway Company
(JR East) since 2020, and is due to start
demonstration in early 2022. The two-car unit
will operate on JR East’s Tsurumi line and the
In April 2021, Rotem showcased its ‘K-Hydrogen Nambu line in Tokyo, reaching speeds of
Tram’ concept car at its Changwon plant in South 100 km/hour (62 mph) and with a range of
Gyeongsang Province. The prototype consists of 140 km (87 miles).
three cars, capable of carrying up to 100 people.
The tram uses four NEXO modules (380 kW total), China launched one of the world’s first fuel cell
with a 700 bar CH2 tank (twice the pressure of the trams on city networks in Qingdao and Tangshan
iLint), and a lithium-ion battery. The prototype using vehicles developed by CRRC, China’s
tram can travel at 70 km/hour (43 mph), with premier rolling stock business. Foshan has seen
150 km (93 miles) range on a 42 kg CH2 charge. trams running on its 17 km (10.5 mile) Gaoming
Mass production of the H2 tram is targeting 2024. line since 2019, again built by a CRRC subsidiary
Qingdao Sifang. Attention is now turning to
Rotem plans to make improvements to the tram heavier rail vehicles.
in test runs from March 2022 to late 2023, on a
4.6 km (2.9 mile) stretch of the Ulsanhang Line, In January, trial operations commenced for the
from Taehwagang to Ulsan Port. The tram Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone T1 Demonstration
development follows the MoU with Ulsan City in Line in the Lin-gang New Area. The Line will begin
August 2020. operation on pure electric power while HRS are
being constructed, with plans to fully switch to
The budget for the Ulsan demonstration is hydrogen power once applicable.
₩42bn (US$35.6m), with ₩28.2bn from MOTIE,
Early 2021 saw a CRRC subsidiary, CRRC Datong,
Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
announcing its first fuel cell hybrid shunting
MOTIE plans to first discuss the application of H2
locomotive using fuel cell systems from SPIC.
trams with local governments that have new
This locomotive, capable of 80 km/hour (50 mph)
urban railroad projects (such as Ulsan and
speed, started demonstration at the end of
Dongtan), and then to export to regions with
October in Inner Mongolia, ironically on a coal
growing demand, such as Europe and Southeast
railway. In July 2021, a locomotive with a
Asia. KRRI and Hyundai Rotem are working with
400 kW fuel cell system was unveiled at
local components companies to establish a
Changzhou in East China. The locomotive top
domestic supply chain.
speed is reported to be 100 km/hour (62 mph),
The city of Changwon also plans to use the trams and it appears to have higher traction capability
for its city rail service, scheduled to open in 2030. than the Inner Mongolian locomotive. There are
Busan has also been mentioned as a test site, for a reports that more powerful locomotives are
catenary-free tram line covering 1.9 km. under development.
LH2 has 1.6 times higher energy density than

CH2, facilitating longer ranges. In January 2021,
KRRI, Hyundai Rotem, VC Tech, and Parity,

The demonstration in India of Patiala’s A similar project was reported in September
Locomotive Works four-car, formerly diesel 2021, when the Southern Railway of British
powered, fuel cell EMU is also due to start. Fuel Columbia (BC) announced that it was seeking to
cell trains could find a large market on one of the convert a switcher locomotive to fuel cells.
world’s largest railway networks, but although a Funded in part by the BC and Canadian
number of fuel cell train projects have been governments, the project will use Loop Energy’s
announced in the past for the country, there 50 kW eFlow fuel cell modules and Hydrogen in
remains little to show. Motion’s solid state hydrogen storage system to
prove out the concept.
The most recent initiative was by the Alternate
Fuel Organisation of Indian Railways. In August In June 2021, General Motors signed an MoU with
AFO invited bids to convert two diesel-electric Wabtec, to supply its Ultium Li-ion pouch cells
multiple units to H2 fuel cell propulsion, for and Hydrotec hydrogen fuel cell power cubes.
operation in Hrayana State. Unfortunately, in Wabtec plans delivery of its electric trains from
September it was reported that AFO was closed 2023, with the fuel cell trains to follow. The
with immediate effect; where this leaves the electric version, the FLXDriver, uses 20 racks of
initiative remains unclear. 20,000 battery cells to deliver 2.4 MWh energy
storage. Hybridising the locomotive with fuel cells
North America – Back to the future is a logical next step, to extend range.
North America, like India, has an extensive, In December 2021, BNSF, one of the largest
continent-wide railway network for which diesel freight railroad operators in the US, Caterpillar,
is the primary form of traction. Although there and Chevron signed an MoU to establish the
have been past projects converting diesel feasibility and performance of H2 fuel for rail
locomotives to fuel cell hydrogen technologies, operations. Progress Rail, a Caterpillar company,
notably a DoD supported switcher (shunter) would design and build a prototype fuel cell
locomotive in the early 2000s, there has been powered locomotive for linehaul service;
little to show. That may be about to change. Chevron the fuelling concept and infrastructure;
and BNSF would make available its lines for
Driven in part by imminent tightening of
prototype testing.
emissions regulations for diesel locomotives, to
very low levels in the USA with the EPA Tier 5 The MoU is preliminary, and we will need to wait
standards, the past year has seen an explosion of to see what comes of it. Progress has developed
fuel cell rail vehicle projects around switcher and EMD Joule, a battery electric locomotive with
linehaul diesel locomotives. 2.1 MW of power and 1.9 MWh lithium-ion
phosphate storage, which could also benefit from
In December 2020, Canadian Pacific announced
fuel cell hybridisation.
its investment of C$15m (US$15m) to retrofit a
SD40-2F diesel linehaul locomotive with fuel cells. Switzerland’s Stadler Rail remains on track to
In November 2021, the company indicated the deliver a fuel cell version of its FLIRT DMU to the
first train will run by the end of 2021 and be in San Bernardino County Transport authority in
service in 2022. The Hydrogen Zero Emissions 2024. But in Toronto, MetroLinx, responsible for
Locomotive (H2 0EL) will have six Ballard the regional rail commuter service, announced in
200 kW modules, 1.2 MW total. March 2021 that it was dropping the ambition for
a H2 railway. Citing issues with “fuel production,
Also announced was a matching grant from
storage and transport, as well as refuelling” it
Emissions Reduction Alberta, expanding the
concluded the technology wasn’t suitable for the
scope to cover a switcher and high horsepower
“immediate term”. However, the prospect of a
unit. The grant also covers H2 production and
pilot using H2 fuel cell technology may still be
refuelling facilities at Canadian Pacific’s yards in
part of bids into its procurement of future
Calgary and Edmonton. Assuming success,
services.
Canadian Pacific is talking about a longer-term
partnership with OEMs to develop and And it’s not all PEM. In February 2021, the start-up
commercialise the technology more widely. NextGenPropulsion, LLC, in North Carolina signed
an MoU in February with Georgia-based start-up
In March 2021, Sierra Northern Railway
Fuel Cell Enabling Technologies, to purchase
announced a US$4m grant from California Energy
SOFCs for its light-rail trains and freight
Commission that will enable Ballard fuel cell
locomotives. Though as with most ventures
modules to be fitted to a locomotive. California is
involving early technologies from start-ups, the
reported to have 260 switchers and 500 linehaul
progression from concept to market may be some
diesel locomotives operating in the State, all of
years away.
which face tightening emissions standards.

Materials handling and forklift trucks
Materials handling equipment continues to be a Gaussin also unveiled its Zero-Emission Yard
major adopter of fuel cells with application in Automation autonomous tractor equipped with a
forklifts, logistics and port machinery. In unit robotic arm, based on Gaussin’s ATM and TSBM
numbers, fuel cells for materials handing reached hydrogen powered vehicle platforms, intended
16% of overall shipments in 2021. for deployment with logistics and e-commerce
companies.
Plug Power remains the leader in this sector and
2021 was another busy year with around a further The news during the year wasn’t only from Plug,
10,000 FC systems being deployed, bringing the with plenty of activity from other companies too.
total number deployed to over 50,000 by the year In Europe, the StasHH consortium was formed by
end with over 150 fuelling stations in operation to eleven fuel cell suppliers and nine OEMs to define,
support them, and their new Rochester, NY, develop and validate the first European standard
Gigafactory opening in November. for fuel cells in heavy duty-mobility applications.
Plug were also busy in the capital markets, PowerCell, Sweden, unveiled a complete product
completing a US$2bn capital raise in February, in portfolio for H2-electrification in the off-road
addition to the US$1.6bn investment announced segment with power ranges from 60 kW up to the
in January by South Korea’s SK Group, with whom MW scale. PowerCell won follow-on orders for two
Plug joined in a strategic cooperation, with a new 100 kW FC systems from a US agricultural
JV formed for expansion in Asia. The JV includes equipment manufacturer for testing with tractors
plans for a new Gigafactory in South Korea by as well as an order from their Japanese distributor
2023. In October, Plug also partnered with for two feasibility studies on fuel cell systems for
Fortescue, in Australia, signing a letter of intent the off-road market, including materials handling.
for a 50:50 JV to build a Gigafactory in
Queensland. Also in Sweden, myFC, silent for the last two years,
entered into an agreement with an unnamed
Plug also continued its expansion into green European OEM to develop fuel cell solutions for
hydrogen, announcing four new green plants, automated guided vehicles used as warehouse
with a total capacity of 100 tonnes per day, to be robots, and Volvo Construction Equipment
located in New York, Georgia, Texas and California. opened a Fuel Cell Test Lab at their Technical
The first two plants are expected to be Centre in Eskilstuna, Sweden.
operational by 2022 and the others by 2024.
Swiss-based fuel cell developer EH Group started
collaborating with DOKING, which manufactures
specialised robotic vehicles (bulldozers, etc.) for
applications such as underground mining, to trial
the use of fuel cells.
Ballard Power joined the Hydra consortium, which
aims to develop a 200 kW-plus electric powertrain
prototype using Ballard fuel cells hybridised with
batteries for the mining industry, with funding
from the Chilean Economic Development Agency.
If successful, the plan is to scale this to replace the
diesel engine in a 2 MW hybrid H2 mining truck.
In March 2021, Loop Energy, Canada, and Morello
Giovanni, Italy, signed a strategic cooperation to
develop and manufacture heavy duty FC
The cooperation between Plug and Gaussin, the
materials handling equipment using Loop’s eFlow
French logistics vehicle company, announced last
fuel cells.
year, saw Plug order 20 ATM-H2 yard trucks, based
on Gaussin’s TM 38T electric skateboard, already
in operation at over 35 sites in Europe. The
38-tonne vehicles were to be delivered starting in
November 2021 and will be deployed to Plug’s
customers. The fuel cell trucks are higher power
platforms than most vehicles to date, part of an
industry trend.

BMW expanded its use of fuel cells, announcing it and other on- and off-road vehicles. In December
would use fuel cell powered forklifts, tuggers and 2020, the cargo truck maker Capacity Trucks and
stackers in their South Carolina plant, working Nuvera’s owner, Hyster-Yale, announced plans to
with Plug and Linde for supply of the equipment, incorporate the latest engines into two
initially 85 vehicles, and refuelling infrastructure. prototypes for market testing over 2021.
BMW also expanded its H2-fuel cell powered fleet
in their Leipzig plant with an additional 37
vehicles to be deployed, bringing the total
number of fuel cell powered vehicles in the plant
to 118 units.
Hyzon has now made a play in this sphere, in May
entering a strategic collaboration with Sojitz
Machinery Corporation of America to explore
possibilities to develop new fuel cell-powered
machinery and applications, including forklifts.
Unsurprisingly, ports remained active areas both
for H2 distribution and H2 materials handling. In
the Netherlands, real-world testing continued
with a Terberg YT203-H2 terminal tractor. The North American container handling crane maker
tractor, with its fuel cell developed by Zepp. PACECO and Mitsui E&S Machinery (MES-M) in
solutions, completed an almost 6-month trial at Japan are developing a H2 fuel cell powered
the Port of Rotterdam and has been transferred Rubber-Tired-Gantry (RTG) crane for use in ports
to the Antwerp Euroterminal for further testing, with funding from the New Energy and Industrial
with the commercial launch of the tractor Technology Development Organization (NEDO),
planned for 2023. with initial testing planned for 2022.
Meanwhile, in China, Hangcha reported sales of
209 units of their fuel cell powered forklifts over
the year, while compatriot Heli released their new
forklift, with plans to extend the range, to include
tractors and storage trucks. There were also
several demonstration projects for fuel cell
powered forklifts announced, including at the
Shanghai Qingpu Industrial Park. However, fuel
cell forklifts face a subsidy barrier, which has been
focused on vehicles of 40 kW power and above.
In South Korea, in July 2021, Doosan Fuel Cell and
STX Corporation signed an MoU to develop a new
fuel cell business targeting the agricultural centre.
Ports are also a popular testbed for fuel cells in
the US. The Zero Emissions for California Ports Overall, fuel cells in materials handling are
(ZECAP) project moved ahead on its two fuel cell growing, in unit numbers, range of power outputs
electric terminal tractors, Capacity of Texas Trailer and range of applicable vehicles. The numbers
Jockey Series TJ9000 gliders fitted with look set to grow further as costs reduce and the
FCveloCity-HD85 85 kW stacks from Ballard, slow but now sure move to renewables gains
starting 12-month trials at the Port of Los Angeles momentum. Presently, cost is the major barrier
and Long Beach. to more rapid growth, with the investment in
H2 generation and storage systems requiring a
Initial smaller fuel cell engine investments for fleet of 90+ forklifts at any one location to be
forklifts are providing a springboard to larger financially viable.
vehicle application. Nuvera’s latest E-45 and E-60
engines extends its offering to larger materials
handling applications, as well as to buses, trucks,

Bicycles and motorcycles
Intelligent Energy and Suzuki’s Crosscage concept New concepts have also been presented but with
of 2007 and the Burgman moped of 2011, trialled little of substance yet. Segway has developed a
by UK police, are rare examples of fuel cell and concept H2-powered 2-wheeler. It would have a
hydrogen 2-wheelers. A notable mention was in 60 kW fuel cell to achieve 0-100 kph in less than
2019, when Pragma Industries made headlines at three seconds, but little other information is
the 45th G7 Summit where the H2 fuel cell available, except sketches showing three side-
powered ‘Alpha’ bicycles were provided to mounted H2 canisters and reports of 1 g H2/km
journalists to cover the event, able to travel up to consumption which could lead to significant range.
150 km on single charge. That’s a long way on a
bicycle, and perhaps why it has struggled to Even less detail is available on the XCELL from
challenge the rapid advance of the pure battery China’s X-IDEA Industry Design Group, founded in
ebike market. With electric assistance of the 2009 by specialists formerly of the Honda
mobility category limited to 25km/h in Europe, Research Institute. Its motorcycle concept utilises
electric motors are small, and batteries can four canisters.
typically do the job well, packaging the batteries
The project with most credibility is the
on or even in the frame. Charging can be done at
H2 Kompact from French motorbike racing team
home, or batteries can be swapped.
Tecmas and sensor manufacturer TEXYS. The R&D
Rapid replenishment of stored energy is perhaps group delivering the H2 MOTRONICS project are
the reason for the reinvigorated interest, but this aiming to showcase compact, lightweight FC
time in motorcycles and in hydrogen. Mob-ion is applications, with a proof-of-concept racing
exploring the use of H2 canisters from STOR-H, the motorcycle. Models suggest the bike could run
Swiss based hydrogen storage company. The eleven laps of Spain’s Ricardo Tormo Circuit on
moped, planned for production in 2023 in France, 1.5 kg of H2 at Moto3 levels of performance. The
will use 3 canisters, about the size of two soda stacks and components are being delivered by
cans, to achieve a range of 60km. In comparison EKPO, with the ‘halo’ product to be a
to its battery-powered eMoped, able to travel demonstrator, transferrable to other 2 and
nearly 400km it doesn’t sound very impressive, 4-wheel urban light vehicles, marine applications,
but the hydrogen fuel cell powertrain is lighter, snowmobiles and off-road buggies.
allows for more storge and could allow for fast
recharging with the right recharge retail While an alternative to battery electric may offer
infrastructure. weight saving, and fast re-charging could provide
more autonomy, personal mobility requires
convenience. This will require a well-developed
retail infrastructure to exchange spent canisters,
or direct access to H2 refills. HRS builds are
proving challenging for high volume applications
like cars and will be even more challenging for
smaller niches. A standardised canister may be
the route forward, but it has stiff competition
from batteries.
STOR-H itself is seeking series B funding, with a

price tag of €10m. It sees its canisters being used
in applications requiring 200 W to 12 kW.

Boats giving way to ships
The focus for decarbonising shipping in 2021 Norway continues to be a focus country
remained on the long-term, large-scale, use of
cleaner fuels, with batteries, fuel cell hybrids and Norway remains very active, given the country’s
internal combustion engines using hydrogen rugged coastline, intensity of ferry operation and
being just some of the many paths being position of the country as a major ship-owning
explored. nation.
Interest in fuel cells and hydrogen continued to In July 2021, Norled took delivery of its first LH2
grow in 2021, with new orders, new entrants, and ferry, MF Hydra (with Ballard FCwave fuel cells).
companies looking to use fuel cells in ever-larger Initial operations will be on battery power alone,
platforms, but with margins for freight and for operation on hydrogen is expected within 2022.
ferries being low until recently, still at a slow pace. The Norwegian Public Roads Administration
The most powerful marine system so far was announced the winning tender for the 15-year
ordered, the first of shipping-company Silversea’s operation of a hydrogen-powered ferry on the
Evolution class, set to enter operation by 2023. Bodø-Røst-Værøy-Moskenes route from 2025, on
A H2 fuel cell system, hybridised with a battery, this occasion Norled losing out to Torghatten
will supplement the main power supply and carry Nord.The Topeka project, reported last year,
the ship’s total hotel load of up to 4 MW. Liquefied remains on course, with NOK219m (€22m) in state
natural gas will be consumed as the main fuel in aid from ENOVA receiving approval.
dual-fuel engines. The year also saw the first
commercial fuel cell powered ferries delivering to It was busy for Norwegian fuel cell developer
their owners, with operations to start from 2022. TECO 2030, receiving an Approval in Principle
(“AIP”) for its 400 kW marine PEM module (FCM
The regulatory environment is also adapting, with 400), developed in partnership with AVL, and
draft guidelines for fuel cell power installations moving into their new production facility. The
agreed by IMO for approval in 2022. ABS awarded plan is to start pilot production in 2022, ramping
Bloom a Concept Verified Statement of Maturity, up to 1.2 GW of fuel cells annually. TECO also
another step on the path to commercial use, and signed an agreement with Chemgas Shipping BV
we saw new designs for fuel cell powered vessels to supply up to 200 MW of fuel cell systems for
receiving approvals from classification societies. installation on 120 barges and 40-60 tugboats to
The fuel choices are many: compressed hydrogen transport green H2 made in Romania to Germany
for smaller vessels, liquid hydrogen for large and Austria as part of the Blue Danube project as
ships; ammonia and LNG. The use of these fuels in outlined last year. First deliveries are scheduled
fuel cells vies with combustion engines. Ammonia for 2023 but the majority after 2025.
is favoured by many actors, given its high energy In December 2020, the Norwegian energy storage
density and ease of production from green H2. company, Corvus Energy, announced an MoU
with Toyota. Corvus’ new dedicated fuel cell
division will design and certify the marine fuel cell
system using the Toyota fuel cell technology as a
building block for larger systems. Toyota itself
established a new Fuel Cell Business Group in
Brussels to deliver on its growing portfolio of
maritime opportunities.
The MoU facilitated Corvus as lead to the H2NOR
collaboration, with €5.9m funding from
Innovation Norway and the Research Council of
Norway. The project aims to develop cost-
effective, marinised, PEM fuel cells based on
Toyota modules. Partners Equinor, Norled,
Wilhelmsen, LMG Marin, the NCE Maritime
CleanTech cluster and the University of South-
Eastern Norway, aim to have a system installed by
2023 and the system marine-certified and
commercially available by 2024. To deliver
flexibility, a second system – designated as SOFC/
HTPEM – is to be launched in 2025.

Ulstein continues to evaluate the use of fuel cells, with funding from the Danish Energy Technology
in July 2021 announcing a teaming with EDGE, a Development and Demonstration Program
Norwegian start-up focused on green maritime, (EUDP). Alfa Laval will head the initiative, Topsøe
ABB and Ballard to deliver a concept design for will provide stack technology and DTU Energy will
X-BOW, a future zero-emissions container ship. aid system layout and component testing. The
gross budget is DKK 17.4m (€2.3m).
In April 2021, following years of trialling, CMR
Prototech A/S signed an MoU with Sunfire Fuel In April, another EUDP project funded fuel cell
Cells to cooperate on the further development maker Blue World Technologies, Alfa Laval and
and scaling of Sunfire’s SOFC stacks in anticipation vessel owners DFDS, Maersk Drilling and Hafnia to
of mass-market roll-out to the maritime industry. build a 200 kW methanol-fuelled PBI fuel cell APU,
aiming to produce a scalable system up to 5 MW.
In December 2021, CMR Prototech A/S was taken Gross budget is DKK 21m (€2.8m).
over by Aker and rebranded as Clara, entering
into an agreement with Aker and Eidesvik to In June 2021, CMB.TECH opened the word’s first
study the use Clara’s fuel cell systems in shipping multi-modal HRS in the port of Antwerp,
and announcing their 32 MW LNG fuel cell supplying green H2 to small ships, cars, trucks and
concept developed in cooperation with Statoil industrial customers. The HRS will be used to fill
and Shell. the CH2 tanks of the Hydroville ferry launched in
2017, used in its internal combustion engines.
Focus is growing on implementing the
infrastructure required to supply ships with H2. Inshore as well as offshore
Aurora, launched by BKK, Air Liquide, and Equinor
aims to build a complete liquid hydrogen (LH2) The race is on for the first sizeable commercial
supply chain for ships in western Norway by 2024. fuel cell powered inland vessel. The ZULU 06,
It includes a newbuild LH2 facility at Mongstad, a demo vessel of the FLAGSHIPS project with
Norway with plans to deliver 6 tpd of renewable 2x 200 kW Ballard PEM FC modules, should start
LH2 from electrolysis. operations on the Seine within 2022. Likewise,
Future Proof Shipping (FPS) is retrofitting the FPS
Europe helped by FCH2 JU Maas with 3x 275 kW PEM FCs from Koedood
Marine Group (supplied by Nedstack), the vessel
Activity wasn’t limited to Norway, with plenty of expected to be sailing on H2 by Q3 2022. FPS
progress in other European countries. Kongsberg purchased a further two vessels for retrofit, the
tested and verified a full-scale, zero-emissions FPS Rijn and FPS Waal, with plans for them to be
drivetrain powered by hydrogen fuel cell operating by 2023. The WEVA project progresses,
intended to verify the final design for a with Concordia Damen receiving an order from
H2-powered ferry as part of the EU funded project Lenten Scheepvaart for a 3,700 tonne fuel cell
HySeas III, involving partners from Scotland, powered vessel, with delivery in 2023.
Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden and England.
Much of the activity remains centred on smaller
Further FCH2 JU projects include HySHIP, with its vessels, however. In November 2021, Proton
coastal goods-carrying RoRo by Topeka, with a Motor announced it was developing a modular
3 MW fuel cell engine using LH2 from the Aurora marine H2 system, able to deliver powers between
facility at Mongstad scheduled for 2024; ShipFC, 30-120 kW, Torqeedo, part of the DEUTZ group.
the platform support ship, with NH3 fuel (with
Prototech/Clara partnering Sunfire to deliver a In the same month, as part of a £1.05m (€1.21m)
2 MW FC engine late 2023); hySafe (bunkering project under the UK DfT’s Clean Maritime
and offloading of H2); H2ports, and others. The Demonstration Competition, Proton was
14-partner ShipFC project includes Norwegian commissioned by ACUA Ocean to produce a FC
actors Wärtsilä (Norway), NCE Maritime CleanTech, power source for a marine drone vessel. In the
Equinor, Eidesvik, as well as Clara. It remains to be £2.2m HIMET (Hydrogen in an Integrated
seen whether the Clean Hydrogen PPP will sustain Maritime Energy Transition) project, France’s
support, now driven more by corporate Genevos was chosen as the module supplier to
sustainability concerns and fuel savings than R&D. provide a fuel cell APU to be trialled on a RoRo
ferry in the Orkneys. Genevos uses Cummins
In January 2021, Alfa Laval, DTU Energy, Haldor stacks rated from 15 to 45 kW, connected in
Topsøe, towage company Svitzer and the Maersk parallel to provide up to 500 kW.
Mc-Kinney Møller Centre for Zero Carbon
Shipping began the SOFC4Maritime project to
accelerate the development of SOFC for ships,

It has been a busy year for EODev. In April 2021, Activity in Asia
Toyota injected capital to become a direct
investor. Also, in April, Fountaine Pajot indicated a In November 2020, Doosan announced it
REXH2 range extender will be fitted to a Semana will work with London-based global
59 catamaran. In this first configuration, the shipping company Navig8 delivering SOFCs
70 kW range extender will be hybridised with a to a 50,000 tonne petrochemical carrier.
44 kWh battery with 7.5 kg H2 storage. Major shipbuilders in South Korea are increasingly
A demonstration is expected in 2022. In May engaged with fuel cells. Korea Shipbuilding &
2021, HYNOVA 40, a 12 m, 12-passenger pleasure Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE, owner of
boat was unveiled. The boat has a REXH2 unit, Hyundai Heavy Industries), the largest shipbuilder
and autonomy of 8 hours at a speed of 12 knots. in the world, unveiled its business roadmap for
The refill time is 20 min. Each Mirai module H2-fuelled vessels. In March 2021, KSOE signed an
delivers 70 kW net power, with up to 1 MW MoU with Doosan to supply SOFCs for integration
available by stacking the modules. into ships by KSOE. In September, KSOE signed a
further MoU with AVL, to jointly develop PEM H2
systems with outputs of 200 kW to 1.5 MW for
smaller vessels. The PEM fuel cells will be used as
engines for domestic coastal island ferries,
tugboat inland waterway cargo ships, and
medium-sized H2 carriers.
In July 2021, Hyundai Global Service signed an MoU
with Hyundai Motors to manufacture and
commercialise its fuel cell systems in the marine
market, with the first small sized model planned for
2H 2022. Meanwhile, Samsung’s co-operation with
Bloom Energy, announced July 2020, gained AIP
from DNV for their 100% fuel cell powered LNG
carrier design. Samsung also received AIP for its
FC-powered wind turbine installation vessel design.
However, 2021 wasn’t all positive. DFDS’s
ambitious plans to develop a fully H2-powered The 2030 Green Ship-K Promotion Strategy (part
ferry, the Europa Seaways, with 23 MW Ballard of the New Green Deal), a ₩960bn (US$870m),
fuel cells, for the Copenhagen to Oslo route failed the South Korean government initiative launched
to receive funding from the EU. late in 2020 targeting a move to low-carbon
Activity in the United States shipping, saw Korea’s first commercial H2 pleasure
boat unveiled in June. The Hydrogenia is 32.8 ft
Further afield, Switch Maritime’s Sea Change, a (10 m) long, and can hold six people and operate
75-passenger ferry built by All American Marine, at 10 knots for six hours. Built by Vinssen,
with a H2 fuel cell system from ZEI, including powered by a Danfoss Editron electric drivetrain,
360 kW of fuel cells from Cummins, remains on the stacks are likely from Nuvera. Vinssen plans
track to enter service in the San Francisco Bay 50 further boats using similar H2-electric
Area in 2022. drivetrains over the next year.

In October, Vinssen and KIER announced an MoU Big news in cruise
to develop and commercialise NH3-cracking
technology for H2-powered fuel cell ships. The COVID pandemic hit cruising hard, with
Freudenberg Sealing Technologies (FST)
While Japan has ambitious goals to move to methanol FC on Carnival Corp.’s Aida Nova
hydrogen, the maritime focus has been on H2 ICE. delayed until summer 2022. But progress was
However, there is interest in FCs too. e5 Lab, made elsewhere. In December 2021, MSC
funded by Mitsui O.S.K Lines, Mitsubishi Corp. and revealed plans for MSC World Europa, being built
others teamed with Swiss Almatech to promote at Chantiers de l’Atlantique in France, and
its FC-powered ZESST passenger shuttle ferry. expected within 2022. Bloom will fit the ship with
a 150 kW APU running off LNG. In July, MSC,
Yanmar is developing a 300 kW-class maritime Fincantieri and Snam announced an MoU to
fuel cell system using Mirai modules. Yanmar study the feasibility of building an ocean-going
started its marinisation journey in 2013, first H2-powered cruise ship.
testing fuel cell components and then in 2016
developing a battery electric drivetrain. In September 2021, Ceres was awarded UK
In March 2021, Yanmar began its boat trials. The government funding for two feasibility projects
38 ft (11.6 m) boat uses CH2 at 700 MPa. Yanmar targeted at MW-scale propulsion. A consortium
will obtain type approval so that the system can involving GE Power Conversion, MSC and Lloyd’s
be installed in boats from 2023. Register will explore the integration and trade-
offs of SOFCs into a ship’s operational
In China, the few projects so far have been limited functionality, existing power and propulsion
to smaller demonstrations: in January 2021 Dalian architecture and layout. Ceres’ SOFC technology is
Maritime University launched motor yacht ‘Lihu’, also being evaluated as a replacement to the
powered by a 70 kW FC system fed by CH2; joined diesel generators used for 10 MW hotel loads in
by ‘Jiahong 01’, a small ferry powered by a large cruise ships, with Carnival UK, Southampton
methanol-PBI stack from Zhongke Jiahong University, Shell and Lloyd’s Register.
(Foshan) New Energy Technology; and, May saw
the Foshan launch of ‘Xianhu 1’, a 12 m long, The Lürssen shipyard started construction of a
30-passenger cruise ship, with a 30 kW PEM stack new mega-yacht with an FST reformed methanol
from Pearl Hydrogen using CH2. 2021 also saw fuel cell in June. This will allow a ship to spend
the China Classification Society (CCS) grant the more than 15 days at anchor or cruise for more
first type-approval for a domestically-sourced than 1,000 miles with zero emissions, building on
marine fuel cell, a PEM from Troowin Power. the learning of the ‘Pa-X-ell 2’ project. But the big
news was Silversea Cruises’ (Royal Caribbean)
order for two new ‘Project Evolution’ vessels from
Meyer Werft with delivery from 2023. These will
have an FST reformed methanol system capable
of carrying the total hotel load (up to 4 MW)
whilst in port.
Perhaps maritime fuel cells are just about to take
off: In May, 20 students from TU Delft conducted
initial tests on the ‘Hydro Motion’ purpose-built
trimaran. The boat has a 30 kW Cummins HyPM-
HD30 fuel cell and batteries in a hybrid drivetrain.
A 350 litre CH2 tank stores 265 kWh energy.
Transitioning to the hydrofoils happens above
13.6 mph, when the fuel cell alone can power the
boat. So far, the trials have been limited to speeds
of 20 km/hour.

Aviation – lifting-off
Most of the CO2 from aviation arises from short The power density of SOFC is significantly lower
and medium-range flights, with aircraft deployed than that of PEM fuel cells, so these are generally
on such routes accounting for 70% of the global targeted at APU applications.
fleet. Routes shorter than 3,000 km account for
Despite the difficulties in delivering practical fuel
90% of all flights and more than 50% of aviation
cell powertrains for aviation, activity has grown
CO2 emissions overall. These factors, alongside the
greatly over the last year. Airlines appreciate the
high power to weight ratio needed of the prime
efficiency benefits of sizing engines for cruising
mover and the range impact of fuel energy
altitude, as opposed to the take-off phase as in
density, dictate the viability of alternatives and
previous generations. This poses a challenge for
push towards a focus for these on shorter flights.
pure electric aircraft, where the battery mass is
The climate impact of aviation may be reduced by carried even when discharged. Consequently,
using synthetic fuels from gasification of biomass demonstrators like ZeroAvia use a battery for
or from electrolysis. Combustion of H2 in the take-off, switching to a fuel cell at cruising speeds
turbine goes a step further but this still carries a and altitudes. Today, much of the activity focuses
NOx impact, as well as promoting contrails. PEM on establishing system designs and testing
fuel cells are generally seen as most suitable to concepts, using the most power-dense stacks
aviation. However, challenges such as weight, available, increasingly at kW-MW power scales.
cooling and packaging have dented their take-up.
ElringKlinger signed an agreement with Airbus on
Stack heat rejection in low temperature PEM is a long-term partnership in fuel cells in October
a key challenge, with oversized stacks to 2020. DLR is active with BALIS and DLR-HY4. APUS
improve efficiency. Companies like Ballard and H2 and H2FLY are further industry projects in
Horizon have stacks with specific powers of Germany. PowerCell, the HyPoint and Hyzon
4.7 and 5.50 kW/kg but these values do not Motors have all supplied fuel cells to ZeroAvia,
include endplates. Allowing for the balance of which is attracting increasing levels of UK grant
plant, the specific power of LT-PEM systems is aid and investment funding. Plug is increasing its
below 1 kW/kg (compared to 2.75 kW/kg for a attention on aviation. In Canada, the Low-
small turboprop). emission Aviation initiative is aiding the
integration of fuel cells into aircraft propulsion
Uncompressed hydrogen has a specific energy of
systems. And in China, state-owned COMAC has
33 kWh/kg but this reduces to around 2.5 kWh/kg
developed a H2 fuel cell aircraft, with test flights
for LH2 storage, including the system, and around
during 2019. Japan (JAXA) and Korea (Hanwha
1.8 kWh/kg for CH2 storage (jet fuel in a tank is
Aerospace) are also active in the area.
around 10 kWh/kg).
The 6th-generation HY4 4-seater passenger
These power and energy challenges require large
aircraft, powered by a fuel cell-battery hybrid, was
decreases in airframe masses if range is not to be
unveiled at its home airport in Stuttgart, in
compromised severely. Together with the specific
December 2020. The HY4 has twin fuselages, each
power and cooling improvements needed in PEM
with room for two passengers, on either side of
systems, commercial fuel cell powered aircraft are
the central engine. The project began in 2015,
generally considered to be 10 years away (for
with 30 test flights since.
short flights), or 15 years away (for regional
flights).
High temperature PEM and SOFC systems are also
being considered. With HT-PEM, a significant delta
between ambient and stack operating
temperatures exists, facilitating heat rejection,
simplifying the balance of plant, increasing
system specific power, and with a potential to
reduce costs. But today, the HT-PEM stack level
specific powers are less than 0.5 kW/kg, stack
durability is low, and membrane and system costs
are higher than LT-PEM.

The aircraft is operated by H2FLY, a start-up of the capabilities on routes of its airline partner
German Aerospace Centre, DLR. The powertrain Loganair. In project SATE (Sustainable Aviation
was developed by the DLR Institute of Engineering Test Environment), also valued at £3.7m, ZeroAvia
Thermodynamics, partnered with Diehl Aerospace, will conduct flight testing in support of the
aircraft manufacturer Pipistrel, and four Highlands and Islands Airports’ (HIAL) ambition to
universities. TU Delft delivered the overall system set up Kirkwall airport as the UK’s first operational,
design, of H2 tanks, fuel cell-battery, hybrid, power low-carbon aviation test centre.
distribution and electric motor.
In January 2021, ZeroAvia gained a further
Once the aircraft received its permit-to-fly, it was £12.3m (US$16.9m) UK government grant,
to undergo further testing at Stuttgart Airport for plus US$21.4m in Series A funding, to deliver
six months. HY4 uses a 65 kW PEM from Cummins, a certifiable 19-seat H2 aircraft, in a 350 NM
with a lithium-ion battery to augment power for (650 km) test flight, in early 2023. The ATI grant
take-off and while climbing. The 120 kW motor followed ZeroAvia’s 8-minute, 1,000 ft (300 m)
enables a top speed of around 200 kph (108 high test flight in September 2020, using a smaller
knots), a cruising speed of 165 kph (89 knots), and (250 kW) version of ZeroAvia’s PEM powertrain in
a range of 750-1,500 km (470-940 miles) a 6-seat Piper Malibu M350. The grant to the
depending on speed, altitude and payload. The HyFlyer II project facilitated the European Marine
stack incorporates a liquid cooling system with a Energy Centre (EMEC) and air compressor
novel aerodynamic solution for cooling air flow. specialist Aeristech to deliver a platform-agnostic
‘ZA-600’ (600 kW) H2-electric powertrain.
In August 2021, the EnaBle project was awarded
€8m in BMWi funding to develop and optimise a ZeroAvia is also partnering with British Airways in
modular fuel cell hybrid powertrain for H2-electric IAG’s ‘Hangar 51’ start-up accelerator, to establish
aviation. The consortium, led by Diehl Aerospace, how H2-powered aircraft can play a leading role in
includes MTU Aero Engines, DLR, H2FLY and the future sustainable flying.
University of Ulm. The project is focused on
In April, ZeroAvia started development of a 2 MW
developing a 250 kW module, with the aim of
H2-electric powertrain for full-size regional aircraft
implementing this in small aircraft with up to
capable of carrying 50+ passengers, aiming for a
19 seats. The scope of delivery includes operation at
test flight by 2026. The project is supported by
higher altitudes, simulated by a pressure chamber.
US$24.3m in new funds, led by Horizons Ventures,
In April 2021, the Project Fresson consortium, led British Airway and Shell Ventures. In August 2021,
by Cranfield Aerospace Solutions, with partners ZeroAvia said it would use two Dornier 228
Ricardo (providing the fuel cell powertrain and aircraft previously in service for regional flights in
controller to manage the balance-of-plant), its fuel cell engine development. The ZeroAvia
Innovatus Technologies (developer of SHyFT, 600 kW H2-electric powertrains will replace the
a lightweight H2 tank design with a composite twin engines, along with tanks holding 100 kg of
cellular core), and Britten-Norman, won a compressed H2 , to support the target 500-mile
£9m (US$12m) grant to develop a flying (800 km) range.
demonstrator by September next year. The target
Also, in August, ZeroAvia demonstrated
9-seat Islander light utility aircraft is used in
its ‘ZA-600’ powertrain, pulling its new
regional commercial and military transport and
15 t HyperTruck mobile ground test platform
was designed in the 1960s. A fleet of around
across the tarmac at its HQ in Hollister, CA. The
750 operates around the world today according
HyperTruck, based on a military HD truck, is sized
to maker Britten-Norman.
for the company’s ‘ZA-2000’ (2 MW+) powertrain,
In December 2020, ZeroAvia was awarded to test systems for 40-80 seat aircraft. In
two grants from the UK governments’ Future November, ZeroAvia announced Alaska Airlines
Flight Challenge. The share to the company is was collaborating in the ZA-2000 fuel cell
£1.2m (US$1.7m). In Project HEART (Hydrogen- engine development, aiming to deploy the
Electric and Automated Regional Transportation), engine in a De Havilland Q400 aircraft, able to
a £3.7m programme in total, ZeroAvia is carry 76 passengers. ZeroAvia will set up a
developing enabling systems: green-H2 location in the Seattle area to support the
infrastructure at airports, maintenance regimes initiative. Alaska also secured options for up to
for H2-electric aircraft, and will demonstrate flight 50 conversion kits.

It was further announced in August that ZeroAvia
had secured an additional US$13m for its 50+ seat
aircraft engine development programme, from AP
Ventures, Horizon Ventures, Shell Ventures and
others. Alongside a US$35m investment by
United Airlines and Alaska Airlines, over US$115m
had been invested by stakeholders by December
2021.
Over 2021, ZeroAvia made a series of orders to
PowerCell for MS-100 stacks for its aircraft
powertrain developments. It also placed an
order for a Gen 3 stack from Hyzon in August Universal aims to build a fuel distribution
2021. Hyzon’s stack claims a volumetric power network, supplying drop-in modules to aircraft,
density above 6.0 kW/litre and a specific power which are swapped-out with fresh modules once
density more than 5.5 kW/kg. ZeroAvia will test discharged. In March 2021, Plug Power took a
the stack through simulated airplane duty cycles, minority stake in Universal, extending the
including take-off, cruising, landing and taxiing, agreement last year to develop a fuel cell
and more demanding situations including rapid powertrain for regional aircraft, starting with a
changes in altitude and other ambient conditions. Dash 8-300. Universal planned to build its first
Once the stack has been validated in a ground subscale aircraft powertrain by Q2.
test programme, the next step will be to test it
The companies also agreed to an offtake model
in flight.
for green H2 to become cost-competitive with jet
In January 2021, project BALIS, led by DLR, was fuel by 2025, fitting in with Plug’s strategic
awarded €26m (US$32m) funding, to build a positioning into green H2. Assuming a successful
powertrain competence and test bed facility, ground proof, a PEM powertrain will be fitted into
encompassing the fuel cell sub-system, LH2 a Dornier 328, with a first flight set for 2023 and
tanks, electric motor and control technologies. ambitious hopes for entry into revenue service
BALIS targets a 1.5 MW PEM fuel cell, for a Dornier in 2025, targeting retrofits for existing
328 regional aircraft with 40-60 seats and a range regional aircraft.
of 1,000 km (625-mile).
In August 2021, Plug Power, Universal Hydrogen,
In July, H2FLY and Deutsche Aircraft, an OEM magniX, and AeroTEC set up a Hydrogen Aviation
focused on the commercial development of the Test and Service Centre at Grant County Airport,
Dornier 328 platform, signed an MoU to work on in WA state. The centre will focus on test flights
H2 fuel cell technology. The companies plan to and certification of Universal’s retrofit
deliver a Dornier 328 demonstrator by 2025, with conversions.
a commercial system being available in 2028. Fuel
In November, ASL Aviation Holdings, an
cell propulsion is just one aspect of Deutsche
aviation services group based in Dublin,
Aircraft’s development scope, which also includes
announced plans to purchase up to ten ATR
the creation of a SAF compatible airframe and
72 conversion kits for installation into its fleet, for
more efficient turboprop engines for the D328.
the turboprop cargo market. Also, in November,
Later in July, Deutsche Aircraft and Universal Universal secured US$62m in funding from
Hydrogen announced a collaboration in a design investors including Mitsubishi HC Capital, Stratos
study to incorporate Universal’s modular capsule and GE Aviation, bringing Universal’s total capital
technology into the Dornier 328. The joint effort raised to US$85m.
will analyse the size and integration of Universal’s
In December 2021, the American start-up
capsules into the aircraft structure and systems
Connect Airlines ordered 12 Dash 8-300
(including loading and unloading considerations);
conversion kits, with an option for a further
aircraft weight and balance; H2 cost and logistics;
12 kits for other aircraft types. The kits consist of a
mission performance.
H2 fuel cell powertrain compatible with Universal
Hydrogen’s modular capsule technology. The
target date for introduction into service was again
set for 2025.

Although Universal’s business model is novel, HyPoint uses compressed air for cooling and for
similar in concept to the swap-out of batteries the O2 supply to a HT-PEM stack. HyPoint claims
for electric vehicles, it does not appear to change stack weights a third of comparable liquid-cooled,
the fundamental of compressed H2 being a low LT-PEM systems. Its technical innovations include
energy density vector. Were the capsules to be lightweight bipolar plates and a highly
fitted to a transatlantic airliner, a 9 m extension conductive, corrosion-resistant coating, leading to
to an A321 fuselage length would be needed a claimed 50% reduction in total cost of
to retain the same passenger capacity as ownership relative to turbine-powered rotorcraft.
existing aircraft. HyPoint is working with the National Renewable
Energy Laboratory (NREL) to further test and
In January 2021, Airbus unveiled its own
validate its technology.
powertrain concept, within the ZEROe initiative.
The concept features six, eight-bladed pod In August 2021, HyPoint entered into a
engines mounted beneath the aircraft wing. Each multiphase collaborative agreement with Piasecki
pod is a standalone propulsion system comprising Aircraft Corporation, PA, to develop and certify a
composite propeller, electric motor, fuel cell, H2 fuel cell system for eVTOL aircraft. The initial
power electronics, LH2 tank, cooling system, and US$6.5m agreement will culminate in five 650 kW
auxiliary equipment. The pod configuration still fuel cell systems for Piasecki’s eVTOL PA-890
requires work to determine whether it could be a compound helicopter. The partners aim to bring
practical solution. FAA-certified, customisable systems to the global
eVTOL market, with 4x the energy density of
In October 2021, Plug announced a partnership
Li-ion and at least 2x the specific power of current
with Airbus to assess the feasibility of bringing
fuel cells.
green H2 both from an airport infrastructure
perspective as well as aviation technology. Airbus
has committed to production-ready, zero-
emission aircraft by 2035, with green H2 a
potential enabler. As the largest buyer of liquid
hydrogen globally, Plug Power will focus on
deployment scenarios for green hydrogen
infrastructure, while aircraft-specialist Airbus will
focus on the technical characteristics of aircraft
powered by hydrogen.
LH2 offers higher energy density than CH2, though
at higher cost. In January 2021, GKN Aerospace
announced it will lead H2GEAR, a collaboration
aiming to develop an LH2 propulsion system for
Interest in fuel cells is now extending to the wider
sub-regional aircraft that could be scaled up to larger
supply chain. In June, GM and Liebherr-
aircraft, with partners Intelligent Energy (developer
Aerospace, a leading integrated on-board aircraft
of lightweight, compact PEM fuel cells), Aeristech,
system supplier, signed a joint development
and the Universities of Birmingham, Manchester and
agreement for an electric power generation
Newcastle. The programme is supported by £27m of
system to show how H2 PEM fuel cell-based power
Aerospace Technology Institute funding, matched by
systems could be used in aircraft applications. The
contributions from the project industrials. The
construction and testing of the demonstrator,
entry-into-service of the first hydrogen-powered
incorporating GM Hydrotec power cubes, along
aircraft could be as early as 2026.
with GM controls, will take place in Toulouse,
In April, California-based HyPoint unveiled the France.
first operable prototype of its turbo air-cooled
Overall, interest in H2 fuel cells for manned and
H2 fuel cell system for aviation and urban air
unmanned flight has increased significantly over
mobility. The company claims its technology
the last year or two, as has work in H2 turbines.
delivers up to 2 kW/kg specific power and up to
1.5 kWh/kg energy density and has passed key
validation testing. Full-scale versions are expected
to ship from 2022. Last summer, HyPoint signed
an agreement with Israeli company Urban
Aeronautics, to incorporate H2 fuel cell power in
the latter’s CityHawk eVTOL design.

Ground Support Drones
Work continues on ground support infrastructure. Drones using internal combustion engines have
In August 2021, the aerospace cluster in long endurance but also high acoustic and
Hamburg, Germany, announced it is setting up a thermal signatures, and for smaller platforms are
development platform to design and test heavy. Consequently, electric drones are gaining
extensive maintenance and ground processes for share, particularly in military markets for silent
handling cryogenic LH2. Over the next two years, watch, but also in monitoring of utility
with funding from the city of Hamburg, Lufthansa infrastructures.
Technik will collaborate with DLR, ZAL Centre of
For small lightweight vertical take-off and landing
Applied Aeronautical Research and Hamburg
aircraft, and fixed wing aircraft undertaking short
Airport to convert an A320 aircraft into a
journeys, a pure lithium-polymer battery system
stationary laboratory at Lufthansa’s facility in
(with a specific energy of ~150 Wh/kg) is
Hamburg. ZAL will contribute know-how in fuel
sufficient. However, batteries impose a weight
cells and in virtual twinning, while Hamburg
penalty above 30 min flight time, so for smaller
Airport will provide an operator’s perspective.
aircraft and UAVs fuel cells are slowly gaining
In October 2021, Airbus, Air Liquide and Vinci share for missions of an hour or more.
Airports announced a collaboration to promote
Doosan Mobility Innovation (DMI) is making great
the use of H2 at airports. Lyon-Saint-Exupéry
strides in the area, issuing a press release almost
Airport in France will host the first installations.
every month. 100% owned by its parent Doosan
From 2023, an HRS will be deployed, to supply the
Corporation, this Korean company markets its
airport’s ground vehicles (airside buses, trucks,
DM15/DP15 (rated at 1.25 kW) and DM30 (2.6 kW)
handling equipment), as well as heavy goods
modules, packaged into DS30W, DT30N, and DJ25
vehicles driving around the airport. This first
drones, with payloads up to 4.9 kg, flight times up
phase will test the airport’s facilities and dynamics
to 330 min (payload dependent), and ranges up
as a H2 hub. Between 2023 and 2030, an LH2
to 50 km. All use compressed hydrogen fuel,
infrastructure will be rolled out, to supply future
stored in lightweight tanks from Korean ILJIN
H2-powered aircraft. Beyond 2030 a complete
Composites.
infrastructure, from LH2 production to LH2
distribution, will be established. In October 2020, DMI signed a preliminary deal
with the Korea Electric Power Research Institute
Also, in October, AFC Energy stated it will provide
(KEPRI), an R&D subsidiary of the state-run Korea
zero-emission, off-grid power for Urban-Air Port’s
Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), targeting
sustainable transport hubs that, in addition to
automated remote power cable checking. In
aircraft, will serve battery electric vehicles, buses
November 2020, DMI demonstrated a flight in a
and scooters. Urban-Air Port’s ‘Air-One’ site – its
construction project in Jeju Island, over 44 km
first fully operational hub for eVTOL aircraft – will
(27 mile), taking 90 min to monitor gas pipelines.
be unveiled in Coventry city centre in early 2022.
Korea Gas (KOGAS) plans to use the H2 drones for
In December 2021, the Civil Aviation Authority of monitoring of trenches. In April 2021, DMI
Singapore and Airbus signed an MoU to study the announced it will provide drones to the Maritime
demand and supply of alternative aviation fuels Emerging Technologies Innovation Park (METIP)
and how they may contribute to decarbonisation. project, delivering goods and providing
The first project to be launched under the MoU is inspection and monitoring to gas and wind
a technical feasibility study of an airport H2 hub platforms up to 60 km offshore of The
and the infrastructure requirements to support Netherlands. A further agreement was signed
future H2-powered aircraft operations. The with DroneQ Robotics in October 2021.
study will commence in early 2022 and run for
two years.

Many of the press releases from DMI focus on There has also been little news from Honeywell,
extending the network of resellers and bringing which purchased Ballard Unmanned Systems in
UAV and other competences into DMI’s offering, October 2020. In August 2021, Honeywell
from refuelling, to beyond visual line-of-sight added BVLOS capability to its 600 W and 1.2 kW
control, to data acquisition. In February 2021, multi-rotor drones. The underlying liquid-cooled
UK-based NanoSUN delivered a mobile refueller PEM stacks are made in-house. The service life is
to DMI. The 300 bar H2 refueller is 8 cm wide and 3,000 hr, with a 1,000 hr overhaul interval. The
60 cm high, weighing 50 kg. In March 2021, an fuel is CH2, delivering a 3x runtime increase
MoU with POSCO SPS was announced, aiming to over batteries.
develop a 20 μm metal separator. The
In January, Scottish Hy-Hybrid Energy, Hungarian
development, contributing to lighter mass, will
GOLDI Mobility and Shenzhen MicroMultiCopter
facilitate DMI entering the cargo drone business,
(MMC) commenced a strategic partnership,
targeting delivery of a 15 kW fuel cell module.
aiming to push H2 drones into Europe. Hy-Hybrid
Intelligent Energy markets its IE-Soar series of fuel will give technical and project management aid to
cells for UAVs. Rated between 800 W and 2.4 kW, GOLDI, enabling local assembly and then
these extend flight times by 3x over batteries. In manufacturing. A year prior, GOLDI entered an
October 2020, IE reported its 2.4 kW module had MoU with HES aimed at building a market for
been integrated into ISS Aerospace’s heavy-lift, FC H2 drones in Hungary.
drone, achieving a flight time of 100 min with an
Defence plays
8 kg payload. The target Sensus 6 hexacopter is
designed for long-endurance commercial, energy, There is a lot of crossover now between civil and
defence and security applications. In November, defence UAVs, given commonality in camera/IR
Luce Search, a customer of IE-Soar, announced systems and the increasing payload and mission
they would work with Japan’s Chugoku Electric times facilitated by fuel cell powertrains.
Power T&D to develop a drone using a 2.4 kW In December 2020, Insitu, the Boeing subsidiary,
module. Chugoku Electric uses helicopters and completed the first flight of its ScanEagle3 UAV
more than 110 conventional drones for inspection powered by a H2 PEM fuel cell. In February 2021,
work on power transmission and distribution an LH2 tank was added, targeting a 10-hour flight
lines. By doubling the flight time, IE’s fuel cell endurance. The JP-8 version offers an 18 hour
module will reduce labour overheads and endurance and carry loads up to 20 lb (9.1 kg).
inspection costs. Also, In November, an MoU was
signed with the Korean electric bus and truck In May 2021, DMI signed a ₩831m (US$750k)
maker Edison Motors and Hogreen Air, IE’s Korean contract to supply a H2 drone to South Korea’s
reseller since June 2020, to further push the Defense Acquisition Program Administration
IE-Soar technology. (DAPA). Pilot operation by the Air Force was
scheduled to begin in November.
The drone producer, Horizon Energy Systems,
since 2015 a subsidiary of H3 Dynamics, In September 2021, Intelligent Energy
continues to market its systems but with little announced participation Project Pegasus, funded
news since 2019. The Element One rotor plane, by the UK Ministry of Defence, to improve the
using HES fuel cells, continues its development robustness of IE’s 800 W module, with a focus on
for unveiling in 2022. Its Hywing H-25 Cargo delivering H2 fuel to the field. If successful,
prototype has a 55 lb (25 kg) take-off weight and operational deployment is expected in 2023.
features the company’s unique H2 fuel cell nacelle
for long flights in winged craft.

Plug Power’s 1 kW ProGen fuel cell introduced in Also, in August, Estoninan PowerUP said it would
August 2020 is targeted at UAVs and unmanned apply its fuel cell stack to robotic rovers as well as
ground vehicles, and derives from the EnergyOR to Lunar cargo ships. Most small PEM stacks are
buyout in 2019. Since October, an alliance with open cathode, but due to the lack of oxygen on
HevenDrones is targeting heavy-lift capability, Mars and on the moon, closed cathode designs
H2 supply, and refuelling networks, with the are needed. With funding from ESA, PowerUP
Israeli Ministry of Defense seeking to procure a will develop a 1 kW stack for space missions,
drone fleet. for integration with solar panels and batteries.
PowerUP hopes to have a prototype stack
Adaptive Energy’s 450W propane-fuelled
by 2023.
Defender Series SOFC provides a six-fold increase
in mission duration compared to battery-only
systems. The fuel cell can replace 90% of onboard
batteries. Adaptive is working with multiple
drone actors, including Lockheed Martin.
Not just drones
In January 2021, DMI supplied its hydrogen fuel
cells to RBT Motors, a small-volume premium
custom sports car manufacturing start-up in
Korea. In February, DMI moved into ground
mobility, signing an MoU with CITIC HIC Kaicheng
Intelligence, a Chinese robotics company, to
develop H2-powered robots for fire control and
field monitoring. CITIC markets over 50 types of
robots and has a 70% market share in China for
robots in firefighting.
Space
In August, Connecticut-based Infinity Fuel Cell
reported that its air-independent, zero gravity,
Non-Flow-Through H2 fuel cell power plant is on
track to be onboard an upcoming unmanned
launch of Blue Origin’s New Shepard commercial
space vehicle. Developed under a NASA ‘Tipping
Point’ cooperative agreement started in 2020, the
2022 launch should demonstrate survival of the
fuel cell from launch rigours and operation in a
weightless environment.

Shipments by fuel cell type
Shipments by fuel cell type 2017 - 2021 (1,000 units)
100
AFC
80 MCFC
SOFC
60
PAFC
40
DMFC
20 PEMFC
0
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f
Megawatts by fuel cell type 2017 - 2021
2500
AFC
2000 MCFC
SOFC
1500
PAFC
1000
DMFC
500 PEMFC
0
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f

As usual, PEM fuel cells lead both in units and
shipped MW capacity, driven by ever-larger
passenger car numbers. Over 53,000 PEM units
were shipped to a range of applications in 2020,
increasing to around 55,000 units during 2021.
Although this count is barely higher, a drop in
micro-CHP units to the Ene-Farm, PACE and KfW
433 initiatives, many of them PEM, was offset by a
1.8x increase in car shipments in 2021, fitted with
much larger stacks. The net effect has been a
doubling in PEM capacity, from over 1,000 MW in
2020 (78% of capacity) to almost 2,000 MW in
2021 (86% of capacity).
SOFC has also gained in share, reaching 207 MW By unit numbers, and still (just) by MW capacity,
capacity (up from 148 MW in 2020). SOFC has the next category is the DMFC, led by SFC Energy.
been gaining share in the Ene-Farm programme, Nearly 5,300 units were shipped in 2021, up from
due to the higher efficiency and higher-grade nearly 4,000. The MW shipped stayed at 0.5 MW,
heat from the stack, but overall Ene-Farm reflecting increased sales of smaller capacity
shipments fell in 2021, affecting SOFC as much as units. Notably, SFC is receiving DMFC orders now
PEM. The net increase in SOFC shipments by MW in the 100s of units, in addition to single-unit
capacity is associated with increased shipments of consumer sales through agents and the
Bloom units for prime power in the USA and occasional significant Emily and Jenny sales to the
Korea. Other suppliers, such as Ceres/Bosch Bundeswehr and other military forces.
contribute to the totals but at much lower
AFC is making a comeback, led by Israeli
volume. SOFC is poised to grow substantially in
company GenCell. Between its founding in 2011
maritime and other areas but we are not there
and IPO in November 2020, the company had
yet. By 2030, Doosan sees a potential 1.8 GW/year
shipped only 19 units. This has jumped to just
order volume for marine SOFCs, according to
over 100 units by the end of 2021. UK-based AFC
Samsung Securities.
Energy continues to develop new plays and
Hydrogen is increasingly seen as a fuel for SOFCs, product but has yet to ship meaningful numbers.
and for PAFCs. Doosan, the largest PAFC shipper, The 0.5 MW count is a 5x increase on 2020,
reported a fall in volume due to delays in though minuscule compared to PEMFC. The
translating the objectives of Korea’s Hydrogen low-cost potential of AFC and an increase in
Energy Act into a supportive fiscal environment. available hydrogen may help the uptake of this
PAFCs represent the next largest volume shipped, technology.
though the 96 MW is down from 132 MW in 2020.
Doosan expect sales to recover through 2023 and
2024 to meet pent-up demand.
In MW capacity, then next category is MCFC, with
the sole supplier being FuelCell Energy and its
affiliates. Volumes of new stacks have been
bumping along at around 10 MW over the last
few years, with larger volumes (not included in
our count) of stack refurbishments, mainly for
Korea. There is no immediate evidence for large
growth of this technology as a pure fuel cell play,
though work on carbon capture with ExxonMobil
continues, as does FCE’s SOFC development.
The very low volumes of PBI are reported within
our PEM figures. Advent now owns UltraCell and
SerEnergy, with steady unit sales. Blue World
Technologies continues to invest in capacity to
deliver PBIs to the automotive world from 2022.

Stationary fuel cells – growing bigger
2021 saw fewer stationary fuel cell units shipped Aisin Seiki’s ‘Type S’ 700 W fuel cell system uses an
than 2020, but more total power. This shows the SOFC stack with a cited 55% electrical efficiency,
slight shift in balance between very small units and 87% in CHP mode. Aisin works is in
(e.g., Ene-Farm) and the bigger fuel cells put out partnership with Kyocera and Toyota Motor.
by Doosan and Bloom. These different stationary The latest Type S released in 2020 is also an
fuel cells cover many stack types and can operate improvement on the preceding model: the size
on conventional fuels, fuel mixes and synthetic has been reduced by 20%, durability has
fuels, white (by-product) and green (renewable) increased to a projected stack life of 12 years.
hydrogen.
Dainichi, working with Kyocera and Tokyo Gas,
Slow sales have been a result of the brutal fielded a 400 W SOFC Type S mini Ene-Farm unit
economics of power and heat. But with sky-high in 2019, the world’s smallest CHP system, but with
energy prices and COP 26 in Glasgow once again no news releases since then.
emphasizing humanity’s need to limit climate
change, perhaps more of the world should be
looking closely at stationary fuel cells.
Japan – Ene-Farm’s sluggishness
The world’s largest deployment of fuel cell
systems by unit numbers continues to be the
Ene-Farm project in Japan. A fleet now of almost
424,000 domestic CHP units utilising both PEM
and SOFC technology has been deployed across
Japan since 2009. The start of the demonstration
phase of the project saw fuel cell units installed
into Japan’s homes, from apartments to single
family homes.
Leading gas companies, notably Osaka Gas and
Tokyo Gas, have worked with Japanese suppliers
to introduce the technology to the public,
typically with units of 700 W, meeting much of a With direct subsidies stopped for PEM and in the
household’s baseload power and hot water final wind-down for SOFC, efforts are being made
needs. However, expected unit sales have not to expand the value proposition of Ene-Farm fuel
transpired, despite continual price reductions cell systems. In June 2021 Aisin Seiki and Toyota
and performance increases. At the end of 2021 City in Aichi Prefecture announced a plan to
Tokyo Gas, the largest utility, had installed only encourage the take-up of the ‘Type S’ with City
150,000 units. And even though Japan retains a subsidies, and for the CO2 savings to be tracked
2030 target of 5.3 million deployed systems, the using IoT technology, to then be traded under a
number of established manufacturers has now Japanese Government CO2 credit scheme. In the
dwindled to just two, Panasonic and Aisin Seiki, same month Tokyo Gas and Kansai Electric Power
plus a relative newcomer Dainichi. announced a demonstration project which would
control and coordinate Ene-Farm units to act as a
Panasonic’s 6th generation 700 W PEM system is virtual power plant. This follows a similar project
97% efficient in CHP mode, complete with hot announced by Osaka Gas in 2020. Whilst these
water tank. Since 2009 unit size has halved and efforts seek to improve the attractiveness of
durability more than doubled to 90,000 hours. systems, after more than a decade of slower-than-
Government subsidy for PEM units closed in 2019 anticipated growth, it is unclear whether
and units are now sold ‘commercially’. Notable domestic CHP will take off dramatically.
deployments include the Harumi Flag property
development, part of the 2021 Tokyo Olympic
Games, with over 4,000 Panasonic units planned.

Pure Hydrogen’s Pastures New… plant. Earlier in the year a similar 100 kW H2Rex
system was installed in a commercial building for
Some of Japan’s fuel cell manufacturers have the Shimizu Corporation in Hokuriku.
entered from the Ene-Farm project to the
commercial sector. Fuel cell systems of several kW The challenge for such systems is a reliable source
and above are now being promoted by Toshiba of hydrogen. To date, most H2 is the product of
and Panasonic, with a growing emphasis on pure natural gas. The H2Rex 3.5 kW system installed at
hydrogen systems. a roadside service station in Michinoeki-Namie is
now reported to be operating on green H2 made
In mid-2021 Panasonic announced the launch of using power from a 10 MW solar PV array at the
its RE100 5 kW H2 KIBOU (Hope). The KIBOU uses Fukushima Hydrogen Energy Research Field.
the core Ene-Farm PEM stack technology,
delivering a 56% electrical efficiency when The TESS H2One system also uses PEM fuel cell
running on pure H2. The system is designed to be technology with an electrolyser and H2 storage to
modular and hence scalable, with 1 MW systems provide power and green H2 to a vehicle HRS or
being targeted. for use elsewhere. The H2One uses excess
cheaper power to produce and store H2,
generating power when demand and prices are
higher. An H2One began demonstration in
Tsuruga City in Fukui Prefecture in March 2021.
Toshiba is also making inroads into China. In
December 2021, an agreement was signed with
Shandong Energy to cooperate on pure hydrogen
stationary systems, including technology transfer.
Another PEM systems developer is Toyota, using
its forklift and Mirai stacks to extend its offering
to stationary. In February 2021, it announced
60 and 80 kW standard modules for a range of
applications. (8, 24, and 50 kW units also exist).
Given the high stack volumes produced for the
Mirai, cost should be competitive and could lead
to greater market share. In May 2021, ENEOS
Panasonic will install a renewable energy agreed to supply hydrogen for a development at
demonstration system at its Kusatsu factory in Woven City, which will include Hydrogen
Shiga Prefecture, which currently produces the Refuelling Stations and stationary power
Ene-Farm CHP system. The system will comprise generation systems.
100x RE100 units (totalling 500 kW) alongside 570
kW solar PV array and 1.1 MWh battery energy
storage. The combination of power systems
should provide greater system resilience and
reliable power, and is due to start operation in
2022. Iwatani Corporation, the Japanese gas
business, will provide trucked-in H2. The project
follows an earlier demonstration of a single 5 kW
system in Yokohama in 2018 and three 5 kW
systems at Yamanashi in 2019/2020.
Toshiba withdrew from the Ene-Farm project in
2017. The core PEM technology, however, became
the basis of TESS’ pure hydrogen PEM system, the
H2Rex. The initial 700 W demonstrators have now
progressed to 100 kW and larger systems.
Toshiba is reported to have delivered 120 systems Meanwhile, Honda, which has significantly
by end of 2020. These units have 50-55% slowed its light duty vehicle fuel cell programme,
electrical efficiency, rising to 90%+ in CHP mode, is keeping the door open to applying its fuel cell
and are in service for a range of applications: know-how elsewhere, exploring the use of its
hotels, markets, stores, service stations and now systems “for a wide range of applications,
industrial sites. In November 2021, a 100 kW including commercial trucks, stationary and
H2Rex began CHP operation at Toyota’s Honsha movable power sources.”

...while natural gas fuelled systems are Korean corporations’ interest in fuel cells reflects a
struggling joint Government/Industry ambition for ‘green’
technologies that reduce emissions, enhance energy
Few other stationary systems released by security and can develop an indigenous industry
Japanese corporations have achieved real capable of generating economic growth and exports.
traction. Brother Industries’ 4.4 kW PEM Strong Government drivers support these ambitions,
system is now being touted for possible use in a which exceed those of most other countries.
H2-ecosystem demonstrator in Palau, the Pacific
Island nation, using H2 imported from Australia. Reflecting its ambition, the Korean Government’s
Kyocera’s SOFC efforts include its own 3 kW Hydrogen Roadmap has a fuel cell target of
system, alongside Ene-Farm work with Aisin Seiki 1.5 GW installed stationary capacity for power
and Dainichi. And Miura, the Japanese heat and generation by 2022, reaching >8 GW by 2040,
boiler systems manufacturer, has an agreement plus a further 7 GW of exports. The 2022 target
to package Ceres SOFC stacks in the 4.2kW FC-5B. will be missed, with the IPHE suggesting 688 MW
Updates on commercial success of these systems installed capacity by the 2021 year-end – still very
is scarce, joining others that have been proposed impressive. The forthcoming Clean Hydrogen
in the past, such as Denso and Hitachi Zosen. Energy Portfolio Standard will provide specific
support for fuel cell systems for power companies
Fuji Electric has been selling its PAFC FP-100i generating less than 500 MW. But the delay in this
systems since 2009, operating on natural gas, being set led to a fall in large shipments in 2021.
biogas and pure H2, with electrical efficiencies of
42-48%. Given growing interest in H2, the FP-100i The 2040 target implies an annual deployment of
hydrogen version may attract more interest but 350-400 MW per annum. This is one of the world’s
electrical efficiency remains below the latest PEM largest fleets by capacity and progress is being
technology. made with ever-larger installations. The largest
players are Doosan and Bloom Energy.
Finally, Mitsubishi Power continues to promote its
250kW class Megamie pressurised hybrid–SOFC Doosan has invested heavily in the sector,
system, which runs on natural gas at an 53% constructing a new manufacturing facility at
electrical efficiency. Uprated to 1 MW, efficiency Iksan. By 2021, 1,156 systems totalling 508 MW
could reach 57%, and the low 70s in CHP mode. capacity had been reported as sold by Doosan
The 1 MW system could be available from 2023. in Korea, with 433 MW operational and a further
Pressurised systems were once being developed 169 systems at 76 MW capacity under
by several global engineering businesses but construction. Doosan Fuel Cell claims to be
Mitsubishi Power is the last standing. winning as much as two-thirds of the Korean
stationary fuel cell systems market.
The Megamie has sold slowly, primarily in the
CHP mode to supply chain and R&D centres in Doosan’s PureCell Model 400 is 43% efficient
Japan. Nine systems are reported to be installed, (90 % in CHP) mode when running on natural gas.
including with Asahi Breweries, Tokyo Gas, and In early 2021 Doosan announced a dual-fuel LNG/
Mitsubishi Estates, a commercial property LPG variant, now also being applied to biogas
business. The agreement with the Gas- und markets with KEPCO. Electrical efficiencies of
Wärme Insitut in Essen, Germany represents the 50% are possible using H2.
only unit exported to date, due to start
operations in 2022 following ground-breaking in For many years, POSCO Energy’s 57 MW MCFC
mid-2021. The unit is part-funded by the Gyeonggi Green Energy fuel cell park was the
European Union’s ERDF and by the State world’s largest single fuel cell installation, but
Government of North-Rhine Westphalia. Doosan overtook in December 2021 with its
79 MW PAFC array in Incheon for Korea Southern
South Korea – the land of plenty Power. The four-phase build, beginning in 2017,
cost ₩340bn (US$292m) and uses Pure Cell
Unlike Japan, the larger Korean stationary fuel cell 440 kW modules fed by pure H2. The plant, at
business is being built mainly around imported the Shinincheon Bitdream HQ, will produce
technology, albeit improved and industrialised. 760 GWh electricity annually, powering
Doosan Fuel Cell has built a business around 250,000 households in the capital and heating
PAFC technology developed in the USA by UTC, 44,000 homes. A 30 ktpa liquefied hydrogen
and SK Engineering and Construction is supply facility from SK E&S will service the fuel
partnered with Bloom Energy, commercialising cell plant from 2023.
SOFC technology. POSCO sold FCE technology
into Korea.

The slightly smaller Seoincheon Fuel Cell park, In 2021, deliveries to SK E&C (mainly) in Korea
totalling 77 MW, was completed in Autumn 2021 accounted for 38% of Bloom’s revenues. In 2021,
for Korea Western Power. Built over five phases, Bloom SK Fuel Cell started operations at the Gumi
with further Doosan PureCell modules, the plant manufacturing facility. Initial capacity is 50 MW
will power 240,000 households and also deliver per annum, intended to grow to 400 MW by 2027.
heat. In March, Korea Western Power announced
another 80 MW H2 fuel cell plant, again using Completed or near-completed SK power plants in
Doosan fuel cells, at Hwaseong City, 30 km from 2021 included a 19.8 MW facility at the Cheongju
Seoul. The facility will power 185,000 homes by Eco Park, 15 MW for Korea Southern Power’s
2024. Partner Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Yeongwol Fuel Cell project Phase 1, and the
completed another plant at Dong-gu, Incheon, 15 MW Honan Fuel Cell Project of Korea East West
in July 2021. The 39.6 MW plant, costing Power. All the plants are operating on natural gas.
₩254bn (US$224m), uses 90 Doosan PureCell October 2021 saw SK Ecoplant commit to
modules to deliver 320 GWh of electricity that can ordering 500 MW of the Bloom systems to 2025,
be used to power 110,000 homes and provide and investing US$500m in Bloom itself. The
heat to 26,000. shipments would translate to around US$4.5bn in
In July, Doosan announced its MoU with POSCO, equipment and future service revenue.
focused on the build of a 105.6 MW fuel cell park
at Chuncheon in Gangwon province. 240 PureCell
modules, running on H2, will generate 800 GWh
power to service 220,000 households by 2025.
Over 2021, Doosan Fuel Cell also concluded an
agreement with STX Corporation to develop
tri-generation and CCUS technologies; cooperation
in a virtual power plant demonstrator at
Hwaseong’s Smart Energy Project; and an order for
12.3 MW of dual-fuel PureCell systems for Bitgoeul
EcoPark, due to come on stream in August 2022.
In Autumn 2021, Doosan announced its first
export units to China from its Iksan facility: four
PureCell modules to deliver CHP to a property
development in Nanhai District, Foshan City, Further Bloom developments within South Korea
China, at US$13m. include a 4.2 MW CHP system for Donghae City,
built around a 1.8 MW vertically-assembled
In the light of this and domestic orders of 131 MW PowerTower, announced in April; and a pure
in 2021, Doosan is planning to ramp its Iksan H2-fuelled 100 kW system installed and operating
manufacturing capacity to 275 MW a year by in Ulsan since July. Bloom remains second to
2022. The 2022 sales target is for 240 MW as part Doosan in Korea, but is growing fast.
of an ambition to become the leading global
player in H2 energy, including expanding its In January 2021, Plug and SK Group committed to
capability to encompass PEM for transportation a joint venture to provide PEMFC systems, HRS
and SOFC for stationary and marine. Doosan FC and electrolysers to the Korean and broader Asian
remains on track to open a 50 MW capacity SOFC markets. SK invested US$1.5bn into Plug for just
manufacturing site by 2023, using Ceres stacks, under 10% of Plug’s share capital. The JV was
and to offer pre-commercial units from 2024. As created in October, 51% owned by SK. The
of September 2021, 10 kW systems were being partners plan to build a ‘Gigafactory’ for fuel cells
demonstrated, at 40% electrical efficiency and and electrolysers in a key metropolitan area in
with a claimed doubling of the power density of a South Korea by 2024. Over time, the JV is
PEM system of the same output. also expected to distribute the LH2 produced
by SK E&S to about 100 charging stations across
Bloom’s second biggest market (after the USA) is the country.
Korea where it has been contracted to deliver
200 MW of systems since 2018 through its JV
Bloom SK Fuel Cell, in partnership with
SK Engineering and Construction.

POSCO was a major supplier to the Korean fuel North America, the two-speed country
cell market, prior to a dispute with FuelCell
Energy. Until 2017, POSCO Energy had When it comes to stationary FC systems for North
constructed ~172 MW of fuel cell power plants to America, read USA. The US was the first to deploy
local customers but stopped pursuing new orders stationary FC systems at scale globally and for
in 2016 following claims that premature stack years had the world’s largest fleet of 550-600 MW,
failures caused mounting losses in its service only overtaken by Korea at the end of 2020. These
business. The fallout led to a collapse in FCE sales are primarily commercial sized units of 100s of kW
to Korea from 48% of revenues in 2016 to 3% in and low MW.
2019. Late in 2021, the companies came to a legal Unlike Korea, large utility-scale deployments at
resolution, with POSCO surrendering its rights to tens of MW capacity have been the exception.
sell FCE’s technology in Korea. POSCO now This reflects the economics of power generation
partners other companies (such as Doosan, at the in the US, where self-generation has been
Shinincheon power plant) and continues to invest encouraged by Federal and State regulations and
in PEM bipolar plates with an intention to incentives, and by individual corporate
produce 10,000 tpa at its Cheonan plant. environmental policies.
Korea’s other fuel cell developers are also looking The stationary FC developers driving
to sell into power generation. In July, Hyundai deployments in the USA are Bloom Energy of
Motor and Hyundai Electric & Energy Systems California, with its 200 kW and 300 kW SOFC
agreed to develop a mobile power generator server building blocks; FCE of Danbury, CT, with
package using NEXO modules, and to explore its SureSource MW-scale modules, and Doosan
business models for marketing it in Korea and Fuel Cell America, of South Windsor, CT, supplying
beyond. Hyundai has also worked with Doosan. PureCell Model 400 PAFC systems. The domiciles
Autumn 2021 saw it demonstrate a microgrid of represent the States with the most attractive
500 kW of PEM NEXO-derived units with 440 kW policies for fuel cells and are the locations for
PureCell systems at Ulsan City. most of the installations. Over the past few years,
Doosan’s FuelCell Power Business Unit continues Bloom has been leading
to actively sell PEM systems for microgeneration, the charge, with FCE and Doosan stuck in the
with NG units from 1-10 kW and H2 units between slow lane.
1-100 kW. S-Fuel Cell, a smaller Korean company, Over the years, California’s power and emissions
sell its PEM systems of 5-10 kW for buildings, at challenges have driven State legislation in favour
35% electrical efficiency (85% overall) on NG fuel of alternative technologies, including fuel cells for
rising to 85%+ with pure H2. In Korea, Bumhan has DG. 2021 saw the State Government extend its
been appointed as distributor for PowerCell PEM Fuel Cell Net Energy Metering Program, providing
systems. Small SOFC units are being developed relief from power utility charges to end users of
for homes and businesses (e.g., KD Navien with FC systems. California is estimated to have around
Ceres; MiCo) with Korean microgeneration 550 stationary units totalling 320 MW, way ahead
volume at around 1,000 PEM units pa. of any other State.
In January 2021, Hyundai started a 1 MW fuel Connecticut, with a fleet of about 100 stationary
cell power generation pilot system, based on units and an 84 MW installed base, is the only
NEXO technology. The installation has been State to classify fuel cell systems as Class 1
developed with Korea East-West Power and the Renewable Energy Sources, equivalent to PV and
industrial gases company Deokyang. It comprises Wind, even when running on NG. Over the years
two 500 kW containerised modules, which can be the State, with an eye on growth and jobs, has
scaled-out to hundreds of MW. The facility gets enacted legislation requiring State power utilities
by-product H2 by pipe from Ulsan’s to purchase home-grown technology. The
petrochemical complex. Department of Energy & Environmental
Protection (DEEP) initiative has sought bids for
plants from renewable technology suppliers,
including FC systems. The latest legislation,
passed in Summer 2021, requires the State’s
utilities to solicit 30 MW of systems from fuel
cell companies, which include Doosan and
FuelCell Energy.

For FuelCell Energy, 2021 has been unspectacular, Bloom Energy is now the predominant stationary
with a retained backlog of over US$1bn. It supplier in the USA, installing its SOFC Energy
continues to rebuild, following an existential crisis Servers across the USA and increasingly overseas
in 2019 and then COVID. It has increased its (mainly Korea, with few in Europe). In 2020, Bloom
annualised production capability to 45 MW, up reported 1,326 units (as 100 kW modules in its
from 17 MW in 2020, with the glimmerings of new reports), totalling 132 MW. This increased to
orders for Korea. FCE gained a cash injection of 1,897 units at an aggregate capacity of 190 MW in
US$162.5m in December 2020 through a public 2021. For FCIR, we use a weighted average of
offering of stock. system ensembles for Bloom.
Although FCE reports a cumulative deployment The US remains the single largest market in which
of 220 MW over 50 plants globally, 2021 saw a Bloom partners with energy developers and
little over 10 MW commissioned: 1.4 MW at San investors to install systems as part of PPAs and
Bernardino’s wastewater treatment facility in July; other services agreements. One of Bloom’s largest
7.4 MW at Yaphank in New York, at the end of partners is Duke Energy, which in 2020 accounted
2021; and the completion of its 2.8 MW plant in for 28% of revenues. Smaller partners include
Derby, Connecticut. Further systems underway Daroga Power, Captona and NineDot, all part of
include the 7.4 MW US Navy Base power plant at its Community Distributed Generation Program,
Groton, CT, (delayed from 2020, and still to be which in 2021 began to install 40 MW of systems
accepted), another 14 MW power plant at Derby, across the North East USA. These will provide grid
CT, a 7.4 MW plant in Hartford CT and the 2.3 MW support and strengthening, alongside community
Tri-generation system for Toyota in California. resilience. In July Daroga Power agreed to take on
more Bloom Servers: 33 MW of systems will be
FCE’s business model is increasingly built on placed with 17 industrial and commercial long
Power Purchasing Agreements (PPA), secured for term energy service customers across CA and the
new and existing plants. The apparently healthy Eastern Seaboard by end of 2022. Bloom also
backlog of generation income derives from a benefits from State Government assistance, with
nine-project 34 MW fleet over the next 20 years. 10 MW of Servers installed at Colchester, CT under
Few new PPAs seem to have been captured the DEEP initiative.
in 2021.
In an effort to diversify the product line and tap
At the end of 2020 three of four projects initially into the growth of alternative fuels, Bloom
awarded under CT’s Shared Clean Energy Facility announced several developments in 2021. In
programme were rescinded, leaving just one autumn Bloom commissioned 1 MW of servers at
going into 2021. FCE’s prospects for 2022 seem a dairy farm in California, fuelled with biogas from
more promising. It should benefit from the CT cow manure. In September its Hydrogen Energy
State Government Bill, signed in Summer 2021. Server technology was released for commercial
It is now able to market and sell its technology sale. Bloom is also heavily investing in Solid Oxide
throughout Asia and expects to receive orders electrolyser technology with its Bloom
for 20 modules from POSCO, to service and Electrolyser, claimed to be 15%-45% more
maintain the systems of POSCO’s existing efficient than low temperature systems, due to go
Korean customers. on sale in 2022. Bloom signed up with Idaho
Doosan Fuel Cell America should also benefit National Laboratory to trial the electrolyser with
from the CT State initiative to purchase fuel cells, nuclear power. The Bloom Electrolyser is also to
but this cannot be taken for granted. First be part of a larger renewable energy system
announced in 2018, Energy Innovation Park, LLC incorporating Bloom’s Hydrogen Energy Servers
planned to build a 20 MW microgrid in a and a floating solar PV array in Visakhapatnam,
redundant factory in New Britain, CT, eventually India. The system will provide 100% renewable
expanding to a 44 MW data centre. Prospects for power plus storage.
Doosan were dashed by the onset of the Overseas markets other thank Korea are only just
pandemic and then by a report that the initial beginning for Bloom: in 2021 it opened an office
45 Doosan units are to be replaced by 74 Bloom in Dubai, UAE, whilst in November it signed up
servers. Whatever the prospects for the with Conrad Energy and Electricity North West to
290 workers at Doosan’s South Windsor facility, develop market opportunities in the UK.
they seem to be the poor relation to Doosan’s
highly successful Korean operations.

North America’s PEM Journey Sluggish Europe
Although Canadian fuel cell developers, Ballard Europe’s FC journey has been one of enormous
and Cummins, and Plug Power of the USA have promise, but glacial progress. Deployment of
fielded stationary systems (mainly for backup or stationary fuel cell systems is way behind other
off-grid applications) based on their PEM leading economies. Very few utility or commercial-
technology in the past, their focus has been scale stationary systems have been deployed
primarily on transport markets for volume. (none published in 2021), and few micro-CHP units
However, ever-larger systems – now with MW shipped in comparison with Japan.
potential – are being developed.
Ambition amongst Europe’s developers is not
Plug launched its GenSure High Power system in lacking, nor is technical competence. But the
2020. Based on 125 kW ProGen modules, these energy markets are tougher, the grid more
systems are scalable from 500 kW to 1.5 MW. reliable, Government subsidy regimes far less
Production started early 2021, with a view to generous and regulations less favourable than in
deploying units at data centres after mid-year. some other economies. Despite the efforts of the
European Union, through FCH2 JU and from
countries like Germany, the economic case for
stationary fuel cells has proven hard to make for
domestic and commercial end-users alike.
The last large commercial stationary systems
installed were three Doosan PureCell Model 400s in
2019 for an event complex in Aberdeen, UK. Other
initiatives, such as the Electrou Project to install a
stationary fuel cell for London’s Kings Cross
development, have fallen by the wayside. Ground
Ballard’s steps towards stationary units at MW- was finally broken in Summer 2021 for a Mitsubishi
scale include an announcement of two 1.5 MW Power MEGAMIE 250 kW hybrid SOFC system in
systems, based on its ClearGen-II module, to be Essen, Germany. Due to start operation in 2022, the
delivered to HDF Energy for a ‘Renewstable’ unit is a demonstrator rather than a commercial
power plant in French Guyana. The US$200m installation. And in December, it was reported a
CEOG project will combine a solar park, H2, and term-sheet had been agreed between Renovit
short-term battery storage and fuel cells. Later in (Snam’s energy efficiency subsidiary) and SAGAT
the year, Ballard signed an agreement with SpA, Torino’s airport management company, for
Caterpillar to provide a 1.5 MW system to a the construction of a 1.2 MW hydrogen-ready
Microsoft data centre. The project will run for FuelCell Energy system at the airport.
three years, part-funded by the US DoE. In July,
Ballard also signed up with Portugal’s Fusion-Fuel Europe’s efforts for much of the past five years
business to supply a 200 kW FCwave system to have been focused on smaller-scale fuel cell
run on hydrogen from Fusion’s electrolyser. Like systems: domestic CHP in the thousands, and
Plug Power, Ballard is chasing renewable more recently on smaller commercial units in the
ensembles, not just fuel cells. single and tens of kW power output, though with
hardly any shipments. The efforts have been
There is little micro-CHP activity in the US. Watt supported by FCH2 JU projects PACE for domestic
Fuel Cell continues to work with Peoples Gas, and small commercial CHP systems, COMSOS, for
trialling units in homes. In January, Watt reported it larger commercial systems, as well as Germany’s
had doubled the stack output of its SOFC to KfW 433 initiative.
2 kW, and improved system efficiency to more
than 40%, using its proprietary additive 2021 was the last full year of PACE, with
manufacturing process to transition to a steam- completion due in 2022. The €90m (US$107m)
based system. The advances in technology and project’s objective was to drive down costs by
lessons learned from the residential field trials supporting deployment of 2,800 systems,
should be implemented in the new Beta enabling the switch from single system building
Hybrid system. to a series production. Five of Europe’s leading
domestic micro-CHP developers have been
involved: BDR Thermea, Bosch, SOLIDpower,
Sunfire and Viessmann. They committed to
deploying between 500 and 750 micro-CHP
units each across ten EU countries.

To date, most units have been deployed in integrator, however, Bosch also has an agreement
Germany and in Flanders in Belgium. Both with the UK company Ceres to use its SteelCell
countries have national or regional subsidies SOFC technology for commercial-scale end uses.
adding to the PACE incentives. Units have also
been installed in the UK, France, Italy and a few in Bosch is set to become a European leader in
the Netherlands and Austria. It is difficult at this larger commercial fuel cell systems. The 2021 plan
stage to determine the impact. The cost reductions was to put 100 units using Ceres stacks into
are only part of what is required to successfully operation. Twenty units were operating by March
market and sell systems to the public. But in the 2021, including a 10 kW system, with 60%
absence of a follow-on programme to PACE (itself a electrical efficiency, powering homes in Bamberg,
follower of the ene.field project), future where Bosch’s stack production facility is being
deployments of domestic and small commercial built. Bosch will start mass manufacture from
CHP systems will depend on national and regional 2024, with an initial capacity of 200 MW a year
support. The only consistent government support (enough to supply 400,000 households with
available, at least at reasonable scale, has been electricity). The stationary play is part of Bosch’s
KfW 433. Since 2016, it is reported to have supported €1bn (US$1.19bn) investment in fuel cells, from
over 18,300 units (the initial target was 15,000 Spring 2021, and reflects the view that fuel cells
systems), of between 250 W and 5 kW, through a mix will be part of Europe’s Zero Carbon future, with
of grants and tariffs now worth up to €34,300 natural gas as a stepping-stone to green
(US$40,800) a unit. As most of Europe’s fuel cell hydrogen. Bosch also continues to work with
developers are either based in or have a presence in PowerCell to modify the S3 stacks for automotive
Germany, continuation of KfW 433 is critical to the use by 2022.
learning and price falls of micro-CHP systems. Sunfire in Dresden has expanded its solid oxide
PACE’s five developers have fielded a mix of PEM electrolyser offering. Its micro-CHP product is
and SOFC systems. Netherland’s BDR Thermea has based on the Sunfire-Home SOFC introduced in
installed its SenerTec Dachs 0.8. This PEM system early 2020. The 750 W electrical output (1.2 kW
generates 750 W of power at 38% efficiency (92% thermal) units have an electrical efficiency of just
including heat). BDR’s Remeha Electra 300 uses under 40% (89% overall). The Sunfire-Home uses
the same basic technology. the same Power Core as the Sunfire-Remote
systems. The latter are available from 350 to
Germany’s Viessmann, the market leader, also 850 W and have been used as remote power
uses PEM, although in this case based on a sources for temporary festivals, through oil and
Panasonic module under a collaboration which gas pipeline sensor systems, microwave radio
started in 2014. The 750 W Vitovalor PT2 stations, to railway infrastructure. They can run on
incorporates a boiler and hot water tank, with an propane, for off-grid needs, and operate at
electrical efficiency of 37% and 92% overall, temperatures from -20 to +55°C. With an
delivering a 12-year stack life and a subsidy of up environmental cabinet it can run at temperatures
to €11,200 (US$13,300) per unit available under down to -40°C. Sunfire claims its fuel cell units
KfW 433. At the end of 2021, Viessmann have the longest durability in the market.
announced its 10,000th Vitovalor system sale.
Micro-SOFC systems have also been installed by
SOLIDpower, Bosch, and by Sunfire. SOLIDpower,
the Italian-based developer with its system
production line in Heinsburg, Germany reported
in 2021 that 2,500 units have been deployed in 12
countries over the years. The latest version, the
BG15, was launched in 2020, with 1.5 kW power
output and efficiency of 57%, and 90% overall.
Cells and stacks are made at the 25 MW capacity
factory in Mezzolombardo, Italy. As with several
other fuel cell companies, including AFC Energy,
SOLIDpower is now also targeting charger
systems for battery-powered electric vehicles.
SOLIDpower’s BG15 stack is also at the core of the
Bosch Buderus brand of fuel cell micro-CHP
systems, with up to 60% electrical efficiency.
SOLIDpower and Bosch paired several years ago
with a view to replacing Japanese Aisin Seiki
modules in the Buderus products. As a system

Ceres is one of Europe’s specialist SOFC Cell and SOLIDpower has also begun to scale its systems
stack developers, the others being Elcogen of outside of COMSOS, using its 6 kW modules to
Estonia, and mPower of Germany. They licence build a 180 kW SOFC stack and a 25 kW reversible
their SOFC technology and/or sell cells and stacks solid oxide stack capable of power generation
to system integrators. Ceres has struck and electrolysis. In December, it announced the
development and licence agreements with global start of the Edge Prime Power Project, a
engineering businesses that will integrate European-supported €2.5m project looking at use
systems and provide a route to market: Bosch, of fuel cell systems for data centres.
Weichai in China, Cummins in USA, Doosan Fuel
Cell in Korea, and Miura of Japan. Late in 2020, mPower is younger than Elcogen and smaller. It
these were joined by AVL in Austria, to help push manufactures SOFC stack developed at the
the technology into European vehicles. Fraunhofer IKTS Ceramics institute, in Dresden
and bought the rights to Hexis SOFC from
Weichai is focused on using the Ceres stacks as Viessmann in 2020. Stacks are available between
range extenders for vehicles, Cummins on 100 kW 0.3-10 kW. No shipments have yet been reported.
stacks for data centres, and Miura its FC-5B CHP
unit. Doosan is focused on utility-scale power Several other smaller European system
generation and marine and is building a 50 MW developers have some interest in stationary,
pa manufacturing volume by 2024 in Korea. In although their typical main focus is mobility.
March 2021, Doosan announced a JV with Boutique actors like Tropical and Helbio ship
Hyundai Heavy Industries to push the SteelCell bespoke units, and emerging companies like
technology into marine applications. These Inhouse Engineering are extending their product
developments follow Ceres’ £181m (US$248m) (in this case, the 4.2 kW inhouse5000+ CHP unit)
fund raise in summer 2021. Taken together, it is into renewable ensembles with a fuel cell
possible that the global production of Ceres SOFC component. Others, like HDF Energy, also target
stacks will rival that of Bloom by the mid-2020s, renewables but at larger scale, as bulk energy
though this will require an upscaling of the core storage systems.
5 kW modules. 2021 has been a busy year for PowerCell, Sweden.
Elcogen is a smaller SOFC player with ambitions Focused previously on road and small stationary,
to expand. Its technology is mature and claimed its reach now extends to off-road and marine PEM
competitive with other developers. From a start in systems. In February, the PowerCellution brand
2001, it now supplies several smaller system was created to signal a move towards supplying
developers and integrators in Europe, Japan and larger systems rather than individual stacks, using
Korea. In 2021 it announced an agreement with 200 kW modules. In May 2021, an agreement was
Mainor Ülemiste AS, a property business, to signed with Hitachi-ABB Power Grids to develop
develop a 50 MW cell and stack facility for fuel containerised stationary systems of 600 kW, and
cells, alongside 200 MW a year of solid oxide on module-based solutions for systems of a MW
electrolysis cells, in Tallinn, Estonia. The facility will plus. Orders continue for its MS-100 (100 kW)
enable Elcogen to supply stacks to integrators, stack, now designated as the ‘Power Generation
including Convion of Finland. Previously, the 100’. January saw the such a unit go to the
focus was mainly on cell supply. University of Texas to provide power to a
computing centre.
Convion has been patiently building its
commercial offering with its C60 SOFC unit. Using In November, Rolls-Royce gave further details of its
Elcogen stacks and with 60% electrical efficiency stationary plant, led by the mtu brand of its Power
(83% overall), Convion’s C60 unit is amongst the Systems business unit. Based on cellcentric
best in class. In October 2021, it announced that technology, each module will deliver a net power
the C60 CHP system delivered to Finland’s of ~150 kW, which can be connected to reach the
LEMENE distributed generation project had MW scale, used in large data centres. Rolls-Royce
achieved 7,000 hours of reliable operation. commissioned a demonstrator earlier in the year,
with plans for a further unit in 2022. Pilot units are
Convion, alongside Sunfire and SOLIDpower, has expected in 2023, and production systems in 2025.
partnered in the EU COMSOS project, designed to
demonstrate SOFC systems for the commercial Germany’s Proton Motor has developed several
sector. By mid-2021, only Sunfire had deployed a PEM systems that have been placed in stationary
unit, a 25 kW system, in Taiwan. Convion is due to applications, the S5/8 with power up to 8 kW and
field its C50/60 series and SOLIDpower a 12 kW the S25 power up to 25 kW. In November, Proton
system. As with other solid oxide actors, Convion secured further sales from Deutsche Bahn for
is looking to expand its horizons into electrolysis modules for critical railway infrastructure sites,
and into electrofuels, in March 2021 announcing a with a potential roll-out of 1,800 sites across the
research project with VTT and Neste. network. And in August, Proton recorded sales for
eight of its S8 modules to GKN Hydrogen.

GKN’s HY2 energy storage systems Vodacom has already installed at least 300 CHEM
ME2 units in its network. Sub-Saharan Africa is
Following years of development, GKN Hydrogen reported to have potential for a further 300,000,
was launched as a business unit in March 2021. but this must be set alongside similar hopes for
Its HY2 metal hydride store is scalable, to deliver other countries in Africa, and Asia, yet to be
emergency backup and off-grid energy supply to fully realised.
residential housing, maritime transport, and
large-scale industry. The hydride maintains Like CHEM, GenCell has been focused on the
100% of original capacity after three years. In back-up market, offering scalable systems up to
domestic use, the HY2 facilitates seasonal energy 5 kW: the REX (6-8 hrs of backup power), and BOX
buffering when coupled with green H2 sources and (runtimes for a full week, for a 1 kW system),
fuel cells. fuelled by hydrogen; and the new FOX (with up
to a year backup, fuelled by anhydrous ammonia).
At the end of 2021, it reported installation of
100 units across 22 countries, with 74 delivered to
Mexico alone.
In the USA, Plug Power and Altergy have provided
small systems for many years. Plug’s GenSure E
series ranges from 200 W to 4.4 kW, with 4,800
units installed across the USA and 36 other
countries. Plug has partnered with Canada’s
Westech Industrial to distribute GenSure across
western Canada.
In August, GKN Hydrogen got US$1.7m funding

from the US DOE to add two HY2MEGA H2 storage
tanks to the H2 assets at the ARIES facility on
NREL’s Flatirons Campus near Boulder, CO. The
HY2MEGA storage subsystem will be connected
to the MW-scale electrolyser and FC system at the
facility and will be evaluated over a range of use
cases from September 2022.
Back-up for critical infrastructure is growing fast
Society’s critical infrastructure has received
growing attention as the impact of ‘blackouts’,
especially those caused by natural events, Altergy’s 5 kW Freedom Power System has sold in
becomes more apparent in today’s connected the very low thousands of units over time, mainly
world. Several countries have identified back-up into the US and many with ARRA funding, but few
power for resilience as an investment priority. Not since that ended. Altergy now also sells into
surprisingly, fuel cell developers are attracted to disaster relief, traffic systems and a myriad of uses,
these opportunities, marketing the benefits of as well as telecoms.
fuel cells over diesel gensets and battery systems:
longer runtimes, less attractive targets for theft, Ballard’s backup business, based on FCgen-H2PM,
and cleaner operation. Few developers focus on accounted for 10% of sales in 2020. The model has
this market alone, but Taiwan’s CHEM Energy and outputs of 1.7-60 kW for critical infrastructure. At
GenCell of Israel are the exceptions. the end of 2020, an agreement was signed with
Eltek Nordic of Norway to work on fuel cell
CHEM Energy has been placing its G3 and G5 ME2 backup power systems for communications
series fuel cells into telecoms towers sites in Africa networks in the Nordic countries. Ballard’s
and Asia for number of years. CHEM’s products Danish subsidiary will deliver units based on the
are built around its 2016 acquisition of Ballard FCgen-H2PM.
technology, originating from IdaTech. The 2.5 kW
and 5 kW systems run on reformed methanol, a Cummins offers its HyPM-XR systems with
225 litre tank providing up to 100 hours runtime, outputs of 10, 20, 30 and 120 kW for reliable
depending on the power. These systems are backup and standby power. It also offers its larger
manufactured in Taiwan and South Africa. MW Power Plant Platform, up to 20 MW.

PowerCell also has smaller PowerCellution EODev continues to expand its activity beyond its
systems for telecoms backup, its 5 kW system starting point of the Energy Observer catamaran. In
fitting into a standard 19” rack. November 2020, Eneria became a distributor of the
GEH2 and REXH2 to greater France, Belgium,
Luxembourg, Poland, Romania, and Algeria. In
March 2021, LOXAM, the number one equipment
rental company across Europe, said it will make the
GEH2 available to its clients. In December,
Canadian group Aspin Kemp & Associates made an
initial order for three GEH2 generators to be used
at construction sites and two REXH2 range
extenders to be integrated into a ship. Also, in
December, Blue Diamond Machinery, a distributor
of energy and industrial equipment, acquired three
GEH2 units and was appointed as an EODEV agent
in Australia, pushing the GEH2 into the mining
industry and major sporting and cultural events.
Advent Energy has totally transformed its business,
following acquisition of UltraCell early in 2021 and
SerEnergy later in the year. Now claiming a broad
portfolio, from real 25 W portable units to yet-to-
emerge MW-scale systems, it offers its 48 V and
high voltage variants in 3rd (H3 5000) and 4th
(Serene U-5) generations for backup power, at
Taylor Construction Plant, of Maldon, Essex, UK, between 1-15 kW. The systems all use reformed
use BOC HYMERA fuel cells in its Ecolight WH2 methanol (high energy density and convenience of
and TH200 lighting towers, and in its Genie Eco transportation of fuel) and PBI membranes
CCTV tower for surveillance in remote locations. (tolerant to CO, but high cost).
The HYMERA is also integrated into TCP’s Eco-CH2
Cabinet, designed for off-grid needs, leased to In May, Blue World Technologies gained EUDP
construction companies, offering up to 2.5 kW funding, working with Clayton Power to develop
standby power (from a battery) and continuous a 5-15 kW scale APU (using PBI fuel cells) to power
power of 250 W (from the fuel cell). The Cabinet domestic appliances within long distance heavy-
has a capacity of five GENIE cylinders for extended duty trucks at stops, and for use as a mobile
runtime and can also be integrated with solar PV genset for construction sites, telecoms, remote
or micro-wind to extend runtimes yet further. medical facilities, and other off-grid needs.
Intelligent Energy has a history of trying to build a Bambili Energy is focused on the beneficiation of
telecoms market with its PEM technology, notably South Africa’s platinum group metals through the
in India. 2021 saw a product revamp, the IE-Drive development of an indigenous fuel cell industry.
P100 for LDVs, IE-Drive HD for HDVs, IE-flight for It offers the MRFC5000 i5 kW power system based
aviation, joining the IE-Soar (UAV) and IE-Lift on a single 2 m tall cabinet. The unit can be scaled
systems. In recent years, it has sold some backup out to needs of 100 kW or more, with an option to
units for Malaysian telecoms operators. In package systems in shipping containers.
September, Intelligent Energy appointed Start-up PowerUP Energy, was awarded €150k
Singapore’s Powerzone Technologies, a builder of from Estonia’s Environmental Investment Center
power generator sets, to pursue opportunities in (Keskkonnainvesteeringute Keskus – KIK), to
Asia. Telecoms has been identified as a key target develop two 12 kW H2 fuel cell UP12K prototypes
for the IE-Lift Series, utilising H2 fuel and outputs and, by early 2023, to validate the units with
of 1, 2 and 4 kW. The units are smaller and lighter, Mushi Bio Power in Namibia and the National
though still higher cost than battery backup. Radio and Telecommunication Corporation
TCP’s Ecolite GH2, developed in 2018, uses an in Pakistan.
IE-Lift 801 module, to deliver up to 1 kW power SFC Energy for many years focused solely on small
off-grid, typically for events and for portable DMFC systems. But following the
construction sites. January 2020 agreement with adKor, SFC now
Intelligent Energy’s partner AJC also packages the develops and markets the Jupiter series of PEM
IE-Lift systems into welfare cabins, to create clean H2 systems. The use of H2 fuel delivers greater
power for the domestic needs of construction resilience to cold climates over diesel or
workers. A smaller, less mature, system has been kerosene-fuelled gensets. The platform is scalable
demonstrated by the UK SOFC company, Adelan. from 2.5 kW to 50 kW.

Portable – sales holding, spawning new plays
One route for fuel cell start-ups to enter markets is Winner Yachts adopted the EFOY as a runtime
through an initial focus on small units and the extender as a customer offering, in July 2021.
portable power segment. Incrementally, larger
markets like ported generators and static
telecoms backup are addressed, and some
companies aim to bring product to yet larger and
higher-power markets, such as automotive. And
the prize seems bigger, but along the way a lot of
re-engineering effort is needed, with little or no
revenue. By now, the company has transitioned
from a portable play to a diversified portfolio,
possibly losing portable altogether.
But some stay the course, producing products
that are mature, reliable, and sell in volume. This is
the case for the DMFC company, SFC Energy, now
in its 21st year. Along the way it has made
acquisitions (not all in fuel cells), and gained Further diversification aimed at sailors is the
access to adKor’s PEM platform, with Ballard integration of its DMFC product into the
stacks built into the Jupiter series. SFC has sold ePropulsion Spirit 1.0 PLUS outboard engine, as a
over 55,000 units since its inception to end 2021, range extender. To do this, and meet other
mostly portable DMFC. In 2021 it sold 6,500 units, demands, SFC Energy raised money in November
an 83% increase over 2020. 2020. Its sales now extend to Asia, including
48 units for offshore measurement systems via
The current designs are a result of two decades of SFC sales partner Beijing Green Century
market testing, logging data and incremental Technology.
improvements, and then branching out to PEM
once the DMFC units had been optimised for In January 2021, 130 EFOY Pro units (the largest
different market segments. These include remote single order at the time) were ordered by Toyota
monitoring for civil applications, silent watch (the Tsusho, to equip temporary LED traffic control
Emily) and lightweight, high energy, personal lights for a Japanese client. Further diversity has
power sources (the Jenny) in defence. The PEM come through partner Jenoptik to use the EFOY
play recognises the inherent limitation of DMFC systems in mobile traffic speed camera sites,
to power ranges peaking around 1-3 kW, due following a similar agreement in March 2021, with
mainly to the inherent high cost of the Leosphere, to integrate EFOY units into LIDAR
electrocatalyst in the DMFC stack. technology for wind farms. In May, 100 EFOY Pro
2400 Duo fuel cells were ordered by LiveView
A highly competitive market Technologies, Utah, to power mounted cameras
Unlike many of its competitors and casualties on trailers, to monitor parking lots, and as power
(NanoDynamics, resurrected as Watt Fuel Cell; for access control to construction sites, in place of
Trulite; INI Power; Jadoo; Neah Power), SFC has generators. The EFOY units act as battery runtime
stayed the course, with 66% of its total €64.3m extenders. LiveView made a follow-on order for a
revenues for 2021 attributed to the Clean Energy further 600 EFOY units, valued at US$4m, in
segment, most of that being for portable DMFCs. September 2021.
SFC is now on its 5th-generation EFOY Pro 2800, Johnson Matthey is a crucial supplier, with a
methanol-fuelled, with an output up to 125 W renewed JDA and supply agreement to
and a maximum charging capacity of 250 Ah per March 2024.
day. The higher output power is aimed at the DMFCs can be part of larger ensembles (24
sailing community, as an APU/charger to hotel microgrids for remote villages in India, with local
batteries. partner FC TecNrgy, were announced in March
2021) but for higher power needs the PEM-based
Jupiter systems can offer more than the DMFC.

By February 2021, 40 of an intended 500 Jupiter The HYMERA II is claimed to have running costs
units had been deployed to network harden the lower than diesel generators, with reduced
BOSNet public authority radio system in Bavaria. servicing requirements. It even has its own
The Jupiter uses FCgen-1020ACS (air-cooled) reusable cylinder, the 54-G20 GENIE, with 5 m3
stacks, from Ballard. 300 bar CH2, (typical, heavier, industrial cylinders
are at 175 bar pressure) enough to generate
In July, SFC Energy launched a new modular 600 kWh of electricity. The filled cylinders retail at
H2 fuel cell solution, the EFOY Hydrogen Fuel Cell £77 (US$106).
2.5, for mobile and critical power needs up to
5 kW, with a plan is to extend the offering up to
50 kW. These move into a ported, rather than
portable category. Series production was
scheduled within Q4 2021.
Like others, SFC is now chasing the wider

emerging green H2 economy. In August, SFC and
Nel ASA entered a JDA to deliver the world’s first
integrated electrolyser and H2 fuel cell system for The actual runtimes depend on the power draw:
industrial markets, replacing diesel generators. 2x 50 LED flood lights deplete the cylinder in
SFC and Nel will first address applications up to ~70 hr, a small site office lasts up to 6 days, a
50 kW. Next the range will be extended to 500 kW. 10 W traffic light for 4 weeks and a 4 W alarm for
A June 2021 order for a Jupiter unit is destined 2 months. While this illustrates the inherent
for use in a PV/electrolyser array in Lower Austria. problem with CH2; unless the storage pressure is
This will require the development of a high very high, the usable power and runtimes are
power density, liquid cooled stack, likely available short. But they are fast to recharge, lighter than
from 2025. battery systems, and cleaner and quieter than
diesels, so compete perfectly in certain segments.
HYMERA – old and new
Many other players – new and old
Another of the established fuel cell companies,
BOC’s HYMERA, has updated its original design, Imperial College spinout Bramble has pioneered a
developed with Arcola Energy back in 2013. With printed circuit board-based H2 PEM fuel cell with a
a power output of 150 W, the HYMERA II supports claimed low production cost, scalable and
a range of commercial and industrial off-grid recyclable, that can be made at any PCB factory
applications, such as task lighting (for example, world-wide. Its initial demonstrator has been built
for railway maintenance), security cameras, into the SDX range of range/runtime extenders,
process control systems and environmental rated at 15 W, 30 W, 45 W and 60 W, also
monitoring. alongside BOC.

Bramble is scaling its technology to larger In December 2021, Adaptive received an order for
platforms, for marine, stationary backup, and for 400 Performer Series P250i units from RedHawk,
light duty vehicles. to be delivered over 2022. This suggests the units
have achieved high reliability in operation.
Spun-out from EPFL in August 2020, Lausanne-
based INERGIO Technologies SA unveiled two
prototype portable SOFCs units in 2021: the
InoPower 1.0 (50-150 W; 2.5-3 kg) and InoPower
4.0 (200-600 W; 3.5-7.2 kg). INERGIO claims an
80% reduction in mass over its peers. The devices,
which can run off propane or H2, are aimed at
delivery drones and other remotely operated
vehicles, weather stations, environmental sensors,
telecom antenna sites and campsite users.
Adelan’s microtubular SOFC has now been going
for 30 years, but remains at the demonstrator
stage: its flexible designs seeking multiple
markets from micro-CHP, UAVs, recreational
vehicles, portable uses like battery chargers, to
remote power. In February 2020, Adelan trialled
its SOFC to power welfare cabins in HS2
construction sites. BioLPG in place of fossil LPG
fuel was trialled by Adelan in 2021.
Adaptive Energy has supplied over 2,000 SOFC Auriga Energy’s AurigaGen 1.5 kW PEM fuel cell
units since its inception. Most of these have been generator weighs 46 kg, so is definitely in the
portable units, for off-grid, and for UAVs or UGVs. ported category, but no news has appeared
It is packaged by resellers such as RedHawk since 2019.
Energy Systems for applications such as border Estonia-based PowerUP offers portable
watch, environmental and remote pipeline generators rated at 200 W (the UP200), 400 W (the
monitoring, and backup to critical infrastructures, UP400), 1,000 W (UP1K) and 6,000 W (UP6K) for
such as SCADA units and railroad switches. sailing boats, campervans, small vehicles and
Adaptive’s Endurance Series are built for other outdoor & off-grid applications). The UP200
continuous auxiliary or primary power. Its and UP400 include an internal LFP battery. The
Performer series offers critical backup to batteries UP200 weighs 8 kg and the UP400 10 kg,
in solar and wind ensembles. Both offer units up excluding the Type IV cylinder and CH2 fuel. The
to 1 kW. These are complemented by its Defender UP400, which offers a lifetime of 5,000 hr, is now
series for unmanned vehicles, including for the priced at €6,500. The company is also working on
military market. They use propane – easy to larger systems.
procure, much more energy dense than
hydrogen, and together with the high SOFC
efficiency, delivering long unattended runtimes.

SFC Energy is the dominant supplier in this space,
while UltraCell, now part of Advent, is also
targeting portable units for soldier power. SFC’s
orders include those from armies across the
globe, such as September 2021’s order for a
portable power supply system for the Swiss
Defence Forces, in the low single-digit million
Euro range. The units will allow the defence forces
to operate away from the grid for several weeks
during exercises in Switzerland or abroad.
UltraCell’s focus is on portable units up to 165 W,
packaged as autonomous power sources and in
Pelican cases (the Blade for special forces use). In
Time for pastures new April 2021, UltraCell developed the ‘Honey
Badger’ a 50 W reformed methanol fuel cell on a
Many former portable players have now moved soldier-worn plate carrier for on-the-move battery
on. Upstart Power (formerly Protonex, and for a charging. UltraCell is working with funding from
time with Ballard) is now focusing on extended the DOD to obtain MIL-STD certification for its
backup power and grid-independent power, in all 70% methanol cartridges.
cases using a SOFC to act as a runtime extender,
for a battery. Its 1.25 kW product is designated as The future for portable
the Upgen NXG. As a solar hybrid, it can also feed There was a time when it looked like portable
an EV charger. might disappear as category from our charts. But
Defence developments SFC particularly is doing well, with most of the
6,000 units shipped over 2021 – a 147% increase
Defence applications have taken a similar journey over the numbers shipped in 2020. And new
to civil: immature, portable, units as new fuel cell entrants pop up to replace casualties. Prices
concepts were developed and trialled at small continue to fall, while the value proposition
power outputs, leading to larger platforms and to increases, but the path to profitability in this
use as UAV power sources. segment remains elusive.

China – big, and set to get bigger
With their continuous promotion in each region Funding has moved to a points-based
and targets set for demonstrations, FCEVs in China system, based on the plans of the cities, and
are expected to grow to at least 46,000 units by will be adjusted midway through
2025. Now, the numbers are lower, with unit implementation depending on each cluster’s
production dominated by five indigenous implementation progress.
suppliers of vehicle fuel cells: SinoHytec, Shanghai
Applications were invited from cities satisfying
Re-Fire, Horizon Fuel Cell, Sinosynergy, and Sunrise
basic criteria (>100 FCEVs and two or more
Power. Next come Shanghai Hydrogen Propulsion
>500 kg/day capacity HRS already in place). To get
(SAIC), Shanghai Edrive (Broad Ocean), Bing
funding, technology breakthroughs in key fuel
Energy, Wuhan Vision, Edelman, and Weichai, and
cell components were needed as part of the
then over 100 other companies, mostly focused on
submitted plans, alongside routes to reduce H2
FCEVs. Light duty cars (the Roewe 950, and the
price, to less than CNY35/kg (US$5.2/kg), a
SAIC Maxus FCV80) exist, but in low numbers.
minimum of 1,000 FCEVs and 15 HRS to be
Today, the stationary fuel cell count is tiny, but this
fielded, with vehicles running for at least
may change with new provincial policies.
30,000 km (to avoid vehicles being made, but not
Policy changes and COVID slowed growth used).Cities were quick to submit their plans, but
the changes to the policy direction, coupled with
In April, 2020, China’s Ministry of Finance, Ministry
COVID, led to a fall in FCEV numbers in China
of Industry and Information Technology , Ministry
since their peak in 2019. FCEV producers were
of Science and Technology, and National
hesitant to make vehicles in the absence of a clear
Development and Reform Commission jointly
route by which the subsidies would continue.
released “A Notice on Optimizing Fiscal Subsidies
for Promoting New Energy Vehicles”. The NEV class Cities were quick to submit their plans, but the
includes BPEVs, hybrids, and FCEVs. The Notice policy changes, coupled with COVID, led to a fall
was the annual adjustment to China’s decade- in FCEV depolyment. FCEV producers were
long national subsidy program for NEVs. hesitant to make vehicles in the absence of
clear subsidies.
It extended subsidies for two years, to the end of
2022, to continue to stimulate the market, which The fall in numbers is offset by increasing module
has been impacted by the COVID pandemic and sizes, up on average from 38 kW in 2018 to 81 kW
the global downturn of the auto industry. Overall, in 2020. As capability becomes increasingly
the subsidies were phased down to modest levels established by the module producers and vehicle
given the cost differentials with ICE versions. For OEMs, the subsidy is set to taper slowly through
light-duty fuel cell commercial vehicles to 2023. By then, efforts in cities for adoption of
(minibuses, vans, and vocational), the base FCEVs and the HRS to support them will come to
subsidy was set at CNY240k (US$36k). For the fore.
medium to heavy-duty commercial vehicles, the
But big plans now exist for cities
base subsidy is CNY400k (US$60k). The final
subsidy is then calculated via a multiplier, Promotion of the FCEV industry is increasing at
increasing to a maximum as the rated power of national level, including the “State Council White
the fuel cell reaches 50% or more of the overall Paper on China’s Energy Development in the Era”
power output. Simple production subsidies for and the recent “Action Plan for Carbon Dioxide
FCEVs are to be replaced by dedicated Peaking Before 2030”, which proposed H2 use be
promotion packages. actively expanded in delivering clean energy
in transport.
The Chinese central government paused
providing purchase subsidies for FCEVs on April At regional level, several cities and regional
23, 2020. In their place, a new four-year Pilot Cities governments have now adopted policy
Programme began, with suitable cities selected to documents, for example, the “Implementation
carry out R&D and application demonstrations of Plan for Hydrogen Industry Development in
FCEVs. The new policy is intended to address local Beijing (2021-2025)”, and the “Development of
weakness in core technologies, the production of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle Industry in Jiangsu”.
key components, and a lack of refuelling stations.

In Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, CNY100bn (US$14.9bn) In April, Shanghai Re-Fire announced a
of hydrogen energy value chain investment will partnership with Germany’s Schaeffler Group. The
be made by 2025 to promote 37 HRS and 10,000 companies will explore the key areas of fuel cell
FCEVs in Beijing. There will be also 15 H2 chain technology, including thermal management
leading enterprises and four international systems, stack end plates and distribution heads.
platforms in Beijing by 2025. RE-Fire’s technologies already power over 2,700
fuel cell vehicles in China and five other countries.
Hebei is aiming for 50 HRS and 10,000 FCEVs by
2025; 100 HRS and 50,000 FCEVs by 2030. The In May 2021, Bosch established a JV with the
whole H2 energy industry value chain in commercial vehicle manufacturer, Qingling
Zhangjiakou City in Hebei is hoped to be worth Motors, to develop, assemble and market PEM
CNY26bn (US$3.8bn) a year by 2025, CNY85bn by modules for the Chinese market, aiming to supply
2030 and CNY170bn by 2035. systems to all Chinese vehicle OEMs. The BOP
components (stack, air compressor, power
Shanghai is aiming for 60 HRS and 6,000 FCEVs
electronics, and control unit with sensors) will
by 2025. Within Chengdu, there will be 30 HRS,
come from Bosch’s plant in Wuxi, Jiangsu
two fuel cell tram demonstration lines (30 km)
Province. Small-scale production will start there
and 200 FCEVs by 2023. Jiangsu is aiming to
in2021, and a test fleet of 70 Qingling trucks with
have 50 HRS and 10,000 FCEVs by 2025. Within
Bosch modules is to be established by the year
Su Zhou, CNY100bn (US$14.9bn) of revenue from
end. Market launch of the fuel cell system is
the H2 and FC industry is targeted, with
planned for 2022-2023.
10 competitive enterprises. In Shandong,
100 HRS and 10,000 FCEVs will be built by 2030. In In May, Faurecia acquired CLD, a hydrogen tank
Henan, 80 HRS and 5,000 FCEVs will be built by manufacturer with two plants in Liaoning.
2025. It is estimated that the H2 value chain will be Cummins started operating its first engineering
worth CNY100bn (US$14.9bn). centre in Wuhan. Cummins is also planning an
East Asia R&D Centre in 2022.
Of the regions, Shanghai has the highest target
numbers. The plan is supported by policies on And In October, Johnson Matthey officially
“Development Fuel Cell Vehicle in the City”, to opened its new plant in Shanghai, to produce
help to increase the financial funds available. around 4m MEA components a year, enough for
Shanghai is also currently the most active city in more than 10,000 commercial vehicles. JM’s fuel
fuel cells for vehicles. cell technology is already in more than 700 buses
and trucks in China.
Increased presence of international companies
Stationary potential
Chinese and overseas companies continue to pair.
Ballard supplies Re-Fire, through the Sinosynergy Information on numbers of stationary fuel cells in
JV. Toyota also provides fuel cell parts to Re-fire, China is limited. Units have been installed for
and Re-Fire supplies its FC system to FAW and telecom backup and are being developed for CHP
Higer Bus. Toyota (and SPIC) supply SinoHytec; and other stationary applications, but at far less
Ballard and Ceres supply stacks to Weichai. intensity than FCEVs.
In January 2021, Hyundai Motor Group signed an In March 2020, MOST proposed fuel cell CHP as a
investment contract with the government of key H2 energy technology, issuing its “Application
Guangdong Province to establish a fuel cell Guidance for 2020 Key National Specialized
system production facility in Guangzhou, with Projects of Renewable Energy and Hydrogen
completion by the second half of 2022. This will Energy Technology”, with performance indicators
be Hyundai Motor’s first fuel cell production base for PEM-CHP/cooling and SOEC-CHP couples.
outside Korea, with an initial capacity of 6,500
Provinces and cities have issued policies focusing
units a year.
on CHP, DG and back-up power. But this has yet to
In March 2021, Toyota a JV with fuel cell specialist translate into significant programmes. Local
SinoHytec. The JV company, called Toyota government plans suggest stationary growing in
SinoHytec Fuel Cell (FCTS) based in Beijing, will Foshan, from 2 MW in 2025 to 30 MW in 2035, and
produce and sell modules for commercial vehicles. in Shandong Province, from 200 MW in 2025 to
1,000 MW in 2035.
In March, Hexagon Purus and CIMC Enric signed
two JV agreements encompassing Type III and
Type IV H2 cylinder production for FCEVs. A new
plant with a capacity of 10,000 units will be built
to meet the needs of markets in Asia.

Looking to the future
We can’t pretend we are not already well into Most of the trucks to be delivered into
2022, with all of the upheaval that has brought. Switzerland are also still to come, which could
But while the global situation is tough, the fuel bring a welcome uptick in Europe’s installed fuel
cell industry, with its strong links to clean air, cell numbers!
renewables and hydrogen, could do well. Policies
In other regions growth is often linked to a wider
to curb carbon emissions and move from fossil
and grander interest in hydrogen. Australia and
fuels are likely to strengthen, not weaken.
New Zealand have ambitious hydrogen
Investors still have cash and are continually
production plans, and are starting to deploy the
seeking ‘new’ industries to support, and supply
first small fleets of fuel cell vehicles. The links
chain players continue to engage. Pleasingly, the
between hydrogen and the mining of specific
story in 2021 was about growth, opportunity and
materials for the energy sector is an important
investment, with no big scandals or damaging
one. In much of Latin America the main driver is
company exits. And if the fuel cell product being
the same, and – like Australia – decarbonisation of
announced is actually produced and put into
mining may lead to substantial fuel cell uptake
service, we could be at the start of a very positive
using locally-produced hydrogen, as it may in
self-sustaining cycle.
South Africa.
Of course much detail and nuance lies behind last
North American growth remains hard to predict,
year’s numbers. We had the same companies
though increasing heavy-duty activity, coupled
dominating as always, but a strong set of players
with Californian determination, suggest that
is waiting to join them: Bosch, cellcentric, Ceres,
transport roll-out will continue to increase, while
Cummins, EKPO, HDF, Nuvera, Symbio and others
prime power competitiveness remains strongly
are all poised to ship more. Hyzon has a long list
dependent on local spark spreads and incentives.
of announced orders, and China is poised to
revert to growth mode as the revised policy Portable fuel cells may finally be back on a growth
measures kick in. More HRS will support more path too, across a host of markets and end-uses.
buses, heavier trucks, and potentially cars – we Their small size gives them limited impact on the
see increasing announcements for the Chinese MW installed, or on CO2 reduced, but definitely
light duty sector. And we may even see some helps the industry develop.
progress there in stationary fuel cells. While global policy looks something like a
Like China, Korea is expected to be a growth patchwork quilt, with different countries adopting
market as hydrogen policy becomes enshrined in different approaches, the overall direction is
law. More large-scale projects are already in the similar, with opportunity for fuel cells to help
pipeline, while multiple other end-uses – from deliver. And energy prices are shifting
shipping to micro-CHP – are gaining traction. dramatically across the globe, changing the slope
of the playing field and moving the goalposts at
Module standardisation, up to the MW-scale, is
the same time. Some of this will be beneficial to
being led by HDF/Ballard, PowerCellutions,
fuel cell solutions, which will compete where they
Toyota, Honda, Plug Power and others. In many
couldn’t before. We hope the industry is ready –
cases, they can be used both for mobility and
and able – to act on those opportunities.
stationary uses. This should further reduce costs
and assist developers to pick an ‘off-the-shelf’
solution for their project, increasing uptake from
less specialist buyers.
Standardisation and scale-up are likely to help
Hyundai keep its current lead in MW delivered for
a while longer. Its 100,000-unit per year factory
should be operating at full capacity around
mid-2023, so 2022 will see much progress.

Data tables
1,000 Units 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f

Portable 5.0 5.7 3.9 4.1 6.1
Stationary 54.9 51.9 52.2 56.8 47.9
Transport 10.6 10.9 16.4 20.9 32
Total 70.5 68.5 72.5 81.8 86.0
Shipments by region of adoption
1,000 Units 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f

Europe 5.1 7.7 10.7 13.2 14.0
North America 9.4 9.3 8.1 10.8 15.4
Asia 55.3 50.9 53.5 57.6 56.2
RoW 0.8 0.6 0.2 0.2 0.4
Total 70.5 68.5 72.5 81.8 86.0
1,000 Units 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f

PEMFC 43.7 39.7 45.7 53.1 55.2
DMFC 2.8 3.7 3.7 3.8 5.3
PAFC 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.2
SOFC 23.7 24.9 22.8 24.6 25.2
MCFC 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
AFC 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1
Total 70.5 68.5 72.5 81.8 86.0


Data tables
Megawatts by application
Megawatts 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f

Portable 0.6 0.7 0.4 0.5 0.7
Stationary 222.3 220.6 274.8 325.1 347.6
Transport 435.7 584.5 921.1 1,012.0 1,964.8
Total 658.6 805.8 1,196.3 1,337.6 2,313.1
Megawatts by region of adoption
Megawatts 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f

Europe 38.9 41.2 113.0 150.1 203.0
North America 331.8 425.3 339.2 253.3 613.0
Asia 285.8 337.9 743.9 929.1 1,493.2
RoW 2.1 1.2 0.2 5.1 3.9
Total 658.6 805.8 1,196.3 1,337.6 2,313.1
Megawatts by fuel cell type
Megawatts 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021f

PEMFC 466.7 609.0 948.0 1,048.2 1,998.3
DMFC 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5
PAFC 81.0 86.3 130.9 132.2 95.8
SOFC 85.2 84.1 106.8 147.8 206.9
MCFC 24.7 25.8 10.2 8.8 11.1
AFC 0.6 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.5
Total 658.6 805.8 1,196.3 1,337.6 2,313.1


Notes
– Data for 2014 to 2021 have been collected directly from fuel cell manufacturers and integrators
where they were able to share it. For those who were not able to share primary data, and to sense-
check our numbers, we have collected and cross-referenced data from publicly available sources
such as company statements and statutory reports, press releases, and demonstration and roll-out
programmes, in addition to discussions with other parties in the supply chain.
– Our 2021 figures are a forecast for the full year. The dataset contains firm numbers for the period
January to September 2021 (and in many cases as late as December 2021). For any remaining
period of the year we use companies’ own forecasts, shared with us, or ones we prepare in
discussion with industry.
– We will revise data for 2021 in our 2022 edition as appropriate. We have slightly revised the figures
for 2020 in this report: Unit numbers were decreased by 0.8% and megawatt numbers increased by
1.4% compared to our published 2020 forecast. Unit numbers are rounded to the nearest 100 units.
An entry of zero indicates that fewer than 50 systems were shipped in that year.
– Megawatt numbers are rounded to the nearest 0.1 MW. An entry of zero indicates that less than
50 kW was shipped in that year.
– The reported figures refer to fuel cell system shipments by the final manufacturer, usually the
system integrator. In transport we count the vehicle when shipped from the factory.
– We do not count replacement stacks in existing applications, and where possible we also do not
count inventory, only systems that are shipped to users.
– Portable fuel cells refer to fuel cells designed to be moved. They include small auxiliary power units
(APU), and consumer electronics (e.g. phone chargers). Toys and educational kits are not reported.
– Stationary fuel cells refer to fuel cell units designed to provide power at a ‘fixed’ location. They
include small and large stationary prime power, backup and uninterruptable power supplies,
combined heat and power (CHP) and combined cooling and power. On-board APUs ‘fixed’ to larger
vehicles such as trucks and ships are also included.
– Transport fuel cells refer to fuel cell units that provide propulsive power or range extender function
to vehicles, including UAVs, cars, buses and material handling vehicles.
– Our geographical regions are broken down into Asia, Europe, North America and the Rest of the
World (RoW), including Russia.
Shipments by fuel cell type refer to the electrolyte. Six main electrolyte types are included here. High
temperature PEMFC and conventional PEMFC are shown together as PEMFC. Other types of fuel cells
currently in an early stage, such as microbial fuel cells and solid acid fuel cells, are not included in the
numbers shown.

About E4tech and the authors
Since 1997, E4tech has helped clients to understand and profit from opportunities in sustainable energy,
with deep expertise and long experience in many sectors, and in the energy transition. Fuel cells and
hydrogen are particular areas of strength, and we have carried out hundreds of projects for early stage
companies, SMEs, large companies, financiers and governments worldwide. These projects include:
– market forecasting and competitor analysis
– business plan development and strategy
– technical and commercial due diligence
– support for policy development.
Since June 2021, E4tech (www.e4tech.com) has been part of ERM (www.erm.com), the world’s
leading pure-play sustainability consultancy. We have also been joined by Element Energy
(www.element-energy.co.uk), a specialist low-carbon energy consultancy. Their skills and knowledge
strengthen and complement ours in fuel cells, hydrogen and many other areas.
The Review effort is led by those below, and supported by many members of E4tech, in data gathering,
drafting and interpretation in different languages, such as Chinese, French, Italian and German.
Prof David Hart is a Director of E4tech, responsible for the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen
Practices. In 25 years in the sector he has been an expert adviser, consulted and carried
out research for national governments, major industrial companies, start-ups, financial
organisations and NGOs. He has been an invited keynote speaker at conferences on six
continents.
Dr Stuart Jones is E4tech’s Energy Technology Knowledge Manager. He has over 30

years’ industry experience with fuel cells, hydrogen and battery technologies, working for
large corporates, manufacturing businesses and start-ups.
Dr Tom Houghton is a member of the Fuel Cell & Hydrogen Sector group
at E4tech. He is a Consulting Director in E4tech’s London office with more than 15 years’
experience in the energy sector gained in consultancy, research, banking and industry.
He has expertise in both hydrogen energy and power systems.
Xavier Cordobes is a Senior Consultant at E4tech, working on a wide range of projects

related to fuel cell and hydrogen technologies. He has over 10 years of experience in the
fuel cell industry on three continents, gained in the Honda/GM Fuel Cell Collaboration,
several fuel cell system manufacturers and technical consulting.
Jonathan Lewis has over twenty years’ experience in business development, from
strategy and policy through business plans to technology commercialisation. More than
10 years in the fuel cell and hydrogen area, he was with Rolls-Royce Fuel Cell Systems Ltd,
and is now an independent adviser. He has extensive experience, including in a variety of
roles with the FCH JU.
E4tech, ERM and Element have conducted numerous influential analyses in the fuel cells and hydrogen
energy space, in addition to renewable and bio-based fuels and chemicals; batteries and other energy
storage; low carbon transport, innovation policy and support and sustainability more broadly. We have
also supported technology development, designed and led major funding applications and projects,
due diligence of potential acquisitions, and conducted compliance analyses of various kinds.

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– Could your business plan or strategic approach be strengthened?
– Are you looking for strategic partners to build a project or business?
We have data, projections and a deep understanding of the fuel cell sector, its past
and possible future to help you develop and stress-test your strategy or accelerate its
implementation. We have also built partnerships, secured funding and led major projects.
Objective Review and Expert Resource

– Do you need an external perspective or some extra resource?
We can evaluate your strategy or your programmes, bring in views you may
not have considered, or simply provide expert resource to your team for a
specific project or task.
We are always happy to discuss aspects of the sector and questions you may have. Please contact us
directly through www.e4tech.com and we’ll find the right person for you to talk to.

Picture Credits
The pictures in the Fuel Cell Industry Review come from various sources. They are credited below.
We thank all of the organisations involved.
PAGE IMAGE IMAGE CREDIT

9 cellcentric stack FleetOwner commercial trucks
11 Toyota horizontal (Type II) standard module Toyota Motor Corporation
12 BMW iX5 Hydrogen fuel cell SUV Bayerische Motoren Werke AG
13 Latest Toyota Mirai model Toyota Motor Corporation
15 First Peugeot e-XPERT Hydrogen van Stellantis
16 Germany’s 92nd HRS at Neuruppin, Brandenberg H2 International Journal
17 Sinopec high pressure HRS with Chengdu electrolyser Hydrogen Central
19 Solaris Urbino 12 Hydrogen for Arriva Nederland Solaris Bus & Coach S.A.
19 Hyundai ELEC CITY Fuel Cell bus at OMV HRS Hyundai Motor Company
19 pepper motion diesel bus conversion pepper motion GmbH
22 Foton Motor 9 m BJ6906 fuel cell bus Beiqi Foton Motor Co., Ltd.
27 First enhanced prototype of the GenH2 truck Mercedes-Benz AG
28 Hyzon Motors fuel cell truck TR Group
31 Proton Motors HyRange fuel cell module Proton Motor Fuel Cell GmbH
31 Quantron fuel cell truck cab Quantron AG
32 ULEMCo’s zero emissions ambulance prototype ULEMCo Ltd.
37 H2Hybrid Fuel Cell Automotive Trainer kit Horizon Educational
39 Mireo Plus H passenger train Siemens AG
39 CAF Class 463 hydrogen train Construcciones y Auxiliar de
Ferrocarriles, S.A.
41 Hyundai Rotem’s tram concept car Hyundai Rotem
43 Gaussin 38-tonne hydrogen tractor H2 Energy News
44 Terberg hydrogen tractor Terberg Special Vehicles
44 Nuvera’s latest E-60 fuel cell engine Nuvera Fuel Cells, LLC
45 AM1 fuel cell scooter, with STOR-H cannisters Mobion SASU
45 H2K concept competition motorcycle H2 MOTRONICS (TEXYS Group)
46 MF Hydra, the world’s first LH2 driven ship NORLED
48 HYNOVA 40 fuel cell pleasure boat HYNOVA
48 Sea Change zero-emissions ferry SW/TCH Maritime
48 Hydrogenia pleasure boat VINSSEN
50 HY4 4-seater passenger aircraft DLR
52 Conformable hydrogen storage tanks for aircraft Universal Hydrogen
53 eVTOL PA-890 compound helicopter design concept Piasecki Helicopter Corporation
56 H2-powered robots for fire control and monitoring CITIC HIC Kaicheng Intelligence
58 FuelCell Energy unit at San Bernardino WWT plant FuelCell Energy, Inc.
58 GenCell BOX Long-duration telecom backup solution GenCell Ltd.
59 Ene-Farm Type S mini fuel cell Dainichi/Kyocera
60 H2 KIBOU fuel cell for renewable ensembles Panasonic Corporation
60 Mirai-derived fuel cell stationary generator Toyota Motor Corporation
61 Doosan’s 79 MW PAFC power plant at Incheon Doosan Fuel Cell Co., Ltd.
62 SK D&D Cheongju Eco Park 19.8 MW FC installation Bloom Energy/SK D&D
65 MW-scale GenSure system (CAD rendering) Plug Power Inc.
66 Sunfire-Remote 900 power generator SunFire GmbH
68 HY2MEGA metal hydride storage unit GKN Hydrogen
68 kW-scale GenSure for backup power (installed unit) Plug Power Inc.
69 PowerCellution 5 kW backup system PowerCellution (PowerCell)
70 EFOY Pro 2800 portable DMFC SFC Energy
71 EFOY Hydrogen Fuel Cell 2.5 SFC Energy
71 HYMERA PEMFC and GENIE G20 300 bar cannister BOC
71 SD01 15 W runtime extender, developed with BOC Bramble Energy
72 Performer Series P250i power system Adaptive Energy
73 UP400 400 W portable fuel cell PowerUP


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What are fuel cells used for according to the document?

What are fuel cells used for according to the document?

What are some of the challenges mentioned around fuel cells?

What are some of the challenges mentioned around fuel cells?

The

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COPYRIGHT & DISCLAIMER

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ABS – American Bureau of Shipping JV – Joint Venture

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Application type Portable Stationary Transport

Typical power range 1 W to 20 kW 0.5 kW to 2 MW 1 kW to 300 kW

Typical technology PEMFC PEMFC PEMFC

Fuel cell types

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We maintain FCT’s four

Reported shipment data Data sources and methodology

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And US Hybrid, making FC engines for medium-

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Transdev Normandie is retrofitting a diesel

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Shipments by region of adoption 2017 - 2021 (1,000 units)

Megawatts by region of adoption 2017 - 2021

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In July 2021, H2GVMids began, a 9-month study

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Shipments by application 2017 - 2021 (1,000 units)

Megawatts by application 2017 - 2021

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