Hydrogen network on the way

A consortium of companies will begin work on the three year LHNE (London Hydrogen Network Expansion) project.

The government-backed initiative is co-funded by the Technology Strategy Board to create the UK’s first hydrogen powered transport system across London and the South East.

The consortium, led by Air Products, will deliver a publicly accessible fast-fill 700 bar renewable hydrogen fuelling station network.  LHNE will also deploy new hydrogen vehicles in London; including a number of Hyundai hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and Revolve hydrogen powered vans.

Major manufacturers have confirmed that the hydrogen vehicles available for purchase in the UK from 2014/15 require 700 bar fuelling systems.  The LHNE project will upgrade the existing fuelling station located near Heathrow Airport to 700 bar and deliver a brand new fuelling station with this specification in London.

The project will also increase accessibility to the dual pressure fuelling station at Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire, and the Transport for London station in Stratford. These developments will create the first network of 700 bar fuelling stations in the UK, ready to meet an increasing demand for hydrogen fuel. The functionality of this network will then be proved by a fleet of hydrogen vans which will be operated by Commercial Group as part of their delivery network.

Diana Raine, Air Products, European Business Manager Hydrogen Energy said: “The LHNE project will bring together all the components necessary to make hydrogen transport possible across London and the South East as we prepare for the arrival in the UK of commercially available hydrogen vehicles. We hope that this project will act as an exciting demonstration model to be replicated across the UK and Europe in years to come.”

“Air Products is delighted to be leading this project which represents a significant milestone in the development of the UK’s hydrogen fuelling infrastructure for hydrogen transport.”

The LHNE consortium comprises of Air Products, Cenex, Commercial Group, Element Energy, Heathrow Airport Ltd and Revolve Technologies Ltd and the project is co-funded by a grant from the UK’s innovation agency, the Technology Strategy Board. It is one of five research and development projects selected by the Technology Strategy Board in 2012 to help accelerate the adoption of energy systems using hydrogen and fuel cell technologies, bringing them into everyday use.

The Mayor of London and the Greater London Authority will play a supporting role in the project.