A revolutionary refuelling station for zero-emissions hydrogen-powered cars was opened last year by clean fuel systems specialist ITM Power plc (LON:ITM).
The hydrogen fuel station in Teddington was the first of its kind in London and was backed by Government and EU funding.
The station produces large volumes of the fuel on site, meaning there is no need for deliveries.
Under the HyFive project, which aims to clean up the capital's air, there will be 65 more stations across London and beyond by 2020.
Supply customers also growing
Honda has just become ITM’s seventeenth fuel supply customer in the UK.
The Japanese giant joins Toyota, Hyundai Motor, Commercial Group, Skanska, UlemCo, Arval, UK Government Car Service, Arcola Energy, Johnson Matthey, Europcar, The Science Museum, JCB,
Anglo American, Green Tomato Cars, Yorkshire Ambulance Service and Northern Gas Networks as a fuel customer.
The contracts are at a price of £10 per kg or comparable with petrol driven vehicles.
Pipeline expands
ITM currently has £23.4mln of projects under contract and a further £5.3mln of contracts in the final stages of negotiation, totalling £28.7mln, subject to exchange rate variation.
Additional sites have been identified in London and around the M25; along the M1 Corridor including Leeds; the M40 Corridor including Oxford and along the M4 including Bristol and Cardiff, said ITM.
Revolutionary technology
Electricity to hydrogen conversion technology has the potential to revolutionise renewable energies, and that's what ITM Power specialises in, meaning cleaner air for all.
"People will be amazed we ever sat in traffic — or pushed our babies down the street — while breathing other people’s pollution," believes Graham Cooley, ITM’s chief executive.
Hydrogen fuel cells
By moving excess electricity generated from renewable sources and storing it as hydrogen gas, it creates a reliable and consistent energy source where other renewables tend to fall short.
Solar and wind power, for example, are heavily reliant on weather conditions, which is (for now) beyond human control.
So when it’s cloudy or the wind stops blowing, they don’t generate electricity.
But when conditions are favourable, they often over-supply, creating a lot of excess energy. Current battery storage facilities often fall short, creating a lot of waste and with limited lifespans, but ITM Power’s alternative offers a much needed and possibly revolutionary alternative to renewable energy storage.
Storage and power
The company’s Power-to-Gas business provides PEM (proton exchange membrane) storage systems that allow customers to convert excess electrical energy into hydrogen for injection into the gas grid or storage for vehicles.
Its clean fuels solutions come in the form of modular hydrogen stations to recharge fuel cell vehicles.
Hydrogen-powered cars are far better for the environment in terms of emissions than those running on petrol, as when you burn hydrogen - if you remember science class - it produces steam.