AFC Energy PLC (LON:AFC) said it signed a partnership with international consultancy and construction business Mace Group to support the transition to zero-emission hydrogen generators for construction sites.
The hydrogen power specialist said the partnership is its first collaboration in the UK construction sector and will also support Mace’s sustainability commitments as it looks to remove diesel generators from construction sites.
READ: AFC Energy upbeat as hydrogen investment soars to unprecedented levels
AFC said multiple flagship sites under Mace’s control will be identified across the UK and international markets for the initial leasing of its off-grid, zero-emission H-Power system from early 2022.
The collaboration also aims to encourage more plant hire businesses to invest in sustainable hydrogen power generator technologies for on-hire to construction sites.
AFC said the partnership “will not only drive new investment in hydrogen technologies for construction sites and other temporary power applications, but also establish a defined business model for widespread deployment that takes into account current industry considerations including logistics, fuelling strategies and system operability”.
Mace will initially lease hydrogen-powered generators from AFC, which in due course expects selling hydrogen-based generation units to plant hire companies will create a “critical mass of large scale deployment across the UK and Europe" to result in a transition away from diesel generators as the construction industry looks to become more sustainable.
“A sustainable construction industry and the need for improved urban air quality is driving growing contractor interest in transitioning away from diesel generators in meeting today's temporary power needs.
“AFC Energy's zero-emission, hydrogen-fuelled power generator addresses this growing demand for cleaner power,” AFC chief executive Adam Bond said in a statement.
“Mace is leading the construction sector's transition away from diesel to sustainable power generation and our partnership, the first of its kind in the UK, will highlight to Government and industry just how zero-emission technology can be adopted to significantly accelerate decarbonisation and meet Net Zero aspirations", he added.