E.ON Builds H2 Filling Station in Essen
With the funding commitment from the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) of EUR 2.3 million as part of the NRW state funding program for the construction of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure, E.ON is now embarking on the concrete planning of a public hydrogen filling station for heavy goods vehicles and cars in Essen’s city harbour.
With the help of the funding, E.ON is thus making a contribution to strengthening hydrogen mobility in the region and supporting the transition to nationwide sustainable mobility. The project will also have a positive impact on local air quality, noise emissions and climate protection and increase the attractiveness of hydrogen vehicles. There is currently no hydrogen filling station for heavy goods vehicles in operation in Essen.
The Rhine-Ruhr region is a key transportation hub in Germany. The demand from fleet owners for hydrogen for fuel cell trucks and the necessary infrastructure is particularly high here. By using a 350 and a 700 bar pump at the planned hydrogen filling station, E.ON wants to enable the refuelling of all fuel cell vehicles (FCEV) available on the market.
“We will probably provide the only hydrogen filling station for trucks in Essen. The funding will give us a big boost in the realization of the project. With the help of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy, we can respond to the great demand from our customers for refuelling facilities for fuel cell trucks. In close cooperation with the state of NRW, we are thus achieving a milestone for the entire region. This project is not only a contribution to reducing CO2 emissions, but also a step towards a sustainable future in the transport sector,” Carsten Borchers, Managing Director at E.ON Hydrogen, says.
“Hydrogen is an important building block for climate-neutral heavy goods transport in North Rhine-Westphalia: Hydrogen trucks have long ranges and short refuelling times. This will ensure the competitiveness of logistics companies and hauliers. In order to be able to rely on emission-free drives in heavy goods transport in the future, we must create the conditions now. To this end, the development of the hydrogen infrastructure must be significantly accelerated. With our funding, we are creating an important incentive for the expansion of the urgently needed filling station network in North Rhine-Westphalia,” Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection Mona Neubaur adds.
Hydrogen-powered vehicles are considered one of the most promising solutions for reducing emissions in the transportation sector and are paving the way to a low-carbon future. They produce no exhaust gases, as the only by-product of their operation is water vapor. Compared to environmentally friendly electric vehicles, hydrogen-powered trucks can be supplied with fuel much more quickly. This is particularly important for logistics and heavy-duty transport companies that have to make time-critical deliveries and rely on constant and uninterrupted operation. Hydrogen also has a significantly higher energy density, making the vehicles lighter and able to carry more live weight. The battery-powered electric vehicle (BEV), on the other hand, is particularly suitable for trucks that have to cover shorter distances and whose charging times can be planned. It is therefore realistic that both BEVs and FCEVs will be used in the commercial vehicle sector in the future.
The project will save over 5000 tons of CO2 per year with the equivalent mileage of a comparable diesel truck. In addition, a pump will be used in the hydrogen filling station, which will enable around 50 percent faster refuelling compared to conventional refuelling of heavy goods vehicles (40-ton trucks). The investment volume for the entire project is around 4.6 million euros.
