UK awards £7m for Tees Valley hydrogen refuelling station and truck deployments
The UK Government has awarded £7m ($8.9m) for the construction of a green hydrogen refuelling station and deployment of “at least” 20 hydrogen vehicles in the Tees Valley.
With £2m ($2.5m) of funding for Spain’s Exolum, the company plans to construct an electrolyser and refuelling station at its Riverside terminal in Stockton-on-Tees near Middlesbrough.
Green hydrogen will be produced using renewable energy, supply the 1.5 tonne per day station, in addition to other customers in the region.
Expected to be fully operational in 2025, the site is expected to provide refuelling for at least 25 vehicles. The remaining £5m ($6.3m) of government funding is headed to Electra Commercial Vehicles and Qauntron AG, in partnership with Novuna Vehicle Solutions.
Together, the vehicle manufacturers will look to deploy at least 20 fuel cell electric trucks ranging from 4.2 to 27 tonnes.
Funding for the latest project follows the announcement for funding of two projects led by ULEMCo and Element 2, to develop hydrogen-powered airport ground vehicles and new refuelling stations.
Read more: Teesside International Airport to introduce hydrogen with £8m of UK funding
The three projects combined are hoped to create jobs and apprenticeships in the Tees Valley. Mayor Ben Houchen said the region was in a “fantastic position” to take advantage of projects to deliver jobs and investments.
In addition to the station funding, the Tees Valley Combined Authority will use £300,000 ($380,500) of government funding to run a competition for local training institutions to purchase hydrogen training equipment.
This funding comes as the second round of government competition backing for the Tees Valley hydrogen transport fund. The first round saw various companies awarded funding to deploy hydrogen-powered vehicles.
