An Edinburgh-based hydrogen technology firm is today announcing the opening of the first public hydrogen refuelling station (HRS) for vehicles in Scotland’s Central Belt.
Offering the only refuelling stop between Aberdeen and Sheffield, some 360 miles apart, Logan Energy’s refuelling station will allow hydrogen-electric and dual-fuel vehicles to be refuelled to 350bar.
With ambitious and legally binding 2050 net zero targets in place, now is the time to realise the potential of hydrogen in creating a greener, cleaner energy system. A report issued by the public-private partnership, Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, made conservative projections that fuel cell and hydrogen technologies will be able to generate 2,250 terawatt hours (TWh) of hydrogen in the European Union by 2050.
In short, this would supply around a quarter of the EU’s total annual energy demand, and could fuel 42 million large cars, 1.7 million trucks, around a quarter of a million buses and more than 5,500 trains.
With a strong belief in the hydrogen economy and its role in the future energy system, Logan Energy has financed this HRS itself and is offering this refuelling service to expand the potential of hydrogen in Scotland. It is also hoped that it will encourage people to consider hydrogen vehicles as viable green transport options.
The HRS is based at Logan Energy’s Wallyford facility and will offer safe, supervised fuelling by trained personnel during working hours.
Bill Ireland, CEO of Logan Energy, said: “While hydrogen-powered electric vehicles offer real reductions in carbon dioxide and other harmful emissions, the widespread uptake of these vehicles is restricted by the lack of investment in the deployment of refuelling stations.
“Refuelling is often offered as a package alongside the deployment of a fleet of hydrogen vehicles but without a proper refuelling infrastructure in Scotland, it is hard to get the buy in for investment in hydrogen vehicles. In turn, this lack of demand has made it harder than ever to create a case for building a proper refuelling infrastructure.”
Logan Energy is currently working with strategic partners to make its Wallyford base a ‘centre of excellence’ for hydrogen technology integration and safety. The opening of this refuelling station is one step towards achieving this goal.
As part of this mission, Logan Energy will also be developing plans to produce green hydrogen on site, through electrolysis powered by solar power.
