Japan's cross-industry cooperation to set up hydrogen refueling stations

One of the biggest obstacles to the initial promotion of hydrogen vehicle is that there are only a handful of hydrogen refueling stations. Unlike the early owners of lithium electric vehicles, even if there is no public charging station, they can still charge at home directly. The establishment of the hydrogen refueling station is from scratch, and it must be guided by the situation before it can be driven.

In Japan, where the mass production of hydrogen vehicle was the first, the development of hydrogen refueling stations has gradually reached the realm of cross-industry cooperation in stages. Before 2015, the hydrogen refueling stations in Japan were mainly built and operated by a single enterprise, and the existing natural gas pipelines, refueling stations and gas station facilities were used to convert them into hydrogen refueling stations. For example, Osaka Gas Co., Ltd. operates more than 10 hydrogen refueling stations using the technology of producing hydrogen from natural gas; Iwatani Corp., which operates industrial gas and natural gas business, operates more than 18 hydrogen refueling stations. Each hydrogen refueling station is equipped with a hydrogen refueling machine. The business hours are 8 hours. It mainly serves small cars, and the experimental nature is relatively strong.

From 2015 to 2017, the cooperative construction between a few upstream and downstream enterprises in the industry chain began to try to commercialize diversified hydrogen refueling stations. For example, in early 2015, three companies including Toyota, Iwatani Corp. and Taiyo Nippon Sanso established Nimohyss as a joint venture, mainly to operate motorized hydrogen refueling vehicles, which are flexible and quickly put into operation and are suitable for service in metropolitan areas.

Since Toyota has already started to sell hydrogen vehicle after 2017, it needs to evolve into the infrastructure construction of hydrogen refueling stations in the form of alliance and cooperation of enterprise groups, so that the hydrogen fuel supply can have a prototype of economic scale. So in 2018, Toyota, Honda, Nippon Oil (JXTG), Iwatani Corp., Tokyo Gas, Air Liquide Japan Branch, Japan Development Bank and other 11 companies, automakers, petrochemical and natural gas companies and banks jointly established Japan H2 Mobility (JHyM for short), responsible for the infrastructure and operation of hydrogen refueling stations in the Japanese market. At present, there are 26 companies in the membership, which constitute a complete industrial chain of investment, financing, construction, operation, hydrogen fuel supply and operation of hydrogen energy vehicle plants, and provide complete resources for the construction of hydrogen refueling stations.

References
 

• Fo rbes, 2020-09-06,Plan To Buy An Electric Car? So, How Much Does It Cost To Charge A Tesla Model 3 Vs A Gas Car?
• 2020-12-27 ,California gas blending trial could shift a roadblock for hydrogen cars
• ING , 2021-10-28, High gas prices triple the cost of hydrogen production
• Cadent , News Release, 2020-02, UK's first grid-injected hydrogen pilot gets underway
• B BC News, 2021-12-06, Climate change: Is 'blue hydrogen' Japan's answer to coal?
• Nihon Keizai Shimbun 2021-08-11Iwatani Sangyo, Suzuo Manufacture, Transportation, and Distribution
• Ming Pao, 2021-08-23 , UBS Gastreich: China's hydrogen energy is expected to account for 20% in 2060
• Iwatani Industries, 2 021-06-30, News Release,バイオマスを raw materials and した electricity business および Start of discussion on the liquefied hydrogen production business of Garian
• Lianhe Daily, 2021-12-01 , the world's largest photovoltaic green hydrogen Xinjiang Kuqa starts construction
• Hydrogen Fuel News, 2021-05-26 New Nevada hydrogen fuel plant to begin operations in early 2022
• Today's Toutiao, 2021-10-18, The Enlightenment of Japan's Hydrogen Refueling Station Construction and Operation Mode to China https://twgreatdaily.com/495690755_100070607-sh.html