Under this agreement, Yokogawa Electric has invested in TECO 2030 by way of acquiring treasury shares, and the two companies will collaborate on optimizing hydrogen fuel cell technology and exploring business opportunities for distributed power sources in the maritime transportation and other industrial sectors.
Hydrogen fuel cells are utilized as power sources in fuel cell vehicles (FCV) and stationary power supply devices. Green hydrogen and ammonia are considered promising energy carriers for the storage and transportation of renewable energy that has been produced as electricity. Fuel cells powered by green hydrogen or hydrogen produced through green ammonia-to-hydrogen cracking technology are more energy-efficient than conventional combustion engines and do not generate nitrogen oxide (NOx), making them suitable as zero-emission energy sources for a range of applications. Although adoption has been limited up to now, technology maturity and a dramatic increase in demand for hydrogen-powered marine vessels are driving the expansion of the fuel cell market. This is leading to a reduction in manufacturing costs and is expected to accelerate their adoption in the automotive and industrial sectors.
TECO 2030 develops and manufactures hydrogen fuel cells and has opened a gigafactory in Narvik, Norway, for the production of hydrogen proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells and energy modules, which consist of multiple cells and auxiliary operating equipment. Production of hydrogen fuel cells is already underway, and module production is expected to start within the next few months. The production capacity will be built up over time, targeting an output capacity of 400 MW in 2025 and 1.6 GW in 2030.
Yokogawa Electric brings to this partnership decades of experience in developing core measurement, control, and information technologies for the energy, chemical, and other process industries. Yokogawa Electric and TECO 2030 see opportunities for applying this know-how to develop technology for optimizing the operation of fuel cells and will also explore their use as distributed energy resources in industries that have high decarbonization needs.
Tore Enger, Group CEO of TECO 2030, commented: “I am very excited to have Yokogawa on board as an investor and strategic partner for the ongoing development of TECO 2030’s complete fuel cell system. I am looking forward to working together toward the common goal of a zero-emission future.”
Tsuyoshi Abe, Senior Vice President and Head of the Marketing Headquarters at Yokogawa Electric, said: “Yokogawa firmly believes that fuel cells are one of the pathways to net-zero emissions in the maritime and industrial sectors, and we are confirming this by embarking on a journey with TECO 2030 as a strategic partner for a sustainable future.”
