Hydrogen and biomethane, the mobility revolution

The health crisis has acted as a trigger. Faced with the climate emergency, it is time to switch from awareness raising to action. The importance given to the energy transition in the economic recovery plans of several countries underlines this shift. And in particular the interest in hydrogen in response to transportation challenges (16% of global GHG emissions¹ ). Countries such as China, Japan and the United States, already launched ambitious policies several years ago to increase the number of hydrogen-powered vehicles and have invested accordingly. In Europe, the Clean Hydrogen Alliance, founded by the European Commission, is promoting this energy carrier to reach carbon neutrality by 2050² . The EU has a dedicated strategy to become a global hydrogen player by the end of the decade. Some of its Member States have allocated budgets in the order of several billion euros to develop the sector, such as France, which will invest 7. 2 billion euros by 2030. “The large investments that have been put on the table will facilitate a shift in scale and help reinvent new growth models. We have reached the dawn of a systemic change in which hydrogen and biomethane will play a key role, in particular in terms of transport, to limit our dependency on oil,” explains Erwin Penfornis, Vice President of the Hydrogen Energy world business unit at Air Liquide. This represents major opportunities for the Group which, for several years, has been driving an active growth strategy based on hydrogen energy and the valorization of biogas in biomethane.

Over the past 50 years, Air Liquide has developed unique knowhow in the management of the entire hydrogen value chain (production, storage, distribution and the development of new usages). This molecule can now be produced using renewable energy sources, stored long term and then re-transformed into electricity, thus compensating for the intermittent nature of these same energy sources. The Group firmly believes that hydrogen is a key driver to make the switch to a low- carbon society. Thanks to this molecule, hydrogen-powered cars, buses, trucks, trains and even boats are not only quiet but do not generate CO₂ emissions or other pollutants when running.

As well as the roll-out of stations for light vehicles in Europe, Japan, South Korea and the United States, Air Liquide is also focused on the truck segment. Large-scale projects are becoming a reality: in Rotterdam in the Netherlands and Fos-sur-Mer in France for example, where the Group is part of key initiatives to develop large-capacity hydrogen stations which will be used to power long-distance trucks.

The diversity of these investments underlines the industrial momentum driven by the Group. “We are striving to unite all players likely to have a major impact on this transformation: industrial players, states and global institutions,” explains Erwin Penfornis. Air Liquide has founded several initiatives worldwide, such as the Hydrogen Council which brings together more than 100 executive officers of large international companies. The Group is also forming public-private partnerships, such as in California and South Korea, to develop hydrogen mobility. In France, it is part of the new National Hydrogen Council which is co-chaired by Benoît Potier, the Chairman and CEO of Air Liquide, and Patrick Koller, the Chief Executive Officer of Faurecia⁴. Its purpose: to structure and develop the French industrial hydrogen segment. “These partnerships are fundamental in promoting collaborative solutions capable of scaling up production and distribution capacities, and thus making hydrogen a global reality,” concludes Erwin Penfornis.

Alongside hydrogen, biomethane is well placed in the transportation revolution. It decreases travel related CO2 emissions by 85%, particles by 90% and noise by a potential 50% compared to diesel engines. The Group is investing across the entire value chain of this green energy source, from the recovery and purification of biogas right through to distribution to the end customer in Bio-NGV stations (natural gas for vehicles). The major advantage of this energy source: its natural position in a circular economy where biomass, transformed into biomethane, participates in the optimization of natural resources.

In this context, customers can be both the generators of biomethane from the biomass that they produce, as well as the consumers of the energy thus obtained. "In this market of the future, we are already very active, with 20 biomethane production units worldwide and around 90 Bio-NGV stations in Europe," says Christiane Muller, Vice President of the Global Markets & Technologies activity at Air Liquide. Leading UK retailer ASDA has entrusted Air Liquide with the installation and operation of six biomethane distribution stations to refuel trucks at its sites. In Italy, the Group has just launched this activity with the construction of two production units near Milan, and also intends to build a biomethane filling station for transporters in the region. These investments underline the significant change of pace in the development of the Group’s biomethane activities in Europe.

Air Liquide, through its various innovations and achievements, is playing a leading role in making hydrogen and biomethane key solutions for clean mobility. The change in scale is clearly visible.