Air Products’ UK hydrogen fuelling station welcomed a very special guest earlier this month, when the Minister of Transport, Mike Penning was treated to a tour.
During the visit, Mike Penning highlighted the important role which hydrogen will play in the future of transport in the UK. He remarked, “A one size fits all approach to low carbon vehicles simply isn’t feasible. In order for the UK to decarbonise road transport, a mix of technologies including hydrogen has to be considered.”
MP Penning visited the University during a Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham. During the trip, he saw the Air Products Series 100 fuelling station which is housed at the University and also witnessed the fuelling of one of the University’s fleet of hydrogen powered vehicles. The Minister was even encouraged to drive a hydrogen powered Microcab.
Minister Penning responded, “I am delighted to see first-hand today Air Products and the University of Birmingham driving forward hydrogen fuel technology. It’s state of the art technology like this that will help drive the British economy in years to come.”
Air Products installed the Series 100 fuelling station at the University’s School of Chemical Engineering in April 2008. The station constituted the country’s first permanent hydrogen fuelling station and has since been awarded the Rushlight Hydrogen and Fuel Cell industry award for innovation. The Series 100 has been specifically designed to fuel small fleets of hydrogen vehicles on a daily basis and as such includes an integrated compression, hydrogen storage and dispensing system.
Diana Raine of Air Products’ Hydrogen Energy Systems, commented, “It was fantastic that the Transport Minister could take the time out of his schedule to visit the fuelling station at Birmingham. The technology he has seen today really is capable of changing the transport infrastructure of the UK and contributing to a low carbon economy.”
She concluded, “It is extremely encouraging that the Government is taking the time to learn more about this technology first hand.”
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