Honda and General Motors have announced the start of production of systems hydrogen fuel cell in its new joint factory located in Michigan, USA under the joint venture Fuel Cell System Manufacturing LLC (FCSM) Both companies have formed the first joint venture dedicated to the large-scale manufacturing of fuel cells.
It was last February 2023 when Honda and General Motors announced that they already had hydrogen fuel cells ready. Now, in the new facilities, about 6,500 m²announce the creation of 80 jobsafter a joint investment of 85 million dollars (99 million euros).
The world-class hydrogen energy solutions being manufactured at FCSM since January will be used by both companies in various product applications and business initiatives, as well as their use in transportation and other sectors.
Suheb Haqpresident of FCSM, talks about the company’s progress: “We integrate the entire process, from the transformation of the raw materials to manufacture the membrane and the electrode to the assembly of the units.”
And continues: “The continued investment and commitment of both companies is driving FCSM’s success. This commitment is in line with our mission of manufacturing hydrogen fuel cell affordable, durable and high quality for a wide range of applications and customers.”
For his part, Tetsuo Suzuki, vice president of FCSM adds: “We have integrated the strengths of Honda and GM into this company to create the most efficient production system. We apply a mass production approach with attention to detail and a focus on high quality, so we are now prepared to meet customer needs for future applications of technology. hydrogen fuel cell”.
Honda and GM engineers began working on joint development of the hydrogen fuel cell generation in 2013. In addition to bringing advances in terms of performance, both companies have collaborated to double the durability compared to the 2019 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell by using corrosion-resistant materials and improving low-temperature operation.
Together, the two companies have also focused on reducing development and manufacturing costs by taking advantage of their economies of scale, refining stack design, simplifying auxiliary support equipment, using common sources and reducing the use of expensive precious metals. Thus, the manufacturing cost of the new fuel cell systems will be reduced by two thirds compared to that of the 2019 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell.
Likewise, at FCSM, significant effort has also been made to ensure the highest levels of quality while improving manufacturing productivity. This joint venture incorporates numerous pioneering methods to automate the production of membrane and electrode assembly, as well as the assembly of fuel cell blocks.
The system of hydrogen fuel cell is a fundamental element of Honda’s ambitious “Triple Action to Zero” approach, which aims to achieve its global goal of reducing the company’s environmental impact to zero by 2050 not only in its products, but also throughout the life cycle of the products. themselves, including corporate activities:
- Carbon neutrality in all Honda products and corporate activities by 2050
- Circulation of resources: Using 100% sustainable materials to create a circular economy will allow Honda to recycle or reuse all the materials in its vehicles, reprocess them back into raw materials and reuse them in the creation of new products
- Use of clean and renewable energy, including electrification and hydrogen
Carbon neutrality as the main objective of the hydrogen fuel cell
Honda will expand the applications of its new system hydrogen fuel cell beyond fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), to also include various internal and external applications, thereby helping to stimulate demand for hydrogen and achieving carbon neutrality in society through its use.
Honda Motor Europe presented a prototype of the hydrogen fuel cell generation at the European Hydrogen Week, held in Brussels in November 2023, which received multiple expressions of interest during the 5 days that the event lasted.
The brand aims to stimulate demand for hydrogen, expanding its application to products and companies, for which it will focus on four application areas, such as FCEV cars, commercial vehicles, stationary power generating plants and construction machinery.
Ingo Nyhues, Deputy General Manager, Europe Business Planning and Development at Honda Motor Europe comments: “The interest aroused by the system of hydrogen fuel cell next generation when it was presented in Brussels it was incredible. Hydrogen, as an energy vector, is ideal for a multitude of industries and sectors, which at the same time are responding with new opportunities, possible associations and ways to make themselves known.”
And concludes: “Fuel cell systems are a key component in our goal of reducing our environmental impact to zero in the future and can help a large number of sectors to also achieve their own objectives in this regard.”
The next hydrogen fuel cell exhibition will take place at the Hannover Fair 2024 (April 22-26)where Honda will continue to seek collaboration opportunities with business and technology partners to expand product applications.
Event attendees will be able to see for themselves when they visit stand C56 in Hall 13 during the exhibition. Potential companies and partners can contact the project’s technical team via email: (email protected)
