Saudi Aramco and Air Products yesterday launched the first hydrogen fueling station for cars in Saudi Arabia, located at Air Products' new technology center in Dhahran Techno Valley at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals. The experimental station will supply high-purity compressed hydrogen to an initial fleet of Toyota Mirai fuel cell electric vehicles.

Saudi Aramco also signed an agreement to expand the construction of stations. According to the executing company, the second phase will involve building several stations in Jubail before expanding to other areas.

Air Products Vice President Samir Sarhan confirmed to Makkah newspaper that modifications can be made to conventional cars to convert them to hydrogen fuel by modifying the engine and some components and spare parts, noting that it depends on the individual's conviction about the feasibility of the conversion process, which requires financial sums. He also pointed out that there are new hydrogen-powered cars available in the Kingdom that can be purchased.

The announcement comes amid growing international consensus on the benefits of hydrogen fuel. According to a report released last week by the International Energy Agency, hydrogen has enormous potential to reduce carbon emissions from various energy sectors.

Valuable opportunities

Saudi Aramco President and CEO Eng. Amin Nasser stated that the launch of the first hydrogen fueling station is important in the field of research and development to supply cars with high-quality hydrogen fuel to reduce pollution. It also represents a valuable opportunity to expand the use of oil and gas as sources for hydrogen extraction and thus use it as fuel in sustainable transportation with clean environmental impact and no effect on climate change.

He said that this represents a great opportunity for Aramco and Air Products to further explore the potential of hydrogen fuel and achieve the goal of providing practical and sustainable energy sources for the future.

Network of stations

Sarhan stated that the hydrogen fueling station established at the new technology center in Dhahran Techno Valley will be a model station, to be followed by several other stations that will develop the use of hydrogen cars in the Eastern Province and the Kingdom. He noted that his company will start building a new network of hydrogen fueling stations in Jubail next year, where there are great opportunities especially for buses, internal transport vehicles in industrial facilities, and forklifts, as there is a need to reduce pollution caused by conventional oil-based fuel inside and around factories and facilities. He indicated that his company will evaluate the success of each phase before starting the next.

500 km per charge

Regarding the inputs used for hydrogen fuel, Sarhan pointed out that the stations use high-pressure technologies to convert natural gas or light oil and naphtha into hydrogen by compressing it into the car's fuel tank. He noted that a single fill of 5 kilograms, which takes 5 minutes to fill, enables the car to travel up to 500 km without any emissions or pollution, and only water comes out of the exhaust.

Sustainability...

Air Products Chairman and CEO Seifi Ghasemi stated in his speech during the launch ceremony of the new station that fuel cell and hydrogen technologies are poised to help meet these challenges, explaining that the cooperation with Aramco includes establishing and developing a sustainable system for hydrogen derived from hydrocarbons for fuel cell electric vehicles in the Kingdom.

5 benefits of hydrogen-powered vehicles

01. Each kilogram of hydrogen fuel enables the car to travel 100 km

02. Can travel 500 km with no emissions except water

03. Can be refueled in 5 minutes unlike electric vehicles which need an hour

04. Contributes to a future of clean, safe, and affordable energy

05. Reduces air pollution from emissions as in conventional vehicles.

The new station:

01. The hydrogen fueling station combines Saudi Aramco's manufacturing and technical expertise with Air Products' technical expertise in hydrogen fuel.

02. The station uses Air Products' SmartFuel hydrogen fueling technology to supply compressed hydrogen to Toyota Mirai fuel cell electric vehicles.

03. Data collected during the experimental phase of this project will provide useful information to evaluate future applications of this emerging technology in the Kingdom.