After 26 years in business, Australia’s CST Composites is establishing a joint venture with US-based hydrogen storage tank producer Optimum Composite Technologies to position itself as a leader in the worldwide green hydrogen supply chain.
CST Composites will enhance its core competencies to support Optimum’s expansion in developing and manufacturing Composite Pressure Vessels (CPVs), which are used to store hydrogen and Renewable Natural Gas (RNG), among other things.
CST currently operates two manufacturing facilities in Australia, and future expansion plans include the establishment of Australia’s first hydrogen vessel manufacturing facility, which will service emerging and growing demand from the defense (e.g. VTOL vehicles), space (e.g. rockets), transportation, and energy sectors.
This manufacturing facility will assist Australia in advancing its National Hydrogen Strategy, which emphasizes the importance of developing the country’s supply chain infrastructure, which includes hydrogen storage tanks. Low-cost high-pressure storage tanks will be critical for transportation, building backups, and a variety of other aspects of hydrogen adoption.
The joint venture’s production capabilities will complement those of both companies. CST Composites will benefit from Optimum’s technological experience and intellectual property (IP) in the field of carbon fiber pressure vessels. CST Composites will also benefit from increased access to US markets for its filament-wound composite tubing by leveraging Optimum’s US facilities, client base, and supply chain.
Clive Watts, managing director of CST Composites, stated, “High-pressure gas storage tanks represent one of the largest and fastest-growing markets for advanced composites worldwide, particularly filament-wound carbon fiber composites.”
Significant corporate developments in the recent past include South Korean Hanwha Solutions’ acquisition of US hydrogen storage tank maker Cimarron Composites and its plans to invest US$100 million in the business.
The Australian government is investing $1.4 billion to establish Australia as a global leader in hydrogen by 2030. “We will apply for grants and financial support to further our ideas, which will focus on the unique design and development of hydrogen and CPV products,” Mr Watts explained. We intend to make a sizable investment to help our new joint venture thrive”.
CST Composites is a market leader in filament winding technology, with 90% of its goods shipped to Europe, the United States of America, China, and Asia. At the moment, all of its profiles and tubes are made in high-tech facilities in Sydney. The company just received funding from the Australian Government’s Manufacturing Modernisation Fund’s Round 2.
