Vitol has agreed to acquire 50% of ITM Power’s hydrogen refuelling subsidiary, ITM Motive Limited.
ITM Power and Vitol have both pledged $30 million to Motive as an initial investment.
Motive’s founders hope to turn it into a hydrogen refueling giant serving all of Europe. ITM Power’s market-leading electrolyser technology will power Motive’s refueling network in the UK and Europe, starting with the UK and then spreading across the continent. As the preferred energy service provider for Motive, ITM Power has committed 240 MW of electrolyser manufacturing capacity to the project.
Heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) are expected to be the primary users initially, according to the partners, because businesses are looking to reduce their carbon footprint and because local and national governments are concerned about emissions and air pollution in cities.
Chris Bake, head of origination, Vitol said: “Vitol aims to be at the heart of the energy transition. Hydrogen has a key role to play in decarbonising transport and ITM Power’s leading proprietary Gigastack electrolysers can produce green hydrogen at scale and cost efficiently. Our partnership will enable us to build Motive into a gas-for-transport company for the future, complementing our other sustainable transport initiatives, from LNG/biogas network Liquind, through to fleet EV solutions.”
