McPhy to supply H2 station to the R-Hynoca project in Strasbourg

McPhy will provide a dual pressure station and a refuelling interface for pressurised hydrogen cylinders to the R-Hynoca production site in Strasbourg, France.

What is the R-Hynoca project?

R-Hynoca project, which started in 2019, aims to produce green, carbon-neutral hydrogen from local biomass. The hydrogen production is ensured by the Hynoca® process developed by Haffner Energy. This hydrogen will be recovered as fuel for low-carbon mobility and as a resource for the industry. R-Hynoca will be the first industrial demonstrator of the Hynoca® process.

McPhy is the partner in the project for the mobility part and will provide a dual pressure station (350-750 bar) equipped with two terminals to refuel all types of hydrogen mobility:

• a dual pressure station for light vehicles at 700 bar and 350 bar
• a Hi-Flow station for buses and trucks.

The station will deliver 700 kg/day of green hydrogen, an equivalent of a fleet of 30 buses, or 70 light commercial vehicles, or 150 light vehicles.

The FCH-JU funds the R-Hynoca project under the H2ME2 program.

Project partners

The R-Hynoca project is led by R-ENR (a subsidiary of the Strasbourg-based energy company R-GDS) and Haffner Energy. R-GDS (Réseaux gaz naturel de Strasbourg) distributes natural gas in the Bas Rhin region. It ships around 4.3 TWh of natural gas annually to 108,000 customers in 119 municipalities.

Haffner Energy is a specialist in biomass energy and is launching the commercial deployment of the Hynoca process for producing hydrogen from biomass.

McPhy is responsible for the mobility part of the project. Besides a dual station, it will also equip the site with a refuelling point for pressurised hydrogen cylinders that will be carried to be used in mobility or industrial applications elsewhere than at the point of hydrogen production. The commissioning of the station and the refuelling interface is scheduled for the end of 2022.

Luc Poyer, Chairman and acting CEO of McPhy, said, “The R-Hynoca project, with its decentralised approach, illustrates the complementarity of the different green hydrogen production and distribution methods based on the diversity of the territories, to which McPhy’s diversified offer perfectly responds.”

This innovative system architecture offers great flexibility by facilitating hydrogen refuelling for all types of mobility, whether at the production site or remotely. Its modular design will increase the distribution capacity at the same rate as the applications will be deployed on the territory.