USA: Shell shuts down all hydrogen stations across California

The struggles with Hydrogen fuel stations also bring uncertainty related to the future of hydrogen-powered vehicles

According to media reports, Shell has confirmed that it will be permanently shutting down its light-duty hydrogen stations in California, USA immediately.

Shell operated 7 of the 55 hydrogen stations in California, per the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Partnership (H2FCP). In a letter announcing the shutdown, Andrew Beard, VP, Shell Hydrogen, stated that the stations were closing "due to hydrogen supply complications and other external market factors."

Reports state that the supply issues aren't specific to Shell. A majority of the hydrogen stations in Southern California are offline or operating with reduced hours. Another company, Iwatani, a Japanese gas company - one of the largest names in American Hydrogen filling stations, has a notice board at one of its stations, which states, "Our primary hydrogen supplier has experienced a disruption that will impact our access to hydrogen for the Hawaiian Gardens station. We currently do not have an ETA to return to normal service levels and will provide updates as soon as we have more information. We greatly appreciate your patience for the additional downtime this will cause."

The struggles with Hydrogen fuel stations also bring uncertainty related to the future of hydrogen-powered vehicles in the USA. While H2-powered vehicles are cheap, the tech has struggled and its cost of fuel remains expensive.

Source: HydrogenInsight