Amazon begins to produce own hydrogen fuel to power vehicles

SAN FRANCISCO: Amazon has announced plans to produce hydrogen fuel at its fulfillment centres and has partnered with hydrogen company Plug Power to install the first electrolyser (equipment that can split water molecules to produce hydrogen) at a fulfillment centre in the state of Colorado in the US.

The one-megawatt (MW) proton exchange membrane electrolyser is the first for Amazon and is producing low-carbon hydrogen to fuel more than 225 hydrogen fuel cell-powered forklift trucks at the site.

“Hydrogen is an important tool in our efforts to decarbonise our operations by 2040 in support of The Climate Pledge, and we’re excited about our ability to produce hydrogen at Amazon facilities through this partnership with Plug,” said Asad Jafry, the director of global hydrogen economy at Amazon.

“On-site production will make the use of hydrogen even more energy efficient for certain locations and types of facilities,” he added.

The Plug 1MW electrolyser, which uses electricity and water to produce hydrogen, is able to support up to 400 hydrogen fuel cell-powered forklift trucks.

The hydrogen produced by the electrolyser will be compressed on site and stored in a gaseous hydrogen storage tank for use by the forklift trucks.

“In Amazon, we have a true partner that recognises the essential role hydrogen plays in our collective energy future,” said Plug CEO Andy Marsh.

“This project demonstrates Plug’s ability to execute across the full hydrogen value chain, and shows how we can design and implement end-to-end solutions for our customers.”

To date, Plug has collaborated with Amazon to deploy more than 17,000 fuel cells to replace batteries in forklifts in more than 80 fulfillment centres in North America.

For most of these locations, hydrogen to power the forklifts is produced elsewhere, liquified, and delivered by trucks to an on-site storage and dispensing system.