This Saturday the 21st of September 2019, our project partner Communauté de Communes Touraine Vallée de l’Indre opened their first Hydrogen refuelling station in Sorigny. The Communauté has integrated 10 fuel cell vehicles, as well as 15 bicycles, into their public services and tourism fleets. In addition to the existing bike refuelling station, the new station, capable of distributing up to 20kg of hydrogen a day at 350 bars pressure, will mainly serve the 10 light duty vehicles already in operation. Though the station will not be used to refuel the Hector garbage truck, the opening on Saturday marked another step into a hydrogen fuelled future of mobility.
As the first hydrogen fuelling station in the region, the event gained attention from the media and the public. Attendees to the opening included 3 members of French parliament and a vice president of the region Centre-Val de Loire. Amongst the speakers was the president of the Communauté and mayor of Sorigny, Alain Esnault. Talking about the Hector project, he confirmed the ordering of the garbage truck and underlined the ambition of the Communauté to become a good example of hydrogen mobility in the country. With the integration of the fuel cell garbage truck, expected by the end of 2020, the Communauté will be the operator of the first service vehicle of its kind in all of France.
The future construction of an electrolysis plant will ensure that the created demand is met with an adequate supply of green hydrogen. The plant will be powered by 15,000m² of solar panels and produce, store and distribute larger amounts of hydrogen to also fuel the garbage truck. Continuous projects are part of the Communauté's hydrogen strategy to position itself as a regional leader of hydrogen mobility.
For further information about the hydrogen technologies in operation at the Communauté de Communes Touraine Vallée de l’Indre, click here.
To see the press article about the opening ceremony, click here.
