„ The company expects sales of 5 billion euros with H2 technologies by 2030
„ Bosch operates along the entire hydrogen value chain.
„ Bosch chairman Stefan Hartung: “Bosch knows its way around hydrogen, and Bosch is growing with hydrogen.”
„ Bosch to invest nearly 2.5 bn euros in H2 technology from 2021 to 2026.
„ Bosch employs more than 3,000 people in hydrogen technology.
„ Bosch automotive expertise in demand in the hydrogen economy.
Bengaluru/London, NFAPost: Bosch is entering the hydrogen age of mobility. At its Stuttgart-Feuerbach location (Germany), the supplier of technology and services has now begun volume production of its fuel-cell power module.
Nikola Corporation, based in the United States, will serve as the pilot customer with its Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell electric truck, which is scheduled to enter the North American market in the third quarter of 2023.
Speaking at Bosch Tech Day 2023, Robert Bosch GmbH Chairman Stefan Hartung said Stuttgart-Feuerbach plant whose history goes back further than any other Bosch plant, the hydrogen future is about to happen.
“Bosch knows its way around hydrogen, and Bosch is growing with hydrogen. The company operates along the entire hydrogen value chain, developing technology for its production and application. By 2030, Bosch plans to generate sales of roughly 5 billion euros with hydrogen technology,” said Robert Bosch GmbH Chairman Stefan Hartung.
Applying automotive experience to the hydrogen economy, Bosch started H2 production by constructing prototypes for electrolysis using proton exchange membranes by the start of 2023.
In its solutions for the hydrogen economy as well, Bosch is relying on a global manufacturing network and the prowess of its German locations. For example, the Bosch plant in Bamberg, Germany, will supply the Feuerbach factory with the fuel-cell stack. And important system components such as the electric air compressor and the recirculation blower come from the Bosch plant in Homburg, Germany.
Bosch Mobility Chairman Markus Heyn said Bosch is one of the very few companies that are capable of mass producing technology as complex as fuel-cell stacks.
“We don’t just have the required systems expertise, but also the capability of quickly scaling up new developments to mass production,” said Bosch Mobility Chairman Markus Heyn.
Stationary solid-oxide fuel cells can be used for the distributed supply of power and heat. In a pilot project at the hospital in Erkelenz, near Cologne in Germany, Bosch wants to use this technology to achieve overall efficiency of 90 percent. Production of the fuel-cell power module is not only starting in Feuerbach, but also in Chongqing, China. The components it requires will come from the Wuxi plant.
“Bosch is the first company to produce these systems in both China and Germany,” said Robert Bosch GmbH Chairman Stefan Hartung.
In addition, Bosch is also planning to manufacture stacks for mobile applications in its US plant in Anderson, South Carolina. Worldwide, the company expects that, by 2030, one in five new trucks weighing six tons or more will feature a fuel-cell powertrain.
Apart from the fuel-cell powertrain, Bosch is also working on the hydrogen engine, developing systems for both port and direct injection of hydrogen. This solution is particularly suitable for heavy vehicles on long hauls with especially heavy loads.
Bosch is helping to shape the hydrogen economy, and sees obligations on the part of policymakers
Only with hydrogen can there be a climate-neutral world. For Bosch, that is crystal-clear. The company therefore strongly advocates the establishment of a hydrogen economy, and is stepping up its investments in hydrogen.
Between 2021 and 2026, Bosch will have invested a total of nearly 2.5 billion euros in the development and manufacturing of its H2 technologies. That is another billion euros more than was earmarked in the investment plan for 2021 to 2024. The business opportunities for Bosch are huge, as is the effect on jobs.
Even now, there are more than 3,000 people at Bosch working on hydrogen technologies, more than half of them in Europe. Most of the vacancies can be filled from within the company, and especially with people who have so far worked in the Bosch powertrain business.
However, the further prospects for the hydrogen business depend on the political environment. Hartung especially believes that Europe must do much more to create a counterweight to the rapid pace of developments in other regions of the world, such as the United States.
