According to the blog, Shell previously announced it would build 48 new hydrogen refueling stations for light vehicles in California. Insights on hydrogen. But in September, Shell announced to the site that it had “canceled” that plan.
And last month, Inside the EV The blog noted that in all of 2023, only 2,968 hydrogen cars were sold “in the United States, namely in California, where production models are available.” While this is certainly a 10% increase from the 2,707 units sold in 2022, both numbers are lower than the 3,341 units sold in 2021, according to data from the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Partnership. “Cumulative sales of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles exceeded 17,940 units at the end of the quarter (not including retired vehicles), a 20% increase from a year ago.”
And this week, Shell announced it would “no longer operate” light hydrogen fueling stations in the United States and immediately close all seven pumping stations in California. (3 in San Francisco, 1 in Berkeley, 1 in San Jose, and 2 in the Sacramento area). Inside the EV Shell's move “deals another blow to the struggling hydrogen vehicle market in the only state where the fuel is widely available,” he said.
Until recently, Shell operated seven of California's 55 total retail hydrogen stations under the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Partnership (H2FCP). That makes this a blow, but not doomsday news for the (small) hydrogen community…
In a letter announcing the closure, Shell Hydrogen vice president Andrew Beard said it was closing “due to the complexities of hydrogen supply and other external market factors.” It's not hard to see what Beard is referring to here… Hydrogen Insight reports that this shortage has caused him to disrupt his station since August 13th…
Many hydrogen stations are suffering from serious reliability issues, with some shutting down for repairs. Japanese gas company Iwatani, one of the two largest hydrogen filling station companies in the United States, is currently suing the company that provided the core technology for its hydrogen filling stations. In a court filing seen by Hydrogen Insight, Iwatini claims the provider did not test its equipment in real-world commercial scenarios, concealed defects and misled the company. In short, it's a big mess.
All of this makes the future of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the United States even more uncertain. The technology has struggled to gain widespread adoption because the stations and their fuel remain expensive. Hydrogen automakers typically include large amounts of free fuel with car purchases, but when that runs out, consumers are left staring at stations that break down, run out of fuel, or have long lines. You will be faced with a similar price. Here's why used hydrogen cars are so cheap, and why they're still not a bargain.
But the cheapest way to produce hydrogen requires large amounts of natural gas, and few companies can make a better case than Shell. Proximity to the fossil fuel industry was supposed to lower costs and provide incentives for a robust fuel supply infrastructure. But that hasn't happened and one of the biggest oil giants is throwing in the towel. If even fossil giants like Shell can’t justify investing in future lightweight hydrogen infrastructure, I don’t know who will.