Hiringa launches hydrogen refuelling network.
Green hydrogen company Hiringa Energy has launched what it says is Australasia’s first zero-emission green hydrogen refuelling network – Hiringa Refuelling New Zealand (HRNZ).
The initiative was officially opened by energy and transport minister Simeon Brown. With 25% of New Zealand’s transport emissions coming from the heavy transport sector in spite of only making up 4% of the vehicles on the roads, this marks a groundbreaking step towards decarbonising the country’s heavy transportation sector, says Hiringa.
The network has been established in partnership with New Zealand independent fuel supplier Waitomo Group, and Australasia’s largest heavy vehicle fleet owner TR Group.
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The launch sees three strategically located stations opening in Wiri (South Auckland), Te Rapa (Hamilton) and Palmerston North, with a fourth station in Tauranga progressing as an integral part of the new Tauriko SH29 roading infrastructure.
The green energy network is positioned to service 95% of the heavy freight routes across the North Island including the “Golden Triangle” of freight movement (between Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga).
With the opening of the network, hydrogen-powered trucks can go into commercial operation enabling heavy transport to begin its transition to zero-emission alternatives, says Hiringa.
The refuelling stations are powered by clean, renewable energy and equipped with state-of-the-art technology, enabling hydrogen-powered heavy transport vehicles such as trucks and buses to refuel with green hydrogen in 10 to 20 minutes.
Andrew Clennett, Hiringa chief executive, said:
Heavy transport plays a vital role in our economy, but it’s also a significant contributor to our national emissions.
“As a first-of-its-kind across Australasia and one of the first networks set up globally to service heavy transport, the initiative addresses this major challenge by providing operators with the infrastructure they need to switch to zero-emission transport in an efficient, scalable and commercially viable manner.”
Network infrastructure establishment has received support from the New Zealand Government via a $16 million loan, growth capital from key investors including Sir Stephen Tindall’s fund K1W1, and international investment from Mitsui & Co Ltd and Green Impact Partners alongside Hiringa Energy.
Simon Parham, Waitomo Group chief executive, said:
Green hydrogen offers a versatile, alternative solution for long-haul trucking and other heavy transport vehicles as New Zealand begins the switch to future fuel generation.
“Waitomo has been fuelling Kiwis for more than three generations, so we’ll also be part of the fuel solutions for the future generations.
“Partnering with Hiringa allows us to deliver on that vision by collocating the Hiringa refuelling sites on our forecourts regularly used by heavy transport operators.”
Brendan King, TR Group general manager, says:
It has been exciting to be able to enable this groundbreaking initiative by bringing fuel cell truck technology to the NZ market.
“The technology unlocks a clean alternative for hard-to-abate sectors that are difficult to electrify, where hydrogen meets the intense demands of handling long distances and heavy loads.”
The project has been enabled via forward thinking companies such as NZ Post with many more set to come on board, says King.
“Their early adoption and willingness to trial and introduce zero emission technologies to their fleet is highly commendable as without this leadership, our industry doesn’t get the learnings and proof points to move forward at scale.”
The Hyundai Xcient fuel cell truck has been deployed on commercial operations since 2023, having completed more than 70,000kms, eliminating the need for an estimated 29,700 litres of diesel which represents 80 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, and purifying the air around the vehicle at the same time.
NZ Post chief executive David Walsh says that while it has been a success seeing their hydrogen truck demonstrating this technology and travelling more than 350km a day (using slower mobile refuelling) having the heavy-duty refuelling network in place will be instrumental in enabling NZ Post to use this hydrogen truck on longer distances.
“With rapid refuelling now available this will allow us to operate the hydrogen truck seven days a week, 24 hours a day, with zero emissions.”
The infrastructure will in addition set the stage to provide a fast and reliable source of hydrogen to seed multiple other applications including marine, construction, materials handling, stationary power and most notably, aviation.
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Hiringa launches hydrogen refuelling network. source
