Nel – extended PEM electrolyzer manufacturing facility in Wallingford officially opened
Nel – extended PEM electrolyzer manufacturing facility in Wallingford officially opened
On Wednesday 23 October, Nel’s extended and automated PEM manufacturing facility in Wallingford, Connecticut, was officially opened by Senator Richard Blumenthal. The new facility will have the capacity to produce 10 times as many PEM electrolysers at 30% lower cost than the old factory.
Senator Richard Blumenthal in his opening speech, said :
Connecticut is a global leader in hydrogen because of companies like Nel,
He continued after he took part in a curtain drop, unveiling the expanded Wallingford facility,
I’m very excited by Nel opening this new facility, because it brings jobs and brains to the energy sector. This is our future. Hydrogen and fuel cells are going to be a vital part of our energy future in order to fight climate change,
Senator Richard Blumenthal, said:
Hydrogen and fuel cells are going to be a vital part of our energy future in order to fight climate change.
Other speakers included Connecticut’s Chief Manufacturing Officer, Paul Lavoie and Sunita Satyapal, Director of the US Department of Energy’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office.
Lavoie said,
Automating production facilities is the only way you are going to be able to compete on a global level,
He said,
This isn’t about eliminating people’s jobs. It takes people and upskills them. It allows them to do more rewarding work,
Lower costs to drive increased adoption
With the new and automated manufacturing facility Nel increases its annual capacity to produce PEM electrolysers from 50 to 500 MW.
Nel’s President and CEO Håkon Volldal said today’s challenge for the hydrogen industry is high production costs, and that costs need to be significantly lower to drive increased adoption.
Volldal said,
Developing Next-Generation PEM electrolysers with our technology partner General Motors, we aim to cut costs by another 60% and reduce energy consumption by more than 10 percent,
The facility is expected to be ready to start production in the beginning of 2025.