13th Annual International Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Conference
The Hydrogen Hub attended the 13th Annual International Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Conference at the NEC in Birmingham. Every year the conference attracts the top names in hydrogen and fuel cells and this year was no exception. Bart Biebuyck, the Executive Director of the FCHJU opened proceedings with contributions from ITM Power, Johnson Matthey, Ballard Power, Hydrogenics and Bloom Energy. Hydrogen Hub Chairman, Kevin Fothergill, chaired a lively workshop on Hydrogen Production Infrastructure and Storage and Hydrogen Hub Manager, Clare Jackson, chaired an interesting workshop focussed on small and large scale applications.
The focus of the conference was hydrogen and fuel cells into the mainstream and it was great to see so many companies making great progress in the deployment and commercialisation of the technology. But whilst the industry is clearly making great strides there is still some way to go before the technology can be truly classed as ‘mainstream’. As such it is important that the potential of hydrogen and fuel cells is fully recognised by policy and that government support reflects both the value the technology brings to the UK energy system and its nascent nature. It’s also important that industry works together with local authorities and local businesses to deploy technology in a way which meets the energy needs of local communities.
The Hydrogen Hub is excited to be partnering with many of the attendees of the conference as we look to get more technology on the ground in 2017 and push ever closer to being able to call hydrogen and fuel cells ‘mainstream’.
For more information please contact the author:
Clare Jackson
Hydrogen Hub Manager