Plastic Omnium builds U.S. capacity to supply Ford trucks with high-pressure hydrogen vessels

Per a collaboration announced Sept. 13, Plastic Omnium (Levallois-Perret, France) will develop and provide Ford Motor Co. (Dearborn, Mich., U.S.) with 700-bar Type IV, high-pressure hydrogen vessels to equip its demonstrator fleet and generate real-life data for zero-emission trucks in the medium-duty sector by the end of 2023.

According to Plastic Omnium, Ford F-550 Super Duty hydrogen fuel cell electric truck prototypes will support several applications, including trucks with auxiliary equipment, such as lift buckets for working on power and telecom lines. These applications are challenging to decarbonize as they require high payload capability and, in some scenarios, nearly 24/7 uptime. The company says that a fuel cell vehicle with a 700-bar hydrogen storage system range and fast fill capability is a zero-emission solution that meets the demanding needs of these applications.

Plastic Omnium will manage the development in the U.S. and produce the hydrogen vessels in its factory in Adrian, Michigan, on an all-new manufacturing line, taking benefit of Plastic Omnium’s critical manufacturing expertise in fuel systems.

“The U.S. Department of Energy’s SuperTruck 3 funding aims to expand the development of electric vehicle infrastructure and is a major boost for the hydrogen and zero-emission mobility markets. Plastic Omnium’s expertise in hydrogen, along with our strong relationship with Ford in North America, gives us a unique opportunity to support this project and grow with the market thanks to our new U.S. based manufacturing,” says John Dunn, Plastic Omnium new energies president and CEO, Americas.

Plastic Omnium says it is confident that hydrogen will play a major role in the clean mobility of the future. The Group is accelerating and building a dedicated footprint to seize all the market opportunities and be among the big winners in this transformation. Plastic Omnium has invested more than €300 million since 2015 and is planning €100 additional million each year to increase its expertise and footprint across the entire hydrogen value chain, and to reach €300 million sales by 2025 and €3 billion sales by 2030.