On Wednesday, North Carolina-headquartered hydrogen fuel producer OneH2 announced that it is bringing on a group of strategic investors to scale its nationwide hydrogen fuel production and distribution network. The investment round has been led by Houston‘s Buckeye Partners, a wholly owned subsidiary of the IFM Global Infrastructure Fund, and one of the largest liquid petroleum pipeline operators in the United States.
Other investors include Singaporean physical commodities trading group Trafigura, Sumitomo Corporation of Americas (SCOA), Navistar International Corporation, and Oregon capital equipment company Papé Group. Existing investors, including Wheeler Material Handling, also participated in the growth equity round.
OneH2’s hydrogen production and distribution solutions are used primarily in the fueling of commercial forklifts in the U.S.. The company delivers hydrogen fuel that is ready for immediate use, already converted to high-pressure gaseous fuel that takes only minutes to dispense.
Fresh capital provided by SCOA and other investors will be used to provide modular hydrogen production units, storage and dispensing at the point of refueling, which is often on-site at logistics and distribution centers to provide fuel for forklift and truck fleets.
The growth capital round will be used to build out One H2’s custom hydrogen infrastructure solutions, namely its modular hydrogen production, storage and dispensing units, which are often on-site at logistics and distribution centers, to provide fuel for forklift and truck fleets.
As hydrogen adoption in U.S. truck and passenger car fleets continues to expand, OneH2 sees a growth opportunity at retail points of sale, including truck stops and gas stations. The plan is for OneH2’s modular units, installed at refueling points, along with its parallel investments in fuel production hubs, to create an efficient, scalable hydrogen fuel network.
First for Sumitomo
The OneH2 investment marks SCOA’s first-ever investment in commercial hydrogen, despite previous investments in hydrogen technology.
“We are thrilled to announce our participation in OneH2’s effort to provide solutions in the emerging hydrogen fuel space,” said Kazuki Yamaguchi, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Energy Group, Sumitomo Corporation of Americas. “Globally, Sumitomo Corporation is engaged in several hydrogen projects and we look forward to drawing on our experience and collaborating with OneH2. We believe that innovations in the hydrogen value chain are necessary for hydrogen to become a widely used fuel source, and the ecosystem OneH2 is creating will help propel those innovations into the market.”
News of the investment round comes after commercial truck, bus and diesel engine maker Navistar–which is now a minority owner of OneH2–announced a partnership with OneH2 and General Motors for a zero-emission long-haul transportation system.
OneH2 will provide hydrogen production and fueling for fuel cells produced by General Motors, in a program to be piloted by commercial transportation company J.B. Hunt Transport, Inc.
“We’re excited about the opportunity to partner with Navistar,” said Paul Dawson, OneH2 president and CEO. “We believe strongly that hydrogen fuel is the future of zero- emission renewable energy in the heavy truck market, and are pleased that this agreement will provide additional scope for its application. Under this agreement, we will be able to offer fleets a zero-emission truck with total cost of operation lower than diesel in key segments of the industry.”
In 2019, OneH2 was selected to supply zero emission hydrogen for a fleet of fuel cell electric trucks operating at the Ports of Los Angeles and San Diego. The fleet of hydrogen powered on-road heavy trucks was funded through a California Air Resources Board (CARB) grant with $6.8 million of matched funds from CARB and other technology partners.
