Leading global provider of mission critical air and gas handling products, technologies and services, Howden, has won two awards in the annual Hydrogen Future Awards: Hydrogen Rising Star Company of the Year and Hydrogen Transport of the Year.

The awards were presented at Connecting Green Hydrogen MENA 2022 on 30 March. The Hydrogen Rising Star Company of the Year award honours Howden’s role over the past year in providing reliable hydrogen compression solutions to a number of global projects.

These major milestone developments are supporting key industries reduce their consumption and reliance on fossil fuels, including the world’s first green steel plant, the world’s first eFuels plant, Europe’s largest bio-fuels refinery, and one of the world’s first green oil refineries. A number of the projects were developed with the highest levels of safety considerations and are already in operation, working to reduce carbon emissions.

The Hydrogen Transport of the Year award recognises the solutions Howden provided to the world’s largest hydrogen refuelling station (HRS) for HyPower: the Beijing Daxing HRS in China.

The installation, which was completed safely in January 2021, has enabled the HRS to compress 4.8 tonnes per day of hydrogen and refuel up to 600 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, including large vehicles such as trucks and buses.

This flagship facility is a crucial part of the Beijing International Hydrogen Energy Demonstration Zone, an innovative ecosystem that that integrates research and development (R&D), test and production related to hydrogen energy. Howden’s role for the HRS project confirms the company’s position as a leading provider of cost effective, reliable and safe hydrogen compression solutions in direct support of projects that address climate change.

Salah Mahdy, Howden’s renewable hydrogen global director, said: “This is a proud moment for our hydrogen team as we receive global recognition for our achievements and for the investments we have made in innovation to support the energy transition. Our efforts in R&D are bearing fruit as we support the development and use of hydrogen and fuel cells into commercially viable technologies.

“At Howden, we consider every operator experience as unique and for Howden, the technology deployed is just as important as the way it is applied. Of particular importance to us has been the safe and efficient application of technology, enabling us to demonstrate our skills as a market leader in the sector.”

The Howden team in China responded to a short lead time requirement for the project and worked closely with HyPower to provide the solution necessary to keep this important HRS running. Howden has a long history and strong presence in China with over 1,000 employees operating in offices and service centres across seven cities and a large manufacturing centre that serves customers across the country.

Howden recently announced its target to be carbon Net Zero by 2035 through the purchase of renewable energy and carbon free energy; efficiency gains from energy conservation measures; and by renewable energy projects at its manufacturing facilities. The largest impact the business will have on global sustainability will be through its partnership with customers to supply equipment that will make a major impact on their carbon emissions and sustainability.

Connecting Green Hydrogen MENA 2022 is the premium conference and exhibition committed to expediting the development of green hydrogen in the Middle East and North Africa, gathering international policymakers, power producers, investors, suppliers and technical service providers together to build business partnership. The Hydrogen Future Awards 2022 provide an annual opportunity to recognise excellence and achievement across the hydrogen sector.