LYON, FRANCE, December 20, 2022 – Symbio, a top five global player in Fuel Cell technologies, will unveil its updated fuel cell system technology and H2Motive product roadmap at CES 2023 in Las Vegas.
Its fuel cell StackPacks are designed to meet the needs of all mobility applications, covering a large power range from 40kW* to 300kW* that are both highly compact and customized for each customer use case.
Hydrogen fuel cells are widely recognized for enabling decarbonized mobility, addressing the most pressing environmental challenges. Symbio partners with pioneering OEMs to accelerate their deployment of sustainable and competitive H2-powered solutions, without compromising on the mobility experience in terms of range, fast refueling and cargo volume.
Symbio unveils benchmark fuel cell system technology roadmap meeting its customers’ needs, pioneering H2-powered mobility
Symbio, a Faurecia & Michelin joint venture, announces that its upgraded StackPack 40 product (“T5”) will be mass
production ready by the end 2023, in alignment with plans of its key customer and launch partner, Stellantis, to ramp
up use of hydrogen fuel cell technology on different platforms. Offering 3.9kW/L stack power density, the
lifetime of this 40kW* system has been boosted to reach 7,000 hours despite the extremely demanding use cycles
of light commercial vehicle applications.
Symbio is also confirming the development of its NextGeneration StackPack and is announcing more ambitious performance targets for this new technology.
The first version NextGen StackPack (NG1) will be shipped to customers for testing in Q2 2023 and will reach
production readiness for small fleets as early as the first half of 2024. Boasting 4.9kW/L stack power density and
durability of 20,000 lifetime hours, this 75kW* system can be used in bus, coach and commercial vehicle applications.
Symbio will also offer a 150kW* twin-stack system and 300kW* twin-system solutions.
A second version NextGen StackPack (NG2) is already in development. Its market-leading metal bipolar plate
technology will enable its stack to achieve a power density of more than 6kW/L. Additionally, its proprietary Membrane Electrode Assembly (MEA) technology will support operating temperatures over 100°C and a lifetime of more than 20,000 hours.
NG2 will allow Symbio to offer benchmark single-stack net power output from 130kW* to 160kW*, needed for the most demanding applications including SUVs, pick-up trucks and heavy-duty trucks. The first systems will be shipped to customers for testing in the first half of 2024, and the start of mass production is expected for the end of 2026.
Launch of a brand-new Full Stack Monitoring (FSM) technology enabling increased stack durability
Finally, Symbio is presenting its brand-new Full Stack Monitoring (FSM) technology that will be deployed on all NextGeneration StackPacks. Thanks to impedance measurement between cells, the FSM enables optimized stack
operation, prognostics on future maintenance, and remote diagnostics in case of expected performance variations. These key features of the FSM will make Symbio’s fuel cell technology ready for large fleets of vehicles, increasing stack durability by up to 20% compared to existing solutions on the market. Production will start in Symbio’s world class gigafactory in 2023.
Symbio is strongly investing in Europe and reaffirms commitment to invest in North American manufacturing
Symbio is investing 1 billion EUR in France, to fast-forward its industrialization and cutting-edge innovation and bring its total manufacturing capacity to 100,000 systems per year in France, all supported by the French and the European
Union. Furthermore, the Group plans to expand its manufacturing footprint globally, including the U.S. By 2030, Symbio’s goal is to reach 1.5 billion EUR in annual sales with global production capacity of more than 200,000 systems annually.
Symbio is pleased to participate for the first time at CES at a time when the fight against climate change is gaining momentum in the U.S. Symbio is determined to offer its technology and its expertise to support the country’s zero emission efforts. Symbio North America is therefore gearing up its operations that will greatly contribute to the Group’s 2030 objectives.
Symbio North America is building its first manufacturing line in Poway, California -scheduled to be fully operational by early 2023. The company has also been selected for award by the California Energy Commission (CEC) to fund the extension of its manufacturing capacity to assemble fuel cell vehicles and target to reach an annual capacity of 2,000 fuel cell systems by 2025.
The company is leading the vehicle integration effort under the “Symbio Central Valley Express” project that aims at putting a hydrogen fuel cell, regional-haul Class 8 truck demonstrator on the road before the end of 2023. Under this project, also supported from the CEC, Symbio will design, develop, and integrate its fuel cell stack technology, coupled with Faurecia’s hydrogen storage system and Michelin’s low resistance tires into a Freightliner Cascadia platform. The long-haul truck is to run for 12 months on a challenging 400-mile route in California, showcasing how hydrogen is perfectly suited to decarbonize heavy duty mobility, matching 15-liter diesel truck performance and bringing distinctive advantages including more range autonomy, higher payload, a shorter refueling time and a reduced total cost of ownership relative to other alternative sustainable options.
(*) Net system power output at beginning of life.
(**) IPCEI: Important Project of Common European Interest. Hymotive project is funded by the European Union (Next Generation EU), and the French government (France 2030, France Relance).