Fuel Cell Systems Limited – FCS which is a designer as well as manufacturer of hydrogen refuelling systems, has entered a new agreement with HyHAUL Mobility Limited, which is a member of the Protium group, so as to deliver the largest high-pressure hydrogen refuelling system in the UK, especially for heavy goods vehicles.
The deal will help roll out a commercially funded refuelling station that is capable of accommodating as many as 30 HGVs per day, dispensing hydrogen at both 350 as well as 700 bar. This is a major step for the hydrogen mobility industry of the UK, which has been striving to demonstrate that zero-emission trucking is capable of functioning reliably at a commercial scale and not just in experimental schemes.
The deal to build largest high-pressure hydrogen refuelling system in the UK will see a high-capacity refuelling hub that will be built at one of the existing green hydrogen production and distribution sites from Protium. The idea is that co-locating the refuelling station with hydrogen production will deliver the dependable, high-availability refuelling that fleet operators require to run zero-emission trucks on intensive commercial duty cycles. The approach is additionally intended to give operators the trust to scale up the deployment of fuel cell HGVs, helping to decarbonize freight more broadly throughout the UK.
According to the CEO and founder of Protium, Christopher Jackson, “HyHAUL set out to prove that green hydrogen trucking works on real routes, and that ambition has not changed. What has changed is how we get there. This agreement puts a serious piece of refuelling capability into the UK market and does it alongside the assets we already own and operate. We continue to see and hear from customers that hydrogen mobility solutions remain an important part of their plans for achieving net zero, and as the largest high-pressure refueller in the UK, we believe this asset will be key to enabling the development of the ecosystem further.”
A high-capacity system which is built for commercial duty cycles
The contract requires FCS to design, manufacture, evaluate, and supply a comprehensive high-capacity hydrogen refuelling system. This will include a HyFleet refueller and corresponding hydrogen storage, gas panels, as well as tube trailer interfaces. The system has been designed to supply hydrogen at both 350 bar and 700 bar, making it flexible enough to cater for a broad range of fuel cell vehicles, and will be equipped to supply as much as 1,450 kg of hydrogen to a single fleet within 24 hours.
Four separate banks of hydrogen storage with automatic bank selection will be configured to sustain this throughput level, enabling heavy-duty vehicles with high throughput back-to-back fuelling. That set-up is key to the ability of the station to service around 30 HGVs a day without the queueing and interruptions that may damage trust in the initial stages of hydrogen infrastructure.
Says CEO of Fuel Cell Systems, Tom Chicken, “This is the kind of high-capacity infrastructure the UK’s hydrogen HGV sector needs if fleet operators are going to move from trials to daily operations with confidence. By combining a secure supply and fast refuelling, we’re demonstrating what’s possible with a system designed around real commercial demands. Today we’re deploying the largest high-pressure hydrogen refueller in the UK – in the near future, we hope to see many more like it.”
From public funding to a 100% commercial deal, FCS was originally contracted by HyHAUL Mobility to provide refuelling infrastructure for the HyHAUL program in July 2025. The project began with four refuelling stations located along the M4 corridor and was backed by public funding by means of the Zero Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstrator – ZEHID program from Innovate UK.
HyHAUL and FCS agreed to a modified outline for the project, now funded completely on a commercial basis, due to a shift in the availability of public funding. The move is a sign of the growing maturity of the hydrogen HGV market in the UK, with operators as well as infrastructure providers more willing to back initiatives without depending only on grant support. The new refuelling station’s final location is anticipated to be disclosed before the end of 2026.
Giving support for the hydrogen case when it comes to heavy goods
Hydrogen fuel cell technology has long been seen as an attractive option to decarbonize heavy goods vehicles, especially for operators with demanding, extended-distance duty cycles where battery-electric options can struggle with range, payload and charging duration. But the industry has been long on promise and short on the refuelling infrastructure needed to accommodate fleets at scale.
The new station, which combines high pressure dispensing, significant daily throughput and direct co-location with green hydrogen production, aims to tackle a number of challenges that have historically restricted fuel cell HGV adoption in the UK. For fleet operators weighing up the move to hydrogen, the capacity to refuel accurately and consistently during the day can be just as crucial as the environmental credentials of the vehicles themselves.
The deal also points to the importance of specialist infrastructure providers like FCS in transforming hydrogen mobility aspirations into feasible assets. The UK is working toward its net zero objectives, but freight and logistics are some of the more difficult sectors to decarbonize due to the reliance on vehicles for long distances and heavy loads as well as tight delivery schedules. A market signal comes from infrastructure of this scale that hydrogen refuelling can be built to meet those needs.
The site for the new station is expected to be confirmed later in 2026, and the focus will now shift to how rapidly the fleet operators will act to capitalize on the capacity available and whether this project can be a model for other high-capacity stations elsewhere across the UK.