The French equipment manufacturer Plastic Omnium announced on Monday the construction and opening, by the end of 2026, of a new hydrogen tank factory in the United States, with an investment of 170 million dollars. This “largest US hydrogen storage facility” will be located in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan, and will supply “a major US automaker,” according to a press release. This manufacturer, whose identity has not been revealed, had placed a “record order of 2,000 million dollars at the beginning of the year,” recalls Laurent Favre, general director of the equipment manufacturer, quoted in the statement.
In this new plant, “the group will design, develop and produce high-pressure hydrogen storage systems for emission-free mobility of heavy and commercial vehicles”, Plastic Omnium explains. The equipment manufacturer, already present in the state with three locations, in Adrian, Huron and Detroit, employing a total of about 1,000 people, aims to create 175 new industrial jobs. The project will receive $7.4 million in grants from the Michigan Economic Development Cooperation (MEDC), the company said, in addition to promised investments in infrastructure and support for public employment at the local level.
A storage systems factory in France in 2025
The order book had reached a record level in the first half of the year, exceeding the turnover of one year, which promised a good boost in the coming years. Almost 60% of these orders are related to electric vehicles, including hydrogen ones, and more than 70% will be produced in the Americas and Asia.
Plastic Omnium plans to open a hydrogen storage systems plant in Shanghai by 2026 and will lay the first stone of such a facility in France at the end of September, with a capacity of 80,000 tanks per year, an expected start-up by 2025 and 200 jobs. in Game.
Source: BFM TV
