Hyzon Motors, a startup manufacturer of hydrogen-powered trucks, is building a fuel cell material factory in Bolingbrook that could make the southwest suburb a driving force in the emerging alternative fuel technology.
Expected to begin operation in the fourth quarter, the 28,000-square-foot facility will have the capacity to help produce up to 12,000 hydrogen fuel cell-powered trucks annually. Hyzon is planning to hire up to 50 full-time employees in Bolingbrook this year, with the hopes of expanding its facilities and its workforce down the road, the company said Monday.
“There’ll be more than 50 people in Bolingbrook over time,” said Craig Knight, chief executive officer and co-founder of Rochester, New York-based Hyzon. “There are other advanced technologies that are going to be developed in the Chicago area.”
Hydrogen is an alternative fuel used to power zero-emission electric vehicles, from cars to commercial trucks. Hyzon’s parent company, Singapore-based Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies, has been developing the technology since 2003, but the alternative power source has been slow to gain traction in the U.S. and other markets.
Launched last year, Hyzon is developing its own line of branded commercial trucks and buses to meet what it projects as growing demand for the heavy-duty hydrogen-powered vehicles as more countries look to limit carbon emissions. The power source is touted as an environmentally friendly alternative to diesel engines.
Located in an industrial park near Interstate 55, the leased Bolingbrook facility will produce the membrane electrode assembly — the guts of the fuel cell — which will then be shipped to Rochester for final assembly of the power source. The membrane electrode assembly previously has been made at a factory in China, Knight said.
The Bolingbrook facility will be the largest fuel cell material plant in the nation and the only one devoted to powering heavy-duty electric trucks, Hyzon spokesman Brian Brooks said. The company will work with truck manufacturers to build out the full vehicles, all of which will be branded with the Hyzon nameplate.
Hyzon Motors is planning to go public through a special purpose acquisition company during the second quarter with a $2.1 billion enterprise value. The company projects the commercial hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle market to grow from $1 billion to $20 billion over the next decade, according to an investor presentation.
The company has contracts in place with corporate and government customers in Asia, Australia and Europe, but the U.S. market for fuel cell trucks has been lagging, Knight said. Hyzon is betting the lack of new trucks is holding back demand.
Hyzon expects to build about 85 trucks this year, but plans to ramp up production quickly, with the Bolingbrook plant central to those plans.
“We will be at a run rate of at least 3,000 vehicles in 2023, and continuing to scale pretty rapidly from that,” Knight said.
The facility will also help supply fuel cells to other vehicle manufacturers, Knight said. The company plans to expand to 80,000 square feet of manufacturing space as demand ramps up.
