In Germany, H2 Mobility has been operating a relatively large amount of hydrogen refuelling stations for a number of years now, but due to dwindling market demand for hydrogen vehicles - the company is making increased plans to shut down more of its stations in the country.

H2 Mobility is the largest operator of hydrogen refuelling stations in Europe and the company is going to be closing 22 of its sites in Germany by the end of June, effectively reducing the amount of hydrogen refuelling stations that are available in the country by more than 25%. This news comes as Shell has closed all but one of its hydrogen locations in California and Toyota has reported a 55.8% drop of its hydrogen car sales.

On the 31st December 2024, H2 Mobility closed six of its locations and then later this month on 31st March, 11 sites will close. By the end of Q2, another 11 will also close.

“For some years now, our strategic focus has been on a regional, demand-based expansion of the hydrogen infrastructure for light and heavy commercial vehicles. Older, small refuelling stations with a focus on passenger cars, some of which were built more than 10 years ago and no longer meet today’s technical and economic requirements, must be removed from the network where this is unavoidable.

H2 Mobility’s strategic orientation is geared towards regional demand-based expansion for light and heavy commercial vehicles. The company is focusing on regional hydrogen hubs in areas with high demand, such as urban centres or along major transport routes.”

Martin Jüngel - H2 Mobility Managing Director

While the market for hydrogen passenger cars is extremely small, Germany is actually one of the countries with the most hydrogen stations in Europe. It currently has 79 stations open, but by the end of June, once these 22 close - that'll leave just 57 left. For reference, France has just 14 stations and the UK has three open hydrogen stations, with another three planned.

H2 Mobility will instead focus on new hydrogen stations in better locations for commercial vehicles, which echos what Shell has planned going forward. Over the next six months, H2 Mobility will be opening two new locations Düsseldorf and Ludwigshafe.