An OMV service station

Fuel company OMV has opened its first publicly accessible hydrogen filling station at its service station at Stuttgart Airport.

The result of a collaboration with Linde AG and Daimler AG and subsidised by the state of Baden-Württemberg, the project is centred on the use of hydrogen as an environmentally friendly energy carrier. Hydrogen filling stations represent an important step toward reducing dependence on fossil fuels in the long term and are a step closer to emission-free sustainable mobility.

The innovative hydrogen filling station will serve fuel cell vehicles such as the Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-CELL which goes into production later this year in Germany.

Linde's involvement stems from its expertise throughout the hydrogen value-creation chain - from hydrogen production to filling technology. Besides forklifts, Linde is a pre-eminent outfitter of hydrogen filling stations and distributes filling technology in 15 countries.

"As the pioneer of hydrogen technology, we have a particular responsibility to press ahead toward hydrogen-based sustainable mobility," says Linde AG director Dr Aldo Bellon. "Establishing the infrastructure for this future-oriented energy carrier calls for a concerted effort among the partners involved. We are delighted to have realised a filling-station concept of the latest generation together with OMV."