In a rather disappointing global economic environment regarding hydrogen since the market is struggling to take shape, Inocel brings a breath of optimism by meeting deadlines and maintaining its technological lead in terms of high-power fuel cells.
The company (one of the key shareholders is the adventurer Mike Horn), which licenses around fifteen patents resulting from research by the CEA (Atomic Energy and Alternative Energies Commission) has installed in the premises of the former Alstom des Ailettes factory, in Cravanche on the edge of Belfort, its production site.
At the end of 2024, the Z 300 fuel cell will be delivered to its first customers. Production must then ramp up in 2025, initially for stationary uses (such as the production of electricity in buildings or industrial production sites).
Up to 3 million watts
Its main advantage is its environmental impact, which is zero. With hydrogen created with production surpluses from green systems such as solar or wind power, the battery makes it possible to provide electricity without any carbon emissions (only water).
Other companies produce this type of battery. Inocel stands out, however, by four points.
First of all, its compact power. With 300 kW and a weight of around one hundred kg, it is the most powerful battery in the world on the market. Its reactivity, then, since Inocel announces a battery capable of delivering its maximum power in less than two seconds, that is to say comparable to a diesel thermal engine. Its energy efficiency, of the order of 60%, also proves to be superior to forecasts and to traditional combustion engines. Finally, its modularity, since the batteries can be added to each other for a system of up to 3 million watts.
2025 is full of promise for the Belfort-based company which, however, finds itself at this always delicate moment between the state of a start-up and that of an industrial company producing large series.
