European home energy storage solutions provider Home Power Solutions (HPS) has announced the market availability of what it claims to be the world’s first hydrogen-based power and heating system for homeowners.
Consisting of a battery, an electrolyser, a hydrogen fuel cell, and hydrogen storage, the HPS Picea® combines several new developments in the energy industry in one, providing 100% off-grid clean and carbon free energy.
With around 100 times larger storage capacity (up to 1500 kWh) at 30% of the specific cost compared to other commercially available home batteries, the Picea® system also increases the benefit of a home photovoltaic (PV) installation.
The milestone was achieved through an innovation project with EIT InnoEnergy, one of Europe’s largest investors in sustainable energy innovations.
“We are extremely pleased with the huge leap forward made since starting our collaboration with EIT InnoEnergy in 2019,” said Zeyad Abul-Ella, Managing Director of HPS.
“Jointly, we have managed – vastly ahead of our initial schedule – to take Picea® from a working prototype to a large-scale commercially available product. One of the biggest challenges of PV has always been the variability of it.”
“With our system not only do PV installations gain short term energy storage in the form of a battery, but the on-board production of green hydrogen and an included fuel cell essentially removes the limits that once plagued PV.”
“Working with HPS is particularly exciting because the value offered by their Picea® system is so tangible,” said Christian Müller, CEO of EIT InnoEnergy Germany.
“Putting – as a world’s first at consumer level – battery, fuel cell and hydrogen storage technologies together in one package brings enormous benefits to homeowners, helps to bring down carbon emissions and has massive potential in further segments within the building sector.”
