Our journey from prototypes to marketable products
The present is about foresight. The future is about hydrogen. This is our conviction, and we follow up our words with deeds. We are working on technologies for generating and using green hydrogen. We start at the beginning of the hydrogen value chain: with electrolysis. By the end of the decade, we are planning to invest up to € 500 million in industrializing the Bosch PEM (proton exchange membrane) electrolysis stack, the centerpiece of hydrogen electrolysis. At the same time, we are investing about € 500 million in the development of decentralized power plants based on solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology.
Who are we? We are an interdisciplinary team of passionate experts. Headed by Dr. Wilfried Kölscheid, we are preparing for the market launch of the SOFC system. The project leaders in the development, industrialization, and sales of the PEM electrolysis stacks are Carola Ruse and Matthias Ziebell. Our headquarter is at Bosch’s Stuttgart-Feuerbach location; our sphere of influence is the entire world. The energy transition can only succeed if we work together and exchange information with all the players committed to advancing climate protection. The Bosch PEM electrolysis stack and the SOFC system are currently in the pilot phase – we are working flat out to prepare for series production.
As we move to alternative forms of energy, decentralized power supplies are becoming very important. The high-temperature fuel cell system from Bosch is ideal for establishing the local electricity and heat supply in many sectors.
One important key to the future of a hydrogen economy are technologies that can be scaled to large volumes. That’s how the Bosch PEM electrolysis stack contributes to a demand-oriented and clean hydrogen production with highest efficiency.
Milestones in development at Bosch
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2012-2018: Research and advance development of the SOFC -
August 2018: The beginning of our collaboration with Ceres Power to develop fuel cells and stacks -
October 2019: Commissioning of the first prototypes of a high-temperature fuel cell system at Bosch’s Homburg location. About 60 SOFC pilot systems are now installed at our locations in Bamberg, Homburg, Renningen, Schwieberdingen, Feuerbach, and Wernau, Germany. -
The Bosch solid oxide fuel cell system wins the Deutsche Gaswirtschaft Innovation Award in the Innovative Products category -
December 2020: Start of preparation for the series production of the Bosch SOFC system -
2021 – 2023: First pilot project outside a Bosch location with Stadtwerke Bamberg with a project period of three years -
May 2023: Entry into component development for hydrogen electrolysis -
July 2023: Official IPCEI funding notification for SOFC: As part of the IPCEI Hydrogen Program of the European Union (Important Projects of Common European Interest, IPCEI), the German Federal Government and the German Federal States of Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, and Saarland are funding the "Bosch Power Units" project.
