- Symbio, a Faurecia and Michelin hydrogen company, and Schaeffler Group, to establish Innoplate, a global joint venture (JV) to produce fuel cell bipolar plates (BPP), a strategic fuel cell component
- JV and first plant to be located in Haguenau, France, with JV targeting to produce c.50 million bipolar plates and employ more than 120 people by 2030
- JV first customer will be Symbio, which has been nominated for a project by a major global auto Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)
June 7, 2022 – Symbio, a Michelin and Faurecia hydrogen company, and Schaeffler signed an agreement for the creation of a 50:50 joint venture to produce fuel cell bipolar plates for global mobility and energy solutions. The JV will be located in Haguenau, in the Alsace region, France. It will combine the know-how of leading European automotive suppliers and a global leader in automotive fuel cell technology who together see vast potential in the developing hydrogen economy. It will also build a Franco-German partnership aiming at strengthening the European hydrogen mobility value chain.
The company, which will be operational under the brand name Innoplate by the end of the year will accelerate the production of next generation BPP for the entire proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell market, thus enhancing performance, capacity and cost competitiveness for its customers. The joint venture is expected to be established by the end of 2022, subject to customary conditions precedent such as applicable merger control clearances.
JV will industrialize production of fuel cell bipolar plates at large scale and create more than 120 qualified jobs in France
Start of production of the JV is planned for early 2024. The production unit will be located in Haguenau, France, and will have an initial capacity of 4 million BPP per year, aiming at producing annually around 50 million BPP globally and employing more than 120 people by 2030. The site will embody highest sustainability standards and will target net zero-emission operations.
Innoplate will enable and accelerate the mass-production of next generation BPP with Symbio and Schaeffler being the JV’s exclusive customers. Symbio has received a first major nomination for their fuel cell system from a leading automotive OEM and plans to use the JV to supply the BPP for this program.
Symbio has over 30 years of cumulated experience in developing fuel cell systems and offers a complete range of compact StackPacks, pre-validated and pre-integrated hydrogen systems that meet all requirements in terms of power and durability for zero-emission mobility.
Schaeffler, a leading global supplier to the automotive and industrial sectors, has high expertise in precise forming and stamping technologies, and a deep process know-how for large scale production of metallic bipolar plates. Within Schaeffler these are being used for electrolysers for the production of hydrogen and as a key element of fuel cell stacks for all types of mobile and stationary fuel cell applications. Schaeffler’s high level of vertical integration in the area of forming, as well as highly sophisticated coating processes, form the basis for its deep process know-how for large scale production of BPP.