Clean Logistics, Ballard Power Systems, Nel ASA - Hydrogen shows its strengths in logistics!

Clean Logistics - Clean trucks and buses refurbished in Germany

Clean Logistics does not build trucks or buses itself, but it is nevertheless an eMobility pioneer from Germany. Thanks to a clever concept, the Hamburg-based Company has found a way to completely replace the powertrain of large commercial vehicles with a combination of highly efficient fuel cells, flame-retardant battery storage and novel wheel hub motors. As a result, a refueling stop for such a vehicle takes no longer than a conventional diesel vehicle, and the range of a tank filling is also comparable.

In this way, transport and logistics companies can gradually convert their fleets to climate-neutral drives. This solution, which currently costs around EUR 500,000 per conversion, is not entirely cheap and will continue to be subsidized by the German government until at least 2024, with costs being covered by up to 85%. The Hanseatic Company recently announced an important decision: it had secured a strategic stake in E-Cap Mobility GmbH from Winsen an der Luhe, which has been in cooperation with the Company for some time, through a preliminary agreement. In a first step, 25.1% of the shares are to be acquired for a purchase price of EUR 2.5 million, with the remaining 74.9% to be taken over in the next few months. Ultimately, half of the shares are to be acquired through a contribution in kind of authorized capital and half through a cash payment. However, the deal's completion is still subject to several conditions and is pending a valuation report by an independent auditor.

The Company had the required conditional capital approved directly at the Extraordinary General Meeting held on the same day. It was also decided to carry forward the balance sheet profit of around EUR 630,000 in full to the new account. E-Cap Mobility is a specialist in the process of being established for the electric conversion of vehicles and plants and the provision of total solutions for mobile and stationary hydrogen systems, which aims to achieve profits in the double-digit million range as early as next year. With the acquisition of E-Cap Mobility, Clean Logistics is significantly increasing its footprint as a provider of climate-neutral drive alternatives. The acquisition is expected to accelerate the planned expansion of capacity to 300 conversions per year by 2023. It is important to do this to work off order books that are already filled well into 2025 when established commercial vehicle manufacturers such as MAN want to enter the ring.

Ballard Power Systems - There is life in the old dog yet!

2021 was not necessarily a source of joy for shareholders of the Canadian fuel cell specialist Ballard Power Systems. In the past 52 weeks, the share price plummeted from a high of CAD 59.30 to CAD 15.50, a loss of around 75%. In the meantime, the price has settled back around CAD 20. Meanwhile, the Company's management is relatively unimpressed by the share price caprices and continues to pursue its expansion course stoically. The Company recently announced the acquisition of Arcola Energy, a British specialist for powertrains and vehicle systems with fuel cell propulsion.

The Company is also planning to build large-scale fuel cells to provide backup power for data centers in collaboration with Microsoft and Caterpillar. The project, funded by the US Department of Energy, is intended to test a sustainable and uninterruptible power supply for sensitive infrastructure. The fuel cells required for this must deliver power in the megawatt range. Here, Ballard plays off its extensive experience and many years of expertise as an expert in fuel cell technology. There continues to be good news from the mobile power supply sector. The Company was recently able to announce the equipping of a further 13 fuel cell buses for the Californian Company New Flyer, following a previous order for 20 buses in October. There are currently around 150 orders for Europe. At present, more than 160 buses with Ballard fuel cells are already on the roads here.

Nel ASA - Short-term rebound above NOK 20 successful, what is next?

The share of the Norwegian hydrogen pioneer Nel ASA remains a hot potato. After halving in price since the beginning of the year, the stock started to recover again a few days ago. And this time, it was actually enough to jump above the psychologically important NOK 20 mark. By the end of the week, the share price had consolidated again down to NOK 18.14.

The signs for a further increase were quite good, but then the announcement from the US that the incumbent FED Chairman Powell had been nominated for another term caused unrest on the markets. Experts now expect three interest rate hikes in the coming year, which cannot be seen as positive for growth stocks like Nel for the time being. On the other hand, the Oslo-based company also has plenty of good news. They are continuing to work flat out to reduce the price of green hydrogen significantly. Currently, capacities at the Herøya plant are being ramped up to an automated production capacity of 500 megawatts in order to start processing orders from Nikola and the former spin-off Everfuel, which Nel still holds a stake of around 20%, in the fourth quarter. In the long term, the Company plans to expand capacity to up to 2,000 megawatts. Nel will thus remain the most important European player in the hydrogen sector.

Climate neutrality and the energy transition remain the buzzwords of our time. These challenges cannot be met without the use of hydrogen as an energy carrier. In the long term, therefore, investing in large hydrogen stocks such as Ballard or Nel ASA certainly makes sense. Clean Logistics is also exciting. The Company is already making a profit and has a technological edge over top dogs like MAN, Actros or Traton, which should not be underestimated.