Global investment manager Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners has invested £100 million of equity into Aegis Energy to fund a roll-out of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure for fleets in the UK.
Transport is the highest-emitting sector in the UK, accounting for 29% of greenhouse gas emissions. Commercial vehicles alone contribute 10% of the country’s total emissions.
The UK government has said it will introduce a ban on non-zero emission vans and trucks by 2035, rowing back on a commitment to phase out petrol and diesel vehicles by the end of this decade.
Keith Gains, managing director and UK regional lead at Quinbrook, which has around $4.8 billion (£3.9bn) of assets under management, said: “Targets under the UK’s zero emission vehicle mandate highlight the existing gaps in the infrastructure needed to provide accessible clean energy to transport fleets.”
London-based start-up Aegis Energy said it plans to install a network of five multi-refuelling stations across the UK by the end of 2027, the first of which is expected to launch in early 2026.
New refuelling stations are planned for Sheffield, Immingham, Warrington, Corby and Towcester.
It described installing depot infrastructure as “often impractical or unscalable, particularly where logistics operators lease their premises or there’s a grid constraint”.
The company said it has secured “sizeable grid connections” in more than its five planned locations and is expected to start construction on the first of the refuelling stations this year.
It said it plans to create a network of up to 30 multi-refuelling hubs by the end of the decade.
Each of the hubs is expected to reduce carbon-equivalent emissions by 14,300 tonnes per annum, the company said.
The roll-out will include multiple fuels such as hydrogen, bio-compressed natural gas derived from biogas, hydro-treated vegetable oil (HVO) and electric vehicle-charging.
“The transition will take time and play out differently for each fleet, but by providing public hubs with multiple clean energy charging and refuelling options, we’re supporting operators to choose how they want to make the transition,” said Aegis Energy co-founder Christopher Thorneycroft-Smith.
The hubs will serve low-carbon fuels including AdBlue, hydrogen, bio-CNG and HVO, with the capacity to refuel and charge 40 heavy goods vehicles and 25 vans.
