Bosch Starts Volume Production of Its Fuel-Cell Power Module; Nikola Pilot Customer

Bosch has now begun volume production of its Fuel-Cell Power Module (FCPM) at its Stuttgart-Feuerbach location. Nikola Corporation, based in the United States, will serve as the pilot customer with its Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell electric truck, which is scheduled to enter the North American market in the third quarter of 2023.

The Bosch plant in Bamberg, Germany, will supply the Feuerbach factory with the fuel-cell stack. Important system components such as the electric air compressor and the recirculation blower come from the Bosch plant in Homburg, Germany.

Manufacturing the Fuel Cell Power Module in the Feuerbach plant.

Production of the fuel-cell power module is not only starting in Feuerbach, but also in Chongqing, China. The components it requires will come from the Wuxi plant. Bosch is the first company to produce these systems in both China and Germany, said Bosch chairman Stefan Hartung. In addition, Bosch is also planning to manufacture stacks for mobile applications in its US plant in Anderson, South Carolina. Worldwide, the company expects that, by 2030, one in five new trucks weighing six tons or more will feature a fuel-cell powertrain.

Bosch believes that only with hydrogen can there be a climate-neutral world. The company therefore strongly advocates the establishment of a hydrogen economy, and is stepping up its investments in hydrogen. Between 2021 and 2026, Bosch will have invested a total of nearly €2.5 billion in the development and manufacturing of its H2 technologies—another billion euros more than was earmarked in the investment plan for 2021 to 2024.