HySA Systems has successfully assembled the first fuel cell to be comprised fully of components manufactured in South Africa. The system, a 2 kW high temperature PEM fuel cell, is a collaboration between HySA and ZSW, the German Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research, whose stack technology was used in the project.
HySA is a fifteen year research programme initiated by the South African Department of Science and Technology, with an aim to increase the country’s research in hydrogen and fuel cells and, importantly, to create job opportunities. South Africa is the world’s largest platinum exporter.
Platinum is used as a catalyst in the majority of fuel cells and the South African government sees a strong opportunity to add value to its export through the production of platinum-containing fuel cell catalysts. In September 2010 Naledi Pandor, the then Minister of Science and Technology, boldly announced a goal of capturing 25 percent of the global fuel cell catalyst production market.
This long-term (15-year) Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies (HFCT) Research, Development, and Innovation (RDI) strategy was officially launched in September 2008 by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) in South Africa. The overall vision of the HFCT RDI strategy is to bring about wealth, job and IPR creation through the initiation of new high technology industries based on minerals found on South African soil, especially Platinum Group Metals (PGMs).
HySA Systems is an industry, technology and product development oriented Competence Centre, which has demonstrated on many occasions its ability to develop, build, commission and validate prototype systems.
Source: CPAfrica
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