Green H₂ company Hiringa Energy (Hiringa), together with its investors and partners, launch Australasia’s first zero-emission green H₂ refueling network, Hiringa Refueling New Zealand (HRNZ), to propel New Zealand towards its goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The initiative is officially being opened by Minister of Energy and Transport, Hon Simeon Brown. With 25% of New Zealand's transport emissions coming from the heavy transport sector despite only making up four per cent of the vehicles on the roads, this marks a groundbreaking step towards decarbonizing the country’s heavy transportation sector.

The network has been established in partnership with New Zealand’s leading independent fuel supplier, Waitomo Group, and TR Group, Australasia’s largest heavy vehicle fleet owner. The launch sees three strategically located stations opening in Wiri (South Auckland), Te Rapa (Hamilton) and Palmerston North, with a fourth station in Tauranga progressing as an integral part of the new Tauriko SH29 roading infrastructure. Together, the green energy network is positioned to service 95% of the heavy freight routes across the North Island including the "Golden Triangle" of freight movement (between Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga).

With the opening of the network, H₂-powered trucks can go into commercial operation enabling heavy transport to begin its transition to zero-emission alternatives. The refueling stations are powered by clean, renewable energy and equipped with state-of-the-art technology, enabling H₂-powered heavy transport vehicles such as trucks and buses to refuel with green H₂ in 10 to 20 minutes.

"Heavy transport plays a vital role in our economy, but it’s also a significant contributor to our national emissions," said Andrew Clennett, Chief Executive Officer of Hiringa. "As a first-of-its-kind across Australasia and one of the first networks set up globally to service heavy transport, the initiative addresses this major challenge by providing operators with the infrastructure they need to switch to zero-emission transport in an efficient, scalable and commercially viable manner.”

Network infrastructure establishment has received support from the New Zealand Government via a $16 MM loan, growth capital from key investors including Sir Stephen Tindall’s fund K1W1, and international investment from Mitsui & Co., Ltd. and Green Impact Partners alongside Hiringa Energy.

Simon Parham, Chief Executive Officer of Waitomo Group said, "Green H₂ offers a versatile, alternative solution for long-haul trucking and other heavy transport vehicles as New Zealand begins the switch to future fuel generation. Waitomo has been fueling Kiwis for more than three generations, so we’ll also be part of the fuel solutions for the future generations.

“Partnering with Hiringa allows us to deliver on that vision by collocating the Hiringa refueling sites on our forecourts regularly used by heavy transport operators. Today’s milestone demonstrates what two innovative and entrepreneurial Kiwi companies working in partnership can achieve for NZ Inc.”

Brendan King, Group General Manager, TR Group Ltd said, “It has been exciting to be able to enable this groundbreaking initiative by bringing fuel cell truck technology to the NZ market. The technology unlocks a clean alternative for hard-to-abate sectors that are difficult to electrify, where H₂ meets the intense demands of handling long distances and heavy loads.

This project has been enabled via forward thinking companies such as NZ Post with many more set to come on board. Their early adoption and willingness to trial and introduce zero emission technologies to their fleet is highly commendable as without this leadership, our industry doesn’t get the learnings and proof points to move forward at scale.”