Booming Sheffield hydrogen firm plans £4m relocation to Rotherham

A booming Sheffield hydrogen gas company is set for a £4m relocation into Rotherham.
ITM Power chief executive Graham Cooley says the firm has £40m of likely orders and an opportunity pipeline worth £200m.ITM Power chief executive Graham Cooley says the firm has £40m of likely orders and an opportunity pipeline worth £200m.
ITM Power chief executive Graham Cooley says the firm has £40m of likely orders and an opportunity pipeline worth £200m.

ITM Power is set to move into a large industrial unit in the borough with room to expand operations to meet a £40m pipeline of likely orders, with a further £200m of potential.

Boss Graham Cooley said the firm was transitioning from an “early tech and trials” outfit to one with repeat orders from big players.

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ITM Power, which employs 100, has a factory in Attercliffe and a development facility on the Advanced Manufacturing Park.

It makes hydrogen car refuelling stations and ‘gas to power’ units for energy storage. It is collaborating with firms including Shell, Toyota, National Grid and gas distribution company Cadent.

Mr Cooley said: “We have identified a factory that suits our needs in Rotherham which is bigger and has a larger power supply. It is close enough to where we are for staff retention, all our staff are important to us.

“The move is not finalised but it seems likely.

“The company’s pipeline of deals has more than doubled since last year showing strong and consistent growth in both the refuelling and power-to-gas markets.

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“The message is that ITM Power is doing incredibly well and is expanding.

“It is a good time to move. I think Rotherham and the city region are poised for significant growth.”

The relocation is set to cost £4.2m, the company has applied for a £400,000 grant from the Sheffield City Region Business Investment Fund.

As part of a transition from relying on grants to commercial sales, the company launched “Project Cavendish” to investors last year and £29.4m was raised from a share placing for working capital and new premises.

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The company’s technology is used to run electricity through water splitting it into hydrogen and oxygen.

Hydrogen cars produce electricity for their motors by re-combining the gas with oxygen from the air.

The only waste product is water.

If refuelling stations use renewable energy - such as solar or wind - the whole process is carbon-free, producing no greenhouse gases and no soot.