Nel Issues Update Regarding Incident at Kjørbo: Status Update #5 June 27, 2019 Root Cause Identified

Oslo— Nel ASA (Nel, OSE:NEL) announces new findings from safety consultancy Gexcon regarding the incident at the Kjørbo hydrogen station on June 10, 2019.

The root cause of the incident has been identified as an assembly error of a specific plug in a hydrogen tank in the high-pressure storage unit. Following the identification of the root cause, Nel has initiated an inspection and integrity verification program for the high-pressure storage units with similar plugs.

 

The preliminary Gexcon investigation shows that the incident started with a hydrogen leak from a plug in one of the tanks in the high-pressure storage unit. This leak created a mixture of hydrogen and air that ignited. The investigations will continue into the specific source of ignition.

“Based on our investigations and analysis, we can conclude that the leak started in a specific plug assembly in one of the tanks of the high-pressure storage unit. We will continue the investigations to understand the possible mechanisms of ignition,” says Geirmund Vislie, Vice President Consulting of Gexcon.

Together with the authorities, Nel and Gexcon have finalized the off-site examination of the high-pressure storage unit. With the root cause now identified, Nel will conduct an inspection and integrity verification program for the high-pressure storage units with similar plugs. Additionally, Nel has initiated a program outlining new assembly, verification, and documentation procedures.

Previous generation stations, as well as US and Korea stations, have a different concept and design for the high-pressure storage units. As such, a leakage of the kind experienced at Kjørbo cannot occur at these stations.

Nel will present the preliminary findings from the Gexcon investigation at press conferences on Friday 28 June 2019; see separate announcements for more information.

“We deeply apologize to those directly and indirectly affected by the incident. Nel has an unwavering ambition: No incidents at sites with our technology. We take this extremely seriously and have deployed our full resources to resolve the situation. With the root cause now identified, we are implementing measures to prevent this ever happening again,” says Jon André Løkke, CEO of Nel, and continues:

“Further, we’re happy that the Nel core technologies were not the cause of the leak, and that the fueling stations with different high-pressure storage designs can be reopened soon.”

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Invitation to press conference regarding incident at Kjørbo

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Oslo, June 17, 2019 Nel ASA (Nel, OSE:NEL) announces new findings from safety consultancy Gexcon regarding the incident at the Kjørbo hydrogen station on June 10, 2019.

The preliminary Gexcon investigation shows that the incident started with a hydrogen leakage from the high-pressure storage unit and that a ‘cloud’ of hydrogen ignited. The investigations continue in order to identify the root cause of the leak as well as the source of the ignition.

“Based on further investigations, we can say with certainty that the leak started in the high-pressure storage unit, and we are now carrying out investigations to understand the detailed mechanisms of the leakage as well as what caused the ignition,” says Geirmund Vislie, Vice President Consulting of Gexcon.

Together with the authorities, Nel and Gexcon are conducting an off-site examination of the high-pressure storage unit, which comprises of both tanks and components from third-party suppliers and various components designed by Nel. Various tests and analysis have been initiated and will continue until the parties have a clear understanding of exactly where and how the leak started. Further investigations and data simulations will also look into the source of the ignition.

The low-pressure steel and composite storages were neither the source of the leak, nor the source of the ignition. No tanks ruptured in the incident.

Please see attached illustration of the site, including the highlighted high-pressure storage, which is now the main focus of the investigation.

“We can now conclude that Nel’s core technologies were not the source of the leakage. However, we are still searching for what ignited the hydrogen. We are grateful for all the parties that are working hard day and night to uncover the root cause of the incident, and are happy to see that good progress is being made,” says Jon André Løkke, CEO of Nel.

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Oslo— Nel ASA (Nel, OSE:NEL) announces preliminary findings from safety consultancy Gexcon regarding the incident at the Kjørbo hydrogen station on June 10, 2019.

“Based on what we have seen at the site, we can conclude that neither the electrolyzer nor the dispenser used by customers had anything to do with this incident. We will continue to analyze the other components of the site to further narrow down the source,” says Geirmund Vislie, Vice President Consultant of Gexcon AS.

In addition to the electrolyzer and the dispenser used by customers, the Kjørbo site comprises of a stationary low-pressure storage unit, a low-pressure transport unit, a stationary high-pressure storage unit, various valve panels, and a hydrogen refueling station unit.

The Kjørbo site also includes a containerized, pressurized alkaline electrolyzer that produces hydrogen in part from solar power. This is delivered by the Nel Hydrogen Electrolyser division.

“We are pleased with the preliminary findings, and our electrolyzer division will now return to business as usual,” says Jon André Løkke,

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Current status

Safety is Nel’s main priority and the company is working intensively to identify the root cause of the incident. Expert personnel are currently on the scene and actively contributing to the ongoing formal investigation. In addition, Nel has engaged independent fire and explosion safety consultants from Gexcon, who are on site and taking an active role to provide an independent incident report.

 

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(Updated: 12 June, 2019)

Nel announces that on Monday June 10, 2019, an incident occurred at the Kjørbo hydrogen station, located outside of Oslo, Norway. The incident has been contained, however the cause remains unknown. Nel is working closely with its partners and authorities in the ongoing investigation.

Nel received a report of an incident involving a fire at the Kjørbo hydrogen station at 17:40 CET on June 10, 2019. The fire was contained just after 20:00 CET. No serious injuries were reported. As one of the main equipment suppliers to the station, Nel immediately mobilized expert personnel to the scene and is actively contributing to the ongoing investigation.

“We are grateful for the swift work of emergency responders and that no major injuries have been reported. It is too early to speculate in the cause of the incident. Safety remains the core of our operations and we’re providing all relevant technical assistance in the ongoing investigation. In addition to immediately mobilizing our personnel to the scene, we have also brought in our experts from Denmark overnight. We will continue to work closely with all relevant parties to determine the root cause,” says Jon André Løkke, CEO of Nel.

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