Toyota and partner kick off world's first 'Tri-gen' system at US port

LOS ANGELES: Toyota Motor North America and FuelCell Energy, Inc. have launched a so-called “Tri-gen” system at the Port of Long Beach, California.

This facility, a first of its kind in the world, uses biogas to produce renewable electricity, hydrogen, and usable water.

It is designed to support Toyota Logistics Services (TLS) at Long Beach, Toyota’s largest North American vehicle processing centre, which handles about 200,000 new Toyota and Lexus vehicles annually.

The Tri-gen system produces 2.3-megawatts of renewable electricity, with excess supplied to Southern California Edison under the California Bioenergy Market Adjustment Tariff program.

It also generates up to 1,200 kg/day of hydrogen, fuelling Toyota’s light-duty and adjacent heavy-duty hydrogen refuelling stations, supporting zero-emission logistics and drayage operations in line with California's Advanced Clean Fleet Regulation.

Furthermore, the hydrogen production process at Tri-gen yields up to 5,299 litres of water daily, which TLS uses for washing vehicles, saving 1.9 million litres of local water supplies annually.

The system is projected to reduce over 9,000 tons of CO2 emissions and more than six tons of NOx emissions from the grid each year, aligning with both Toyota’s and the Port of Long Beach’s carbon reduction goals.