Air Products and NIPPON STEEL & SUMIKIN Pipeline & Engineering Sign Exclusive Long-Term Relationship Agreement

LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa., Oct. 31, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Air Products (NYSE: APD) today announced the signing of an exclusive long-term relationship agreement with NIPPON STEEL & SUMIKIN Pipeline & Engineering Co. Ltd. (NSPE) to jointly pursue hydrogen fueling station opportunities in Japan. The two companies also executed a software agreement allowing NSPE to use Air Products' proprietary hydrogen fueling software at these stations incorporating Air Products' hydrogen fueling technology and equipment. The two signings advance prior cooperative work between the companies in the hydrogen fueling market in Japan.

"Hydrogen fueling for vehicles in Japan continues to increase and NSPE is a well-respected company that we are both pleased and honored to work with on these growing opportunities. These new agreements formalize the joint work we have continued with NSPE, since signing an earlier understanding. We see the market in Japan pushing for vehicle growth in both cars and public transportation buses and our experience and technology is positioned well with NSPE to meet this customer demand over the next several decades," said Ed Kiczek, global business director – Hydrogen Energy Systems at Air Products.

"NSPE and Air Products have cooperatively carried out two unique projects so far, have respected each other's high technology and engineering, and have a deep trust. This agreement was able to be concluded through these accumulations. The Japanese government has been planning to install 320 hydrogen fueling stations and 200,000 FCVs by 2025, in Japan. We are greatly pleased that the combination of NSPE's technologies and experiences, and Air Products' unique advanced hydrogen fueling technology including their software will enable us to significantly contribute to the implementation of those targets," said Norihisa Sogabe, managing director – Energy Pipeline & Plant Engineering Division at NSPE.

The new long-term relationship agreement defines the exclusive cooperation between Air Products and NSPE in the design and construction of hydrogen fueling stations in Japan for automobiles, trucks or lorries, and buses or coaches. It also governs collaborative efforts in the bidding and execution of future projects. NSPE will be the primary interface with the end-user and customer. The software agreement will help to facilitate NSPE's performance under the long-term agreement to sell, construct, and support hydrogen fueling stations.

Air Products and NSPE had previously signed an agreement to explore working together on the hydrogen fueling market in Japan in February 2014. The two companies commercialized their first hydrogen fueling station in Japan in May 2016. Air Products' hydrogen fueling and biogas membrane technologies were integral to Japan's first biomass-based hydrogen demonstration project, placed onstream in January 2017.

Air Products, the leading global supplier of hydrogen to refineries to assist in producing cleaner burning transportation fuels, has vast experience in the hydrogen fueling industry. In fact, several sites for certain hydrogen fueling applications are currently fueling at rates of over 75,000 refills per year. Use of the company's fueling technology is increasing and accounts for over 1,000,000 hydrogen fills per year. The company has been involved in over 200 hydrogen fueling projects in the United States and 20 countries worldwide, including China. Cars, trucks, vans, buses, scooters, forklifts, locomotives, planes, cell towers, material handling equipment, and even submarines have been fueled using Air Products' technologies. Details on Air Products' hydrogen fueling station technologies can be viewed at www.airproducts.com/h2energy.

Air Products has more than 60 years of hydrogen experience and an extensive patent portfolio in hydrogen dispensing technology. The company provides liquid and gaseous hydrogen and a variety of enabling devices and protocols for fuel dispensing at varied pressures. Hydrogen for these stations can be delivered to a site via truck or pipeline; it can also be produced by natural gas reformation, biomass conversion, or by electrolysis, including electrolysis driven by renewable energy sources such as solar and wind.

About Air Products
Air Products (NYSE:APD) is a world-leading Industrial Gases company in operation for over 75 years. The Company's core industrial gases business provides atmospheric and process gases and related equipment to manufacturing markets, including refining and petrochemical, metals, electronics, and food and beverage. Air Products is also the world's leading supplier of liquefied natural gas process technology and equipment.

The Company had fiscal 2017 sales of $8.2 billion from continuing operations in 50 countries and has a current market capitalization of approximately $30 billion. Approximately 15,000 passionate, talented and committed employees from a diversity of backgrounds are driven by Air Products' higher purpose to create innovative solutions that benefit the environment, enhance sustainability and address the challenges facing customers, communities, and the world. For more information, visit www.airproducts.com.

About NIPPON STEEL & SUMIKIN Pipeline & Engineering Co. Ltd. (NSPE)
NSPE, a wholly-owned subsidiary of NIPPON STEEL & SUMIKIN ENGINNERING CO., LTD., which is a segment company of NIPPON STEEL &SUMITOMO METAL CORPORATION (NSSMC), has been engaged in the engineering business for energy related plants such as various types of pipelines, natural gas and LNG. NSSMC Group has an experience in the construction of hydrogen stations for the 2005 World Exposition, Aichi, Japan. NSPE has been involved in the construction of the major natural gas transmission pipelines in Japan for over 60 years, and also, provided plants such as LNG shipping and receiving facilities. For more information, visit www.nspe.nssmc.com.

NOTE: This release may contain forward-looking statements within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on management's reasonable expectations and assumptions as of the date of this release regarding important risk factors. Actual performance and financial results may differ materially from projections and estimates expressed in the forward-looking statements because of many factors not anticipated by management, including risk factors described in the Company's Form 10K for its fiscal year ended September 30, 2016.

SOURCE Air Products

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