Prime H2: Portable Renewable Integrated Modular Energy, Hydrogen

Energy Environmental Health and Safety

The Department of Defense requires reliable, non-hydrocarbon energy solutions to sustain operations at the edge while reducing logistics burdens. Nabors has developed Prime H2, a containerized Hydrogen & Electrical Generation System that produces on-demand electricity from water and solar inputs, completely eliminating reliance on diesel fuel. The system uses polymer electrolyte membrane electrolysis to generate hydrogen, which is then stored safely in advanced low-pressure hydrides. High-efficiency fuel cells, buffered by a battery bank, convert the stored hydrogen into electricity. This solution is modular and scalable, with configurations ranging from 4 kW to 1 MW to support everything from tactical field deployments to depot-level operations.

This innovation directly supports key DoD priorities by enhancing operational energy resilience and enabling expeditionary power generation. By producing fuel and power on-site, the system significantly reduces the need for vulnerable diesel resupply convoys, which in turn lowers emissions and increases mission endurance. The system also provides silent and reliable power, as demonstrated with NAVSEA. Furthermore, it offers dual-use benefits for disaster recovery, remote communities, and critical infrastructure resilience. The primary challenge is transitioning the current TRL 7 prototype into a fully production-ready platform. This requires planned upgrades to the hydrogen storage hydrides, control systems, and overall system autonomy to enable completely unattended operation in diverse environments. The technology has successfully reached Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 7. A fully functional 25 kW unit was demonstrated with NAVSEA at the SALV-EX exercise on Ford Island, HI. During this demonstration, the Prime H2 system powered multiple EMARC repair shops silently and reliably, proving its effectiveness in a relevant operational environment.