WXC 2025: GM’s Hydrotec-Based EV Charger Takes Center Stage

April 9, 2025

Matt Wolfe

GM’s mobile hydrogen power generation system will be on display in Hall D at Huntington Place in Detroit during WCX 2025. (Sebastian Blanco)

In 2022, General Motors announced that it was exploring commercial applications for its Hydrotec hydrogen fuel cells. Those efforts have culminated in a mobile hydrogen power generation system which is now on display at SAE WCX 2025 in Detroit.

The system was developed over the past year and consists of a pair of Hydrotec fuel cells providing 150 kW of DC power capable of DC fast charging up to two EV’s simultaneously. The unit can run continuously when connected to a dedicated external hydrogen supply or in remote applications thanks to a built-in hydrogen storage system with up to 40 kg/700 bar of H2. The total weight of the unit is approximately 10,000 lbs. (4,535 kg).

GM states that the unit can operate in temperatures ranging from -30°-55° Celsius (-22°-131° Fahrenheit). There are about 30 units currently in the field being used for various tasks. GM themselves had a unit on hand at the 12 Hours of Sebring in March to supply onsite charging for a fleet of Cadillac EVs used for ride and drives.

“It's been a hard push with our team to get these from concept to the prototype phase,” said James Boswell III, Product Engineering for GM. “Between building the first unit from ground up and starting to develop them, it’s been a challenge, but it's also been a lot of fun. We've got a great team that enabled us to bring all this technology to market and build this unit.”

According to Boswell, the power generation system has found numerous commercial applications such as fire relief and mobile charging in locations where EV infrastructure is sparse. “One of the big drivers for this unit was originally for EV assembly plants,” said Boswell. “EV plants don't necessarily have the infrastructure to charge. These can be placed onsite to alleviate that issue. We can bring these anywhere that needs supplemental charging.”

The concept is also expandable according to Boswell. “We could expand the unit to carry maybe four cubes with additional DC fast chargers. The technology there and so is the capability. The payoff is that this whole idea is scalable to basically any size we want depending on what a customer needs.”

The Hydrotec Fuel Cell Charging System is on display in Hall D at Huntington Place for the duration of WCX 2025. There will be demonstrations for registered WCX participants on Wednesday, April 9, every half hour from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. with a break from noon to 1:00 p.m.