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Camper industry is discovering electrification

Tony Verhelle Posted On January 24, 2022

More and more manufacturers of recreational vehicles (RVs) are interested in electrification and deploying plans in that direction. Lately, two American names have joined the queue. Winnebago has presented an electric motorhome concept, and Thor industries did the same but also added an ‘e-assisted caravan’.

All over the world, camper specialists are working overtime to present electrified vehicles for a camper public that seems slowly moving in that direction. It’s true that many campsites already have an electrical installation that could be pretty easily adapted to the needs of the electric camper.

Winnebago e-RV Concept

The US manufacturer Winnebago Industries presented its Concept for a future motorhome with electric drive at the Florida RV SuperShow. The e-RV Concept is based on the Ford Transit; the drive comes from Lightning eMotors.

The concept vehicle includes an 86-kWh battery configuration. The company claims the range is about 200 kilometers. It says this meets the needs of the majority (54%) of new RV buyers who prefer trips of less than 200 miles. Charging is possible at home, at the campsite, and at public charging stations. At DC charging stations, the charging time is about 45 minutes.

The chassis is based on a Ford Transit platform modified with an electric drive system from Lightning eMotors that powers the drivetrain, vehicle controls, and living area. An integrated control system allows subsystems to operate, optimizing utilization and efficiency. Control is possible via a digital display on a tablet or smartphone app. The e-RV includes a water heater, induction hob and refrigerator, and a roof-mounted air conditioner with a heat pump. A Wi-Fi network with a dual modem router enables connection to the internet.

Thor Vision Vehicle

At the same Florida show, Thor Industries unveiled concepts for an electrically powered RV. However, Thor takes a different approach: the Thor Vision Vehicle (TVV) is not based on a third-party electric chassis but an electric chassis developed jointly with Roush.

In addition to the battery, the TVV has a fuel cell, enabling a range of up to 480 kilometers. However, no concrete performance figures or plans for a production model are yet known.

Airstream eStream Concept

Interestingly, Thor Industries has also presented a second electric concept: next to the electrically powered motorhome, there is a so-called ‘e-assisted caravan’.

The Airstream eStream Concept caravan is based on a high-voltage electric chassis from Thor and developed with ZF and Hymer. It has its own electric drive and batteries.

This means that the caravan should be able to drive itself when maneuvering and support the electric drive of the towing vehicle when traveling to the campsite, thus increasing the range of the vehicle and trailer combination.

Here also, Thor does not currently provide technical data. Nevertheless, a rough estimate is possible because the platform developed by ZF and Thor subsidiary Hymer is known: In the summer of 2021, a prototype caravan crossed the Alps with an Audi e-tron as the towing vehicle, without recharging.

Two 90 kW electric motors were installed in the E-Home Coco prototype, and the caravan also had two 40 kWh batteries each, which were also capable of fast charging.

Environment / Hydrogen / Industry / Product / Technology

Hyundai winds down development of new fuel cell

Piet Andries Posted On December 30, 2021

Just days after Hyundai announced that it is shutting down its internal combustion engine development team, the company is also pushing the pause button on its hydrogen car project. The company was developing its third-generation fuel cell at luxury brand Genesis. But the South Korean economic newspaper Cosun unveiled that the project has now been stalled.

Only a few months ago, the Korean carmaker had presented a hydrogen road map, which showed that its latest fuel cell would go into production by 2025. Compared to the second generation, which features in the current Hyundai Nexo, the focus was much more on lower production costs and reducing the price by half. Hence, making the fuel cell smaller but more efficient than the previous one.

It seems that the company has concluded that the stringent objective can’t be met, to which it responded by reorganizing the involved team and reducing the role of the hydrogen department.

Reboot remains unclear

According to the original plan, that team was supposed to be working on the third-generation fuel cell for four years to come. Whether Hyundai will reboot the program remains unclear.

Together with the national government, the Korean car manufacturer wants to prepare for a hydrogen society with a significant role for the energy carrier in mind by the end of the decade. But the questionable feasibility of hydrogen cars has come to the attention of CEO Chung Eui-sun, following an audit.

Modest projections

The sales figures aren’t great. The ambition of the Korean government was to have 80 000 hydrogen cars on the road by the end of 2022. As for now, only a mere 20 000 have been dispatched, export included.

Catching up on those numbers would be a gargantuan task, further complicated by an expansion of the fueling infrastructure that is dragging. Only half of the projected number of stations in Korea have been built.

Projections for the commercialization of hydrogen cars remain modest, with about 3% of the global car fleet by 2030, according to the other major hydrogen player Toyota. Hyundai’s decision seems another blow for the uptake of the novelty technology.

Hydrogen / Top Stories Today

World’s first liquefied hydrogen carrier embarks for Australia

Joris Van Roy Posted On December 29, 2021

The world’s first purpose-built liquefied hydrogen carrier is on its way from Japan to Australia to pick up its first load. Built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries in Japan, the 110-meter long Suiso Frontier can transport 75 tonnes of liquified hydrogen at a temperature of minus 256°C.

That way, the volume of the gas in 1 250 m³ vacuum-insulated, double-shell-structure tanks is compressed 800 times. It’s no ‘green hydrogen though, but ‘blue’, as it is produced in Australia from brown coal, and CO2 is captured and sequestered underground during the process. And the ship itself is running on diesel-electric propulsion.

9 million tonnes by 2050

Kawasaki Heavy Industries was one of the first Asian shipbuilders to develop LNG tankers (liquid natural gas) in 1981. Now it wants to build 80 hydrogen carriers to import 9 million tonnes of hydrogen a year by 2050. By 2030, two more H2 ships should allow Japan to import 25 000 tonnes per year through a newly-built terminal in Kobe City.

This first ship was built for the ‘CO₂-free’ Hydrogen Energy Supply-chain Technology Research Association (HySTRA). This Japanese-Australian venture started producing hydrogen from brown coal in the test project that aims to show liquefied hydrogen can be produced and exported safely to Japan.

CO2-free energy supply

The association wants to create a CO₂ free hydrogen energy supply chain comprised of hydrogen production effectively utilizing brown coal, transportation, storage, and utilization of hydrogen, and establishing and demonstrating the technologies to commercialize the supply chain around 2030.

The $362 million project is backed by the Japanese and Australian governments and groups several companies on both sides. That includes J-Power, Japan’s Electric Power Development Iwatani, Marubeni Corp, Sumitomo Corp, and Australia’s AGL Energy. The latter owns the mine which is supplying the brown coal.

The Suiso Frontier is expected to need 13 days for a one-way trip and should be back in Japan by mid-February. After that, the line will be further intensified to prove to the world that it is possible to produce ‘clean’ hydrogen in one part of the world and transport it globally in an economically feasible way.

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Top Stories Today

300 waste collection trucks on hydrogen for Geesinknorba

Joris Van Roy Posted On December 23, 2021

American hydrogen truck builder Hyzon has signed a supply agreement with the Dutch Geesinknorba group for 300 refuge collection trucks. In the three-year contract, Geesinknorba is assigned to be Hyzon’s exclusive vendor for zero-emission refuse trucks.

Geesinknorba operates in more than 30 countries and is already a pioneer in zero-emission waste collection with options for hybrid and full electric refuse trucks within its fleet of 7 500 vehicles. The first Hyzon trucks are expected to be deployed by Geesinknorba to the government of Barcelona. They will be produced in Geesinknorba’s facility in Emmeloord and Hyzon’s manufacturing plant in Groningen, the Netherlands.

Significantly quieter

According to the partners, “diesel-powered refuse collection vehicles suffer from high maintenance costs and extremely poor fuel efficiency due to the nature of their daily operations and are frequently the source of noise complaints in residential neighborhoods”.

“Refuse collection offers a particularly suitable application for hydrogen fuel cell technology, as the back-to-base model allows for a central refueling infrastructure. Operating the hydraulic compaction system and lifters for many hours each day is very demanding. Hyzon’s hydrogen-powered fuel cell trucks can readily meet these operational requirements. Battery and fuel cell electric vehicles are also significantly quieter than traditional refuse collection trucks.”

Joint venture in Holland

Hyzon, a spin-off from Singapore’s Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies based in Rochester, N.Y., is building the trucks in a joint venture with Holthausen Clean Technology BV. The latter is a family business specializing in converting diesel trucks into fuel cell trucks.

They even have their own ‘green hydrogen’ production set up with a 42 000 unit solar panel park, built on a former refuse dump, providing electricity for the company’s electrolyzer to make the hydrogen.

A hobby that got out of hand

The hydrogen truck business started as a hobby that got out of hand when the local authorities asked the Holthausen family to convert an old street sweeper on diesel to hydrogen. Since then, Holthausen became a local name in converting trucks and vans to FCEVs as well. Last year, the company fused with American Hyzon, which resulted in several mega-orders.

Sinds the fusion, the American-Dutch company delivers trucks in three classes, from 24 to 44 tons and beyond. The trucks themselves are bought – without the diesel engine – from classic truck manufacturers like DAF and converted to FCEV. In this case, Geesinknorba will add the necessary waste compacting equipment for the refuse trucks.

Leasing service in Europe

Hyzon announced in April that it is launching its leasing service in the European Union. It’s intended to be a ‘holistic fleet leasing offering’ for the European market, including the Hyzon FCEV trucks, hydrogen fuel, insurance, service, and maintenance.

Dutch dairy company FrieslandCampina was one of the first in the Netherlands to commission a hydrogen-driven 50-ton milk truck on the roads in the Groningen region in July this year.

But Hyzon’s biggest order came in earlier this year, for the delivery in the next five years of 1 500 heavy-duty trucks on hydrogen to New Zealand’s Hiringa Energy. The New Zealand hydrogen specialist builds a countrywide network of hydrogen stations and offers the trucks to clients for sale or leasing contracts.

Hydrogen / Product / Top Stories Today

Peugeot’s first FCEV is ready: the e-Expert Hydrogen van

Joris Van Roy Posted On December 21, 2021

Last week the first hydrogen-powered Peugeot has rolled off the production lines: the e-Expert Hydrogen van. The latter is the peer of the Opel Vivaro-e and the Citroën Jumpy on hydrogen light vans that get fuel cells from Symbio, the joint venture between Faurecia and Michelin. The vehicles combine a fuel cell and a battery to offer a range of more than 400 km.

The Peugeot e-Expert Hydrogen is based upon the electric version of the van. The latter is built first at the Hordain-site (Nord, Hauts de France) and finished in Germany at the Opel’s Russelsheim site, which has become Stellantis’ competence center for hydrogen.

Michelin startup

The first vehicles will be delivered to Michelin’s startup Watèa providing a subscription model that offers fleet owners a subscription model for zero-emission vehicles and a complete ecosystem of services. The FCEV van is deliverable in two versions, Standard and Long, with the same 6,1 m³ load capacities as its diesel siblings and haulage capacity of 1 000 kg.

The Peugeot e-Expert Hydrogen gets a 10,5 kWh lithium-ion battery, which allows driving 50 km on pure battery power and can be plugged in to charge like the BEV version. The battery, situated under the front seats, can deliver dynamic peak power when required, for example, at start-up, and under acceleration.

Increased range

The most significant advantage of the fuel cell version is an increased range of more than 400 km and the possibility to refuel in less than three minutes. The battery-electric version offers ranges of 230 km (50 kW battery) or 330 km (75 kW), respectively.

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Top Stories Today

Hype to expand Paris hydrogen taxi fleet to 10 000

Joris Van Roy Posted On December 16, 2021

Paris zero-emission taxi provider Hype, currently running a fleet of more than a hundred H2-powered cabs, has raised another €20 million with French hydrogen pioneers HRS and McPhy to expand that fleet to 10 000 by 2024. Ready for the Olympics in the French capital, the latter includes 20 hydrogen filling stations in the Ile-de France region.

Twelve million is put on the table by McPhy, which develops hydrogen storage and production solutions for the merchant hydrogen market. The other eight million come from Hydrogen Refueling Solutions (HRS), the French specialist in hydrogen filling stations from 100 kg a day to one tonne.

H2-stations up to one tonne a day

Hype has committed itself to buy six H2-stations with a one-tonne capacity minimum with each of them and two electrolyzers to produce green hydrogen locally. But the ambition of founder and CEO Mathieu Gardies goes further than that. He dreams of rolling out 40 000 zero-emission taxis in 15 new cities in France and abroad by 2025; he told the newspaper La Tribune.

Mathieu founded in 2009 STEP ((Société du Taxi Electrique Parisien) and launched in 2015 the hydrogen taxi brand Hype with five cars and one hydrogen filling station set up, at the occasion of the Paris Climate Conference (COP21).

Hyundai and Toyota

Since then, the fleet has grown, and Hype runs 110 hydrogen cars around Paris, mostly Hyundai ix35 PCEVs and several Toyota Mirais. A complete ‘zero-emission’ taxi sector with 10 000 vehicles by 2024 with the Olympic Games is the ultimate dream.

Meanwhile, HysetCo was set up as an asset management company to run the fleet of hydrogen-powered taxis in Paris under the Hype brand. It’s a joint investment of €100 million from initial partners Toyota France, French hydrogen specialist Air Liquide, French energy provider Idex, and some new partners (RGREEN Invest, Mirova, RAISE Impact) Eiffel Investment Group) will allow financing the green conversion.

8 million km on hydrogen

In May of this year, French petroleum group TotalEnergies announced the purchase of a 20% share of HysetCo. HysetCo acquired cab operator Slota Group and wants to progressively replace some 600 diesel taxis with Toyota Mirai FCEVs to start with, and a second hydrogen filling station is already opened. TotalEnergies will make its network of service stations available to contribute to the growth of the hydrogen stations network.

These big names should assure that Hype – what rather means trendy in French – doesn’t turn out to be a ‘media hype’ when the next Olympics are to start in Paris. Today, Hype claims to have driven 8 257 839 km on hydrogen since its birth in 2015, transporting 1 238 687 people. On top of producing only vapor as emissions, it says having avoided 4,7 tonnes of NOx over that period.

Climate / Energy / Environment / Europe / Hydrogen / Legislation / Mobility / Public transport / Top Stories Today / Transport / Weekly Newsletter

EU plan: faster trains, EV chargers, and H2-stations along TEN-T network

Joris Van Roy Posted On December 15, 2021

The EU Commission has presented a four-pillar Action Plan for a cleaner, greener, and smarter mobility on the cross-border transport network through Europe and its nine major corridors. That means shifting more passengers and freight to rail and inland waterways, the roll-out of charging points every 60 km along highways, hydrogen filling stations at 150 km intervals, and making one-click cross-border ticketing possible, among others.

It won’t come for free, as an estimated 247 billion euros extra will be needed by 2050. But, according to EU Commissioner for Transport Adina Vălean, on the other hand, the EU’s Gross Domestic Product should grow by €467 billion, creating 840 000 jobs during that period.

Easy-to-find tickets

“Today’s proposals set European mobility on track for a sustainable future: faster European rail connections with easy-to-find tickets and improved passenger rights support for cities to increase and improve public transport and infrastructure for walking and cycling, and making the best possible use of solutions for smart and efficient driving,” says Frans Timmermans, Vice-President of the Commission responsible for the Green Deal.

The proposal mainly concentrates on the so-called TEN-T network. The latter is an EU-wide network of rail, inland waterways, short-sea shipping routes, and main roads. It connects 424 major cities with ports, airports, and railway terminals. To give an idea in figures: the core rail network is 64 572 km out of a total of 119 078 km, the core road network 47 318 km out of 108 597 km, and inland waterways account for 15 451 km.

Cutting traveling times

“When the TEN-T is complete, the EU Commission says, it will cut travel times between these cities. For example, passengers will be able to travel between Copenhagen and Hamburg in 2,5 hours by train, instead of the 4,5 hours required today.”

Passenger trains along the TEN-T network will have to achieve speeds of 160 km/hour while crossing national borders without the need to change train drivers, as is the case today. It also includes new high-speed train connections between the port city of Vigo in Spain and Porto (Portugal) and between Budapest (Hungary) and Bucharest (Romania) before 2040.

Only 7% of train trips cross borders

International traveling by train should be made far more convenient. Only 7% of rail kilometers traveled between 2001 and 2018 involved cross-border trips, the Commission says. The EU wants to prepare a legislative proposal in 2022 to boost user-friendly multimodal ticketing so that people can buy a combined ticket for different linked transport modes in one go. And that without paying VAT on train tickets EU-wide.

Much work is needed to remove national boundaries on connected rail networks, like scrapping redundant national technical and operational rules and guidelines for track access pricing in 2023. That should ease rail operators’ access to infrastructure, increase competition, and allow more attractive ticket prices for passengers.

Freight trains transporting heavy trucks

Freight trains should be able to achieve 100 km/hour on average and grow longer to transport more goods. Putting heavy semi-trucks on trains to relieve traffic pressure on highways is one of the other goals.

Another pillar is a stronger focus on sustainable urban mobility. That requires all 424 major cities along the TEN-T network to develop Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans to promote zero-emission mobility and increase and improve public transport and infrastructure for walking and cycling.

Next year, the EU Commission will publish its recommendation of prioritizing zero-emission solutions for urban fleets. That includes taxis and ride-hailing services, the last mile of urban deliveries, and the construction and modernization of multimodal hubs as new digital solutions and services.

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Industry / Product / Top Stories Today

Has Toyota yielded in favor of EVs?

Piet Andries Posted On December 15, 2021

On a podium floor flooded with EVs, Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda addressed the media on Tuesday to outline the new EV plans of his company. The Japanese car manufacturer is accelerating its efforts.

A boosted total investment of 8 trillion yen (€31 billion) is foreseen to get 30 EV models in the overall line-up by 2030. On top of that, Lexus turns fully electric by then (at least in North America, Europe, and China).

Previously announced targets were 15 Toyota and Lexus models with battery power by 2025. Doubling that amount in the showroom means that the group’s plants will assemble 3,5 million BEV cars, roughly 30% of Toyota’s global production, by 2030.

Impressive line-up

Toyoda was flanked by more than a dozen EV models in his showroom of the future. They ranged from city cars, small LCV models for last-mile solutions, SUVs, a baby Land Cruiser, a zero-emission successor to the MR2, and even a Lexus sports car that seemed to be the LFA of times to come, which Toyoda confirmed. Impressive is the least you could say.

Far from every car was presented in detail. Officially, it was only announced that the bZ4x would get a little brother. While Lexus will get its own version of the bZ4x, called the RZ.

No binding agreements

With an “EV for everyone” on show, one would think that the Japanese car manufacturer has finally yielded in favor of the electric car. Initially, it took a rather lukewarm stance in the matter. For example, the company turned down several invitations for signing a binding agreement on a ban for producing ICE cars.

But even now, a closer look unveils that the ICE technology isn’t vanishing for the biggest car manufacturer in the world. The most important carmakers are aiming at 50% BEV production in 2030. Not a third, like Toyota.

In his speech, Toyoda explained: “It is not us but local markets and our customers who decide which options to choose. As for why we try to keep so many options, in terms of business management, one might think it’d be more efficient to focus on fewer choices.”

Developing continents

In contrast to a rival like Volkswagen, Toyota’s business experiences a more substantial exposure in developing countries that will struggle decisively more with the energy transition. For those regions, it wants to hold on to internal combustion engines, although in more advanced versions than today.

And there will be multiple hybrid options, too, of course. Bear in mind that this is also one of the reasons why Lexus will be only fully electric in certain parts of the world by 2030.

Keep the workforce

More precisely, Toyota also still intends to invest in the hydrogen conversion of ICE, next to e-fuels. As such, it can make old-school technology emission-free and, more importantly, keep a significant amount of the workforce on board that has been working with conventional engines in the past.

Toyota is not the only Japanese car manufacturer to persist in developing the internal combustion engine. Mazda, Subaru, Yamaha, and Kawasaki joined in the plans as well.

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Maritime / Technology / Top Stories Today / Transport

Container barge FPS Maas to start sailing on hydrogen

Joris Van Roy Posted On December 8, 2021

The inland container barge FPS Maas is the first of the fleet to start sailing between Rotterdam and Antwerp on hydrogen-powered fuel cells. Dutch shipping company Future Proof Sailing just signed a long-term agreement with AirLiquide to supply green hydrogen in specially designed multi-modal hydrogen storage containers on deck.

As a zero-emission vessel owner, FPS aims to build and operate a fleet of ten zero-emission inland and short-sea vessels over the next five years, offering charter to logistics service providers and cargo owners. A converted barge like FPS Maas is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2 000 CO2 tons annually.

Swappable hydrogen containers

The 110-meter-long FPS Maas is the first of currently three FPS-owned inland container barges that are being converted to pure electric propulsion with a PEM fuel cell system, battery, and ample hydrogen onboard storage in two swappable 40-foot containers with each 500 kg of hydrogen at 300 bar.

The classic diesel engine and gearbox are replaced by electric motors powered by fuel cells. The fuel cell system, delivered by Koedood Marine Group, will be triple redundant with an 825 kW (3 x 275 kW) capacity to supply propulsion and auxiliary power.

A total of 504 kWh lithium-ion battery capacity is used as a backup for peak shaving, secondary and bridging power. A 300 kWh pack is situated at the bow to power the bow thruster. The barge is retrofitted at the Holland Shipyards Group’s yard in Hardinxveld and is expected to start sailing in December or the beginning of next year.

Easily transferable solution

According to FPS, the solution can be easily replicated to other ships, trains, and other applications. As part of their business, FPS also facilitates other shipowners who are ready to make the shift to zero emissions through technical support as well as project development and management.

In October, the green shipping company acquired two more container vessels, the FPS Rijn and FPS Waal, which will be converted to hydrogen and will start sailing on the Rivers Rhine and Waal from 2023 on.

Air Liquide and FPS also partner in the RH2INE Program (Rhine Hydrogen Integration Network of Excellence), which aims to decarbonize inland shipping on the Rhine river and is endorsed by the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure & Water Management.

Sailing on battery power only

Another solution seen in the Netherlands for inland shipping is to use pure battery power delivered from swappable containers on the deck of converted barges with electro-propulsion.

A young Dutch company called ‘Zero Emissions Services’ (ZES) offers a service of swappable battery containers for fully electric inland barges. Those containers can be swapped at the destination for a charged one instantly or be charged by a one-megawatt supercharger in about 2,5 hours. Heineken was the first client to sign a 10-year contract.

In August of this year, Dutch brewer Heineken started shipping 2,5 million export beer bottles at once packed in containers on the fully electric inland barge Alphenaar. Two ZESPack containers onboard are stuffed with batteries, delivering two megawatt-hours each.

Climate / Europe / Hydrogen / Industry / Product / Technology

Toyota’s product show is not an all battery-electric future

Piet Andries Posted On December 3, 2021

Toyota’s idea of our electric future is not just about battery-electric cars. That was the bottom line of the Kenshiki (translated as ‘Insight’) forum held in Brussels on Thursday. The brand showcased the new production model Corolla Cross Hybrid, some European premieres, and further outlined its path toward carbon-neutrality in Europe by 2035.

Alongside the European debut of the all-electric bZ4x and limited-run sports car, the GR86 – vehicles that we previously got to see – the company’s take on the future put an undeniable accent on hydrogen.

Fuel cell 2.0

The Japanese company remains a strong believer. As of January 2022, its second-generation fuel cell will be produced. It will also be assembled in Zaventem. The new modules now come in two forms (cube and rectangular), work more efficiently, and the stack has a higher density than before. It will not be solely used for cars. Toyota is also building it for third partners.

Toyota believes that Europe will be a crucial adopter for hydrogen, which explains why it starts production locally.

The toolbox

The company brought along a version of its successful rally car, the Yaris GR, emitting only water vapor to make its stance on hydrogen a bit more exciting. Engineers had transferred the powertrain from the Corolla Sport, which competes in the Japanese Super Taikyu Race Series with a combustion engine running on hydrogen. Together with some other Japanese brands, the company wants to promote racing on alternative fuels.

That’s fitting because Toyota outlined at the Kenshiki forum once more why it didn’t sign the treaty at COP26 to end sales of combustion engines by 2040. Gill Prat, TMC Chief Scientist, explained: “While Toyota is committed to making millions of Battery Electric Vehicles available to customers, the way to reduce the most net carbon emissions globally is to use every item in our toolbox, including Hybrid Electric, Plug-in Hybrid Electric, Battery Electric, and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles […].”

In other words, the diversity of markets worldwide will still demand a myriad of powertrains in the future.

Fifth-generation self-charging hybrid

The all-new Corolla Cross showcased Toyota’s expertise in hybrid drivelines. The SUV version of its compact car introduced the fifth generation of the self-charging hybrid powertrain (HSD), with now a 40% lighter lithium-ion battery assisting the 2.0-liter combustion engine. It will be made available as a front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive, while total system output has been boosted to 197 hp.

As for electric vehicles, Toyota expects that by 2030 the sales mix will be a minimum of 50% in Western Europe, with the capacity and capability to increase further should customer demand go even higher.

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Public transport / Top Stories Today

Toyota and DRIVR launch 100 H2 cabs in Copenhagen

Hilde Van Raemdonck Posted On November 19, 2021

On Friday, 5 November, Toyota and app-based taxi service DRIVR have launched more than 100 hydrogen cabs on the road in Copenhagen. The Danish government no longer admits Co2-emitting taxis from 2025, and by 2030, all new cabs must be zero-emission vehicles.

The taxi industry in Denmark is seen as a key driver of the green transition, and the Danish government’s objective for taxis must finally lead to the ‘greening’ of other public means of transport.

Emitting only water

The app-based taxi service DRIVR is a forerunner of the green transition. DRIVR customers could already choose between hybrid, electric, or even hydrogen cars. Still, thanks to a new collaboration with Toyota, the company has increased its fleet of fuel-cell vehicles in Copenhagen significantly.

All 100 new taxis will be Toyota Mirai models, the world’s first mass-produced hydrogen car, only emitting vapor and water while driving. Today only Hyundai is commercializing an alternative on hydrogen, the Nexo. In the first six months of this year, some 8 400 hydrogen cars were sold worldwide, 3 700 Mirai’s, 4 700 Nexos according to SNE Research.

DRIVR had won a tender from the city of Copenhagen to handle the entire municipality’s so-called ‘ad-hoc cab service’. This means that in the future, children with disabilities, mentally disabled citizens, citizens on their way to hospitals, municipal employees, and politicians will take the hydrogen cab and get around with zero emissions.

‘Rolling showcases’

Tejs Laustsen Jensen, CEO of Hydrogen Denmark: “The switch from black diesel to green hydrogen ensures the same operation and flexible mobility without harmful emissions.” He considers the taxis “rolling showcases for green hybrid technology”.

Haydar Shaiwandi, CEO DRIVR: “We are incredibly proud that DRIVR has been entrusted with the important task of helping the municipality drive Copenhagen greener, and we are very grateful for the cooperation with Toyota, which has enabled us to fulfill the task of the many new Toyota Mirai hydrogen cars.” Toyota reports a growing interest in hydrogen cars in the taxi industry and welcomes DRIVR’s forward-looking approach to mobility.

Olso, Paris, and Madrid

It is not clear yet whether the fleet will consist of Mirai I models of the first generation, the 2014 model, or a mixture of both generations – the second one was built in 2020. The Mirai II is technically more advanced, built on a different platform, and has rear-wheel drive.

The recently launched Mirai cabs are not the first ones in cab or ride-hailing use. In September this year, Viggo announced to add Mirai models to its Norwegian fleet in Oslo. Also, Madrid plans to introduce 1 000 hydrogen taxis in the city.

And HysetCo, the French asset management company that runs a fleet of hydrogen-powered taxis in Paris, is planning 600 new fuel-cell cabs to replace the fleet of 600 polluting diesel vehicles progressively.

600 Toyota Mirais in Paris

In 2015, Paris put five hydrogen-powered electric taxis in use under the brand Hype. Since then, the fleet has grown, and early in 2021, the company already had 110 hydrogen cars operational in and around Paris, mostly Hyundai ix35 PCEVs.

In July 2019, Hype announced an agreement with Toyota to deliver nearly 500 Mirai models by the end of 2020. But that time scheme was somewhat too optimistic and without counting in a pandemic that paralyzed the world in 2020.

In May 2021, French petroleum group TotalEnergies announced the purchase of a 20% share of Hysetco, the company managing the Hype hydrogen taxis running in Paris. The arrival of TotalEnergies in the game is good news for Hysetco, as it has declared that it will make its network of service stations available to contribute to the growth of the hydrogen stations network.

Energy / Hydrogen / Legislation / Technology / Top Stories Today

France: President Macron raises hydrogen budget to €9 billion

Félix Bouland Posted On November 17, 2021

While visiting the industrial start-up Genvia on Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that the government’s investment in hydrogen will benefit from an additional €1,9 billion, as part of the investment plan ‘France 2030‘. The President wants to fight for the country’s industrial reconquest and the climate battle at the same time.

“There’s no fatality. We never respond to the difficulties of the time by being nostalgic for a past that no longer exists, but by redoubling our ability to resist and not give in, to think of the future in terms of its new dynamics. If we know how to be leaders in hydrogen production, then we will build sovereignty,” declared Emmanuel Macron.

France 2030

Unveiled in October, the ‘France 2030’ plan lays the ground for a 30-billion-euro investment in hydrogen, nuclear, electric cars, green airplanes, renewable energies, and aerospace.

While visiting Genvia, a start-up specializing in hydrogen production from excess heat from industrial production, French President Macron announced that hydrogen would get an envelope of €1,9 billion. This budget will be added to the 7-billion-euro strategy announced in September 2020. The total amount invested by France in hydrogen is thus bumped up to nearly €9 billion.

On that subject, one year after the announcement, 15 companies have already been selected for the hydrogen development finance, at up to 5,8 billion euros. One of them is Belgian John Cockerill, concentrating on constructing alkaline electrolyzers through its French subsidiary.

Fatal heat

On Tuesday, the President visited Genvia. The French start-up is developing a new kind of electrolyzers. Instead of using the traditional alkaline method to convert water into hydrogen and oxygen, Genvia has developed a ‘high temperature’ method, which doesn’t require the use of rare earths, such as nickel. Furthermore, this new electrolyzer can benefit from excess heat from industrial production, such as cement or metal production, called ‘fatal heat’.

Engie: 4 GW of hydrogen by 2030

French energy provider Engie wants to position itself as the major actor in the industry and transport’s decarbonization. To that end, the group that believed hydrogen is the missing link in the energy transition has started 70 projects around the world. With these projects, Engie aims at reaching a hydrogen production capacity of 0,6 GW by 2025 and bump that up to 4 GW by 2030.

In Belgium, Engie is working on a CO2 capture project in Gent, which transforms the gas into methane using wind electricity. The energy giant is also working on developing an electric mine truck with Anglo American in South Africa. The vehicle is charged with electricity from solar panels and hydrogen.

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Antwerp [email protected] project gets EU funding for CO2 capturing

Hilde Van Raemdonck Posted On November 17, 2021

[email protected], the Antwerp project to set up an infrastructure to capture CO2 and push it in liquid form through pipelines into storage, is one of the seven large-scale selected projects to be subsidized by the European Innovation Fund (EIF). The project gets part of the €1,1 billion subsidies the European Commission has available.

[email protected] is the brainchild of BASF Antwerp and Air Liquide in the harbor of Antwerp. At the BASF site, Air Liquide has two production facilities for hydrogen, made out of natural gas by steam reforming. In that process, a large volume of CO2 is emitted.

From grey to blue hydrogen

That’s why the hydrogen produced this way is called ‘grey hydrogen’. By capturing the CO2 during the process and storing it in empty gas fields, the hydrogen produced becomes so-called ‘blue hydrogen’ with a zero-emission footprint. Comparable with ‘green hydrogen’, which is produced by electrolysis with electricity from renewable sources.

BASF intends to capture CO2 on its ethylene oxide installations and its ammonia factory. In the [email protected] project, both companies will reduce emissions by 14,2 million tons in the next decade. They will use the infrastructure developed with five other chemical and energy companies and the Antwerp Port to half CO2 emissions in the harbor by 2030.

Liquid CO2 transport and storage

The latter refers to the [email protected] that is funded partially by the EU too. It’s a joint project with, besides Air Liquide and BASF, Borealis, ExxonMobil, INEOS, Fluxys, Port of Antwerp, and TotalEnergies.

The goal is to study and set up an infrastructure in the Antwerp harbor to transport the CO2 in liquid form through pipelines or ships to possible storage locations like empty North Sea gas fields in the Netherlands, Norway, or the UK.

Global warming

Europe will allocate 1,1 billion euros support to similar projects through the EIF. Individual subsidy agreements will be arranged and ready by the first quarter of 2022. How much money will go precisely to the [email protected] project is yet to be disclosed.

The EIF supports projects to develop state-of-the-art technologies for energy-intensive industries and sectors, working on hydrogen, carbon reduction, and renewable energy.

Hydrogen / Technology / Top Stories Today

Hyvia shows its 15-passenger city bus on hydrogen

Joris Van Roy Posted On November 16, 2021

At the Salon des Maires et des Collectivités Locales, the ‘Mayor’s salon’ in Paris, Hyvia, the joint venture between Renault and Plug Power is showing these days its new 15-passenger city bus on hydrogen. The mini-bus based on the Renault Master has a 30 kW fuel cell, a 33 kW battery, and a 4,5 kg hydrogen tank, which promises a range of 300 kilometers.

At the same time, Hyvia is showing the Renault Master Chassis Cabine H2-TECH at the Solutrans show in Lyon. The latter, unveiled in October and due for delivery in 2022, will have a range of approximately 500 km.

The Renault Master H2-Tech also gets the 30 kW fuel cell, a 33 kWh battery, and four tanks of 1,5 kg, for a total of six kg of hydrogen. Hyvia also delivers the fueling station to be purchased or leased for filling up the hydrogen van in five minutes.

French-American JV

In June, the French Renault Group has finalized its intended 50/50 joint venture with American fuel cell developer Plug Power to capture a 30% share of the EU market of hydrogen-driven light commercial vehicles (LCV).

The JV was baptized ‘HYVIA’ with the HY standing for hydrogen and VIA, the Latin word for the road. The partners believe “hydrogen mobility is particularly meaningful for Light Commercial Vehicles (LCV), perfect for extending autonomy for high loads and intensive use.”

Built in 350 versions

The Renault Master on hydrogen, unveiled in October for the first time, has 12 cubic meters of cargo volume and a range of up to 500 km. The van itself is produced at Renault’s Batilly plant. This assembly factory produces the Master in over 350 versions.

The fuel cells will be sourced by the end of the year from the Flins plant, the first Renault factory to become a site entirely dedicated to the circular economy and nicknamed Re-Factory. The hydrogen tanks get the stamp of specialized French supplier Faurecia.

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Toyota defends and embraces hybrid strategy

Tony Verhelle Posted On November 16, 2021

Toyota Vice-President Shigeru Hayakawa takes up the cudgels for hybrid cars. According to Toyota, hybrid cars – HEV and PHEV – will still play a crucial role in reducing emissions in worldwide transport.

Hayakawa is, therefore, pointing at South-East Asia and Africa, where he sees a vital role for hybrids. He states that countries with a high average income and an adequate infrastructure, like Europe and the US, are ready to embrace the electric car.

But he also asks if this is true for South-East Asia or Africa. “Are these markets going to accept fully electric cars in the future? I don’t know, but in the near future, say in five, ten, or even twenty years, that will be very difficult.”

Fossil fuel

The markets in those regions will still be dependent on fossil fuels for quite a while. According to Hayakawa, they’re still reinforcing their infrastructure for these and don’t even think about an electric counterpart.

That’s why a hybrid car is easier to market and use there. And Hajakawa points at the fact that hybrid cars are also cheaper. “In that sense, they’re far more suitable at the moment for those regions under development,” the Toyota manager adds.

The Japanese number one gets a lot of criticism for its view that non-electric cars will continue to play a role in different car markets worldwide. Many competitors, also big ones like GM and Volkswagen, have already committed themselves to full electrification, although they usually add that their policy doesn’t include the entire world.

Hayakawa also objects: “People depict us as if we are against electric cars and obsessed by ICE vehicles. That’s totally incorrect. Before 2025, we will have seven different BEV models on the market.”

CO2-neutral alternatives

Nevertheless, Japanese carmakers like to stress that one has to look into all alternatives. Apart from hybrids, Toyota is also looking into hydrogen and fuel cells as possible solutions.

Together with Mazda, Toyota has made a statement in Japan recently. They will both be racing with cars driven by internal combustion engines fed with CO2-neutral fuels. They claim this as being an alternative to electric races.

This weekend, there will be a three-hour race in Okayama (West Japan) where a Toyota has an engine that burns hydrogen, and a Mazda will be riding on a special kind of biodiesel.

Car manufacturer Subaru intends to participate in next year’s event with an ICE running on synthetic fuel made of biomass. A majority of Japanese car manufacturers believe that a broad spectrum of drive systems can power the vehicles that have to make the car industry CO2-neutral in the future.

Of course, there are also concerns about the many jobs lost when ICE is banned. For example, Japan is one of the most important countries implied in manufacturing internal combustion engines. A lot of (very) small businesses are involved in making all kinds of parts for them.

Toyota also points out that traditional internal combustion engines only have to be adapted in small ways (fuel injection systems mainly) to make them run on hydrogen. Hence the race car demonstration.

No general agreement

For all these reasons, Toyota refused to sign the agreement – signed in the margin of COP26 by some 30 countries and regions and ten car manufacturers, among which Ford, GM, Daimler, Volvo, JLR, etc. – that all new cars sold all over the world should be zero-emission by 2040.

Of the big ones, the Japanese are not the only ones having refused. Also, BMW, Volkswagen, the Alliance Renault/Nissan/Mitsubishi, the Hyundai Group, and Stellantis didn’t sign.

On the other hand, the international energy agency (IEA) has pointed out that to keep global warming at around + 1,5°C, it will be necessary to phase out ICE vehicles by 2035. So, there are still some severe discussions in the offing.

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Daimler Truck and TotalEnergies to kick start hydrogen rollout

Joris Van Roy Posted On November 10, 2021

Daimler Truck and French oil giant TotalEnergies have signed an agreement to jointly kick start the rollout of hydrogen infrastructure and heavy-duty trucks in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, and France.

Daimler wants its hydrogen trucks deployed fully on the road at customers by 2025, and TotalEnergies has the ambition by 2030 to operate directly or indirectly up to 150 hydrogen refueling stations in these countries.

For TotalEnergies, creating a European network of H2 truck stations for mobility is one of the key challenges it intends to tackle. The French oil giant Total changed its name in February to reflect its transition from fossil fuels to more sustainable energy sources after a history of denying climate change.

Pan-European H2 ecosystem

“Regarding the long-haul freight segment, we are convinced that CO2-neutral transportation will be enabled in the future by hydrogen-powered fuel cell trucks as well as purely battery-powered trucks,” says Karin Rådström, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Trucks. “To make this possible, we want to establish a pan-European hydrogen ecosystem together with strong partners such as TotalEnergies.”

Beginning of October, the shareholders of Daimler AG consented to a historic splitting up of the Group. The truck division will be entirely separated from the other part and go IPO before the end of the year as Daimler Truck. The remaining part of Daimler AG becomes Mercedes-Benz.

Fuel cells with Volvo

Daimler Truck and its Swedish competitor Volvo Group signed in November 2020 a binding agreement on the joint-venture in developing and producing hydrogen-driven fuel cells for heavy-duty vehicles.

Two months earlier, in September 2020, Daimler Trucks unveiled in Berlin its concept for the next-generation heavy long-haul truck powered by hydrogen: the Mercedes-Benz GenH2. Armed with two 40 kg tanks with minus 253° C cooled liquid hydrogen and two fuel cells, the 40-ton truck will have a range of 1 000 km.

Since April, the Mercedes-Benz GenH2 has been doing ‘rigorous’ test laps on the circuit, prepping for road tests by the end of this year. It’s to arrive at the first test clients in 2023.

Becoming a sustainable energy supplier

TotalEnergies is an expert in liquified gas today, actually selling more of it than oil, and wants to venture into hydrogen further in the near future. “Hydrogen will have its role in TotalEnergies’ journey to decarbonize mobility, especially in European long-haul transportation,” says Alexis Vovk, President Marketing & Services of TotalEnergies.

By taking over several smaller suppliers like Dutch clean energy provider PitPoint, the French oil company is actively rolling out a network of electric chargers, including in Brussels and Antwerp in Belgium.

150 000 EV chargers by 2025

In Antwerp, TotalEnergies won the city’s tender for extending the public charging network by installing 3 000 charging points by the end of 2023. They will be fed by ‘green’ energy from Belgian offshore wind parks.

TotalEnergies has the ambition to roll out 150 000 EV charge points by 2025 over Europe, focusing today on its major cities like Amsterdam (22 000), Paris (2 300), London (1 700), Antwerp, and Brussels.

150 fast-chargers along French highways

Just two weeks ago, it announced an investment of €200 million to equip its highway gas stations with DC fast-charging points. At the same time, the company fully profits from the high oil and gas prices.

The fast-charger plan includes more than 150 highway service stations in France to become EV-ready by the end of 2022. It plans the installation of 50 kW and 175 kW charging stations at 60 of the 150 locations by the end of this year.

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Training facility for hydrogen garages opens in Belgium

Piet Andries Posted On November 10, 2021

EDUCAM, a sectorial organization for the training of the workforce in the automotive branch, had yesterday opened its first training facility for future garages repairing hydrogen cars.

The center, located in Lokeren, wants to prepare professionals for this new challenge that it believes will arrive alongside the massive switch to battery-electric cars.

Highly explosive

The center focuses on the training of the mechanics and consults repair shops on how to organize their infrastructure. As with battery-electric cars, it is all about obtaining the appropriate safety certificate, which has been made obligatory by the social partners in the sector.

Hydrogen is a highly explosive gas, which should be treated with the highest care. The center fulfills all the requirements so that the teachers and their students can operate under the safest conditions. Working with hydrogen, but especially managing the production process, should not be met without precaution.

In Norway, one of the leading distribution companies, Uno-X, experienced a disaster at its pioneering filling station in Sandviken, where hydrogen was produced on-site, and a leak caused a blast. The company has sold its stake in hydrogen development since the accident.

Modest offerings

The training facility in Lokeren takes an early start. Only a few car companies have a commercial offering with hydrogen power. Toyota has launched the second generation of the Mirai, while Hyundai pushes forward with the Nexo.

Belgium’s sales figures are not exactly in the thousands yet, mainly due to poor infrastructure (three publicly accessible filling stations yet).

Though the technology is under debate – especially the difficulties of renewable production – and experiences slow take-up, it is not abandoned.

Mercedes quit on its hydrogen SUV, but BMW showcased a spin-off of the X5 emitting only water vapor at the latest motor show in Münich. And the European Union is still running a program for the expansion of the appropriate infrastructure.

For long-haul carriers

EDUCAM admits that the chances for hydrogen as an energy carrier lie primarily in long-haul and heavy-duty carriers, where there’s lots of room for gas tanks, and current battery technology weighs too heavy. In the transition toward climate-neutral mobility, it believes that hydrogen has a significant role to play.

As regulations evolve faster and faster, and climate goals are getting more ambitious and compelling, a momentum that can change a lot over a short period of time could be around the corner. Thus, though the center might be anticipating and investing at an early stage, the inauguration of the training facility might prove worthwhile in the medium run.

Sjoerd Zijlstra, director at EDUCAM, explains: “It may be too early at this point to talk about a major breakthrough in the use of hydrogen in the mobility sector, but we are seeing a lot of movement.”

He added that for green hydrogen, there’s still a long way to go. However: “The decisiveness we are showing at EDUCAM by investing and innovating ourselves to prepare the sector for the future is already a big step in the right direction.”

Climate / Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Top Stories Today

Belgium gets green hydrogen from Chile, Namibia, and Oman (update)

Joris Van Roy Posted On November 8, 2021

Antwerp Port and Zeebrugge Port will set up a hydrogen import logistic chain with Chile. Belgium’s major ports who decided earlier this year to merge into Port Antwerp-Bruges signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for this in Glasgow.

Belgium will also import green hydrogen from Oman and Namibia. At the COP26 in Glasgow, Belgian Federal Minister for Energy, Tinne Van der Straeten (Groen), earlier signed a comparable MoU with the Namibian Minister of Mines and Energy, Tom Alweendo.

By 2026, Namibia wants to produce one million tons of ‘green’ hydrogen with a midsized solar power plant, half of it for export. With the latter, Belgium will help set up a Green Energy Hub (GEH) in the Erongo region, at the country’s western Atlantic coast, with Whale Bay as its most important harbor.

Requiring lots of energy

So-called green hydrogen is made generally by electrolysis from water, using electricity from renewable sources. It is a process that requires lots of energy, as 30% is lost in the process.

Plenty of sun and wind are available in Namibia in the southern part of Africa. What’s lacking is the infrastructure to load the hydrogen produced with it in one or other form on gas tankers to export it to the rest of the world. A problem other ‘sunny’ countries with ambitions for green hydrogen, like Morocco, Chili, or to some extend Australia, have too.

Saudi Arabia, for instance, has plenty of sun, too, and already has the harbor infrastructure to load energy on ships, as it does for decades with oil. The Saudis announced they’re investing four billion euros in producing green hydrogen and making the region of Neom a worldwide H2-hub by 2026.

In Dubai, hosting the World Trade Fair, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority and German Siemens have set up a hydrogen production pilot plant. Dubai wants to invest 11,7 billion euros to produce 5 000 megawatts of green energy by 2030.

Oman is planning to build ‘the world’s largest green hydrogen plant’ by 2028 in Al Wusta governorate on the Arabian Sea. It will be done in stages using 25 gigawatts of wind and solar energy by 2038.

Hub for Europe

Belgium wants to become a ‘renewable energy import hub’ for Europe. Its ports of Zeebrugge and Antwerp are already today important hubs for distributing natural gas and hydrogen used in the chemical industry. It’s part of the federal plans to meet the climate goals set by the Paris Agreement.

A study published in January of this year by the Hydrogen Import Coalition (HIC) shows that shipping wind and solar energy from other sunny and windy parts of the world to Belgian ports is ‘feasible and cost-effective’.

The idea is to use LNG carriers that are relatively easy to convert to transport other gases, like hydrogen, ammonia, methanol, and synthetic methane.

The partners say that there is not enough renewable energy available in Belgium to achieve the European climate goal of a 100% CO2 reduction by 2050. But with public-private funding, hydrogen could be a viable solution to get of the oil drip. And the Belgian harbors are well equipped to function as a hub for importing a green alternative.

Producing three times more

The Coalition is formed by several big names, with dredger DEME, electricity and gas provider Engie, gas tanker fleet operator Exmar, grid manager Fluxys, the Ports of Antwerp, and Zeebrugge, and WaterstofNet (HydrogenNet). The latter is a non-profit organization set up to develop sustainable hydrogen projects.

The basic idea is quite simple. The same solar panel, for instance, produces up to three times more in the Middle East or Southern Europe than in North-Western Europe. Therefore, solar energy can be made in the south with less effort, translating into cheaper.

Converting to e-fuels

As hydrogen needs to be cooled to minus 253°C to become liquid or needs huge tanks to transport it under compressed form as a gas, converting it to an e-fuel first might be a solution.

Converting it to methane (alkane), methanol (alcohol), or ammonia (nitrogen hydride), and extracting the hydrogen after transport, might be three simple ways to do it alternatively. A disadvantage is that synthetic methane has a low boiling point (-162°C), and CO2 is needed to produce it.

Hence there is the danger of leakage, as methane is 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. Yet, the researchers say the leaking of methane is less likely to happen than with natural gas extraction.

Synthetic methanol is widespread and stays liquid in atmospheric conditions, but CO2 is needed to produce it. Synthetic ammonia might look like one of the better options as it requires no CO2 in the process and is liquid at -34°C. But turning it back into hydrogen isn’t mastered fully yet, the study says, which might add costs.

No scale-up hurdles

The main advantage of using these carriers, says HIC, is that starting to import renewable energy this way is ‘not hindered by technological scale-up hurdles’. LNG tankers used today by partners like Exmar are reasonably easy to deploy as ‘hydrogen carriers’.

The same goes for the existing LNG terminal in Zeebrugge’s harbor and the existing infrastructure in Antwerp. Both are connected already through pipelines with major industrial clusters throughout the country and Europe.

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ZeroAvia to fly London-Rotterdam on hydrogen by 2024

Joris Van Roy Posted On October 28, 2021

British-American start-up in hydrogen-powered aviation, ZeroAvia, has signed an agreement with Dutch aviation partners to realize a zero-emission one-hour flight route with a 19-seat airplane on hydrogen between London and The Hague Airport (RTHA) in Rotterdam.

ZeroAvia and Royal Schiphol Group say they’re in advanced talks with airlines to exploit the new route. Targeted for 2024, this would probably be one of the world’s first commercial international routes with hydrogen planes.

Partners Royal Schiphol Group, Rotterdam The Hague Innovation Airport Foundation, and the RTHA airport have agreed on a timeline to work on legislation, integrating hydrogen fueling infrastructure in the airport processes and setting up the commercial infrastructure.

ZeroAvia recently established a legal entity in the Netherlands to avoid limitations due to Brexit and to have an EU foothold to enable commercialization and partnerships with airports, airlines, and aviation part manufacturers.

19-seat Dornier 228 aircraft

ZeroAvia is currently developing a 19-seater twin-engined airplane for short-haul flights, capable of covering a range of 500 nautical miles or 916 km. ZeroAvia was the first to feature a six-seater H2-powered electric airplane passenger flight in September 2020.

The British-American start-up acquired two twin-engine 19-seat Dornier 228 aircraft from Guernsey’s regional airline Aurigny and AMC Aviation, which used the planes on regional services. They will be converted with fuel cell-powered engines and will be used to certify them as the most extensive aviation hydrogen platform yet, to be commercially used from 2024.

UK Government fund

The Hyflyer II test and demonstration planes – one stationed in Kemble (UK) and one at the company’s site in Hollister (California) – are retrofitted with two 600-kW electric engines and fuel cell. They will get a tank capacity of 100 kg of compressed hydrogen, giving the planes a range of 500 nautical miles.

For the 19-seater Hyflyer II project, ZeroAvia secured a £12,3 million (€14,3 million) UK Government grant after showing a successful Hyflyer I program with a converted Piper M-class six-seater with a 250-kW powertrain. That became the world’s first hydrogen-powered passenger plane in September 2020.

Damaged on a rough landing

That plane got damaged in April of this year during a routine pattern test flight, making an off-airport landing in a grass field outside Cranfield airport. According to ZeroAvia, “it caught the left main gear and wing in the uneven terrain at the end of the field at low speed. Everybody involved was safe and without injury.”

The plane ZeroAvia is taking in hand now, the Dornier 228, is a twin-turboprop STOL (short take-off and landing) utility aircraft, capable of operating from rough runways and in hot climates. In total, 245 of them were built between 1981 and 1998 by the German aircraft builder.

German hydrogen plane

The German Aerospace Center (DLR) was the first to announce in November 2020 to use a Dornier 228 to equip it with a fuel cell and 500 kW engines and turn it into a hydrogen-electric demonstrator planned for 2026.

Beginning this year, the German transport ministry provided a grant of 6 million euros for the BALIS project, which aims to develop a fuel-cell powertrain of some 1,5 megawatt, enough to power a 40-60 seat regional aircraft that can fly 1 000 km. That would then rather be a Dornier 328 turboprop, being a 30-44 seater regional aircraft.

Flying 9 000 km by 2040

This week, ZeroAvia announced it develops a 76-seat airplane with hydrogen propulsion together with Alaska Air Group, the parent company of Alaska Airlines. ZeroAvia will incorporate a 3MW+ hydrogen-electric powertrain system into a De Havilland DHC-8-400 (Q400) aircraft, which would enable a range of 500 nm (926 km).

That should pave the way for a +200 seater with a +3 700 km range by 2030, and ultimately one capable of flying more than 5 000 nm or 9 260 km by 2040.

Airbus aims at 2035

European aerospace company, Airbus, has presented last year three concepts of zero-emission airplanes using liquified ‘green’ hydrogen to be burned in a jet engine. It believes these planes will be ready to start test-flying by 2028 and to fly by 2035 commercially. That’s the date set by the French government to put €1,2 billion on the table by 2022 to support it as part of the rescue plan for the aviation industry.

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Ineos Grenadier gets hydrogen fuel cell variant

Joris Van Roy Posted On October 27, 2021

British global chemical company, Ineos, a specialist in producing ‘low-carbon’ hydrogen, is working on a hydrogen demonstration version of its Landrover Defender-clone, the Grenadier, for road testing by the end of 2022. The latter will most likely get a Hyundai Nexo fuel cell and will be co-engineered by automotive specialist AVL.

First, the basic ICE-powered Grenadier will start to reach customers in the third quarter of 2022, equipped with BMW’s latest gasoline and diesel engines. Engines by BMW. Transmissions from ZF, axles by Carraro, Recaro seats, and overall engineered by Magna Steyr. Ineos has already been shopping around.

Prices for the Ineos Grenadier are yet hard to find on the website, where you can reserve your place on the list for €450. But British media claim to know prices will start at around £48 000 (€56 988) for the two-seat version. Five-seat versions will cost about £5 000 (€6 900) more.

Niggardly with information

For its upcoming hydrogen version, Ineos is even more niggardly with information. Ineos signed an agreement with Korean carmaker Hyundai in November 2020 for the evaluation of the latter’s fuel cell used in the Nexo.

The Nexo is currently outselling Toyota’s Mirai II, according to energy market research firm SNE Research. FCEV sales worldwide rose by 91,7% between January and August 2021 to 11 200 units. Hyundai’s Nexo represents 52,2%, the Mirai 39,2%.

FCEV most attractive

“Of the zero-emissions technologies being evaluated for future introduction in the Grenadier, the INEOS Automotive team believes that hydrogen fuel cells are the most attractive,” the company says in a brief press release.

“When enabled by sustainably produced green or blue hydrogen, fuel cells are a very clean way to power vehicles capable of long-range between rapid refueling stops. And they also offer significant weight advantages over battery electric vehicles.” But, says Ineos, there will be no compromises in performance on and off-road.

Brooding on it since 2017

Ineos is already brooding on its Grenadier since 2017, when Ineos Automotive was created. The Grenadier will take over where the old Land Rover Defender stopped with the venue of an all-new one, which looks strikingly like the old one.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the billionaire founder and chairman of the multinational chemicals company Ineos who lives in Monaco, came up with the idea in 2017. He managed to buy Land Rover’s production tools for the old Defender when the latter stopped production in Solihull after 67 years.

In December 2020, Ineos had bought the Smartville factory at Hambach, France, from Daimler to build its Grenadier here. The site currently makes smart EQ fortwo electric vehicles, which Ineos will continue to produce alongside the Grenadier on a contract manufacturing basis.

The Germans abandoned their plans to build an electric Mercedes in Hambach, although they had already invested half a billion in the conversion of the factory.

Investing €2 billion in hydrogen production

Ineos claims it is Europe’s most prominent existing operator of electrolysis, the technology which uses renewable energy to produce hydrogen for power generation, transportation, and industrial use.

The company already produces and uses 400 000 tons of low-carbon hydrogen every year, the equivalent of replacing up to 2 billion liters of diesel. It announced that it intends to invest €2 billion in new production of green hydrogen across Europe.

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Macron’s France 2030 plan: €1,5 billion for nuclear and hydrogen

Félix Bouland Posted On October 13, 2021

Months away from the French elections, President Emmanuel Macron has unveiled his ‘France 2030’ plan. Grounds are laid to invest 30 billion euros in hydrogen, nuclear, electric cars, green airplanes, renewable energies, and even aerospace. The president wants France to “become a great innovation nation again.”

To the energy sector, Macron has allocated a total of 8 billion euros, of which one billion euros will go to the development of the nuclear industry, with the focus on the small modular reactors (SMR) with better waste management. Bucking the trend, renewable energies will receive half the amount of nuclear, with two green hydrogen gigafactories planned.

Green hydrogen leader

“If we do not reindustrialize the country, we cannot become a nation of innovation and research again. The health crisis has shown our vulnerability and dependence on foreign countries. We must rebuild the terms of French and European productive independence,” declared Macron.

As part of the €30 billion public investment, 500 million euros France will allocate to renewable energy. Not only do wind and solar have a role to play, but the president wants France to become the leader in green hydrogen production.

To that matter, plans are to build two hydrogen gigafactories. Details are scarce, but one should be piloted in Belfort by French group McPhy, and the other in Alsace by Belgian group John Cockerill. This investment should add to the €7,2 billion, the hydrogen plan announced in September last year.

Still going with nuclear

While some nations have turned their backs on nuclear, such as Germany, Denmark, or Austria, France is still keen on the abundant energy source that produces no CO2. Macron is supported in his renewed interest in nuclear energy as an alternative for ‘green energies’ by nine EU countries.

They have been signing with France a declaration, saying Europe needs nuclear to reach its climate goals. Those countries are Finland, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Bulgary, Romania, Slovakia, Croatia, and Slovenia.

Too late for the climate?

Progress must be made in technology. This is where the SMR, or small modular reactor, comes in. As its name suggests, it’s smaller and modular, producing around 300 megawatts each compared to 1 000 MW for a conventional nuclear plant, but it offers better waste management. France wants the SMRs ready by 2035, but critics like Greenpeace say it will be too late to fight climate change, and the waste problem remains.

EDF, TechnicAtome, NavanGroup, and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission or CEA are working on the Nuward program. France should build the first prototypes between 2028 and 2030. For President Macron, this is the number one objective in the energy department, so a total of one billion euros will be invested in nuclear.

Six euro cents per kWh

In the UK, Rolls-Royce, the British aviation engine manufacturer (not the carmaker owned by BMW), told the BBC already in February last year it will build ‘mini nuclear reactors’ in series by 2029. By doing this on an industrial scale in modules, made in a factory instead of at the site, the costs of building nuclear power plants would be far lower.

Price tag: around €2 billion per SMR. Prices for building a conventional 1,1 MW nuclear plant vary depending on the source between €5,3 billion and €8 billion. “The trick is to have prefabricated parts where we use advanced digital welding methods and robotic assembly, and then parts are shipped to the site and bolted together,” Paul Stein, the chief technology officer at Rolls-Royce, told the BBC.

At the cost of 6 euro cents per kWh, the nuclear electricity produced this way could be competitive with other low or zero CO2 emission sources. And, in theory, every city could have its power plant. Russia already has two ‘floating’ SMRs up and running to provide remote areas with electricity. Expectations are the US is to follow with demonstrators soon.

Aviation / Climate / Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Maritime / Top Stories Today

Shell to build large production unit for biofuels in Rotterdam

Hilde Van Raemdonck Posted On September 17, 2021

The British-Dutch oil and gas company, Shell, plans to construct a large production unit for biofuels at the Shell Energy and Park Rotterdam (the Netherlands), formerly known as the Pernis refinery. The Rotterdam plant will produce 820 000 tons of biofuels a year.

“A facility of this size could produce enough renewable diesel to avoid 2 800 000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions a year, the equivalent of taking more than 1 million European cars off the roads,” Shell states in its press release.

Paris Climate Agreement

The new facility will help the Netherlands and Europe meet internationally binding emissions reduction targets. It will also help Shell meet its own target of becoming a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050, in step with society’s progress toward achieving the climate goals of the Paris Agreement.

Shell wants to halve fossil fuel production by 2030 and produce cleaner fuels like biofuels and hydrogen. As part of its Powering Progress strategy, Shell is transforming its refineries (14 in October 2020) into five energy and chemicals parks. The new facility in Pernis should be operational by 2024.

Residual products

Shell aims to reduce the production of traditional fuels by 55% by 2030 and provide more low-carbon fuels such as biofuels for road transport and aviation, and hydrogen. These low-carbon fuels will help to meet growing demand from the transport sector, including hard-to-decarbonize sectors such as heavy road transport and aviation. SAF – Sustainable Aviation Fuel – currently accounts for around 0.1% of global aviation fuel.

The cleaner products will be based on used cooking oil, animal fat, coleseed oil, and other industrial and agricultural residual products, using advanced technology methods. The company has promised not to use palm oil for its biofuels.

In 2018, Dutch environmentalist organization, Milieudefensie, took Shell to court in The Hague to force the oil giant to accelerate greening and cut worldwide CO2 emissions by 45% in 2030, compared to 1990. The organization held Shell accountable for ‘dangerous climate damage’.

World’s first

In May 2021, the Dutch judge decided that Shell, as a company, has to accelerate reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It was the world’s first that an oil company was sued for ‘climate damage’ and would be forced to change its strategies and investments.

The British-Dutch oil company has to almost halve (-45% compared to 2019) its CO2 emissions by 2030. The company also gets an obligation to perform to the best of its abilities. In other words, the court forces the oil company to review and adapt its business model.

Loss of biodiversity

Milieudefensie is not happy with the oil company’s plans and points out the disadvantages of biofuels. “The increased demand for vegetal oil leads to the loss of food crops, biodiversity, and land.” Moreover, the organization is not convinced either that Shell is going to emit less CO2.

Autonomous driving / Hydrogen / Industry / Product / Top Stories Today

Hyundai presents its ‘Hydrogen Vision 2040’

Tony Verhelle Posted On September 8, 2021

The Hyundai Motor Group has presented its ‘Hydrogen Vision 2040’. The strategic plan of the Korean company envisages offering a fuel cell version for all commercial vehicle models of the group by 2028. However, it will still take a few years before the costs drop to BEV level.

Hyundai plans to introduce a next-generation fuel cell system in 2023, which will be used in the successor of the Nexo FCEV SUV and a “hydrogen-powered multi-purpose vehicle (MPV)”. This is likely to be an H2 version of the brand new Staria van.

Two variants

The new system comes available in two variants with 100 and 200 kW. The 100 kW version is up to 70% smaller than the FC system from the current Nexo. This means it can be used not only in a large SUV but also in smaller vehicles. On the other hand, the 200 kW version is about the same size as the current Nexo system but offers almost double power.

By 2030, there should be another new fuel cell development generation. The prices of fuel cell vehicles are then to be reduced to the level of battery-electric vehicles. This applies not only to passenger cars but also to commercial vehicles.

As Hyundai announces, all new models such as buses and heavy trucks will be offered as fuel cell and battery electric vehicles for the global market. A fuel cell version of all commercial vehicle models is to be available by 2028.

According to the current announcement, based on the FC truck Xcient Fuel Cell, which is used in Switzerland, among other countries, a tractor unit is to follow by 2024. Furthermore, at the ‘Hydrogen Wave forum’, the Hyundai Motor Group also presented the ‘Trailer Drone’ concept, a hydrogen-powered container transport system that can operate fully autonomously.

In addition, Hyundai wants to develop a five to a seven-meter-long light commercial vehicle with a fuel cell. This will not be an adaptation of a combustion engine model but a fuel cell PBV (Purpose Built Vehicle).

All kinds of concepts

Hyundai’s hydrogen roadmap goes beyond road vehicles. The South Korean company sees the potential “in various areas such as high-performance vehicles, urban air mobility, robots, aircraft and in large ships” – and the energy sector. The modular 100 kW units should be combined into larger systems of 500 kW to 1 MW for such applications.

To illustrate such uses, Hyundai has presented some concepts. Besides the ‘Trailer Drone’, there is the ‘Fuel Cell e-Bogie’ for container transport. In addition, the ‘Rescue Drone’ is an autonomous driving concept vehicle for fire fighting and other rescue missions.

The Vision FK is an FC sports car with more than 500 kW. The ‘H Moving Station’ is a mobile hydrogen filling station for fuel cell vehicles. And the ‘Rescue Hydrogen Generator Vehicle’ is intended to supply vehicles in remote regions or disaster areas with electricity.

Hydrogen / Public transport / Top Stories Today / Transport

First test of Alstom’s hydrogen train in France

Félix Bouland Posted On September 7, 2021

After successful trials in Germany and Italy, French train company Alstom hopes to bring its hydrogen-powered Coradia iLint on its home rails.

On Monday and for the first time in France, one of Alstom’s train cars has driven on a test site in Valenciennes. With its 800 to 1 000 km range, the hydrogen train could be the ideal solution to replace diesel locomotives.

“It’s a solution for the future. Our rail network today in France is 45% non-electrified. So we have two solutions: either we electrify it, with the cost that it implies, or we move towards hydrogen, which obviously has a future in France, and a European and world market to conquer”, said French Transport Minister, Jean-Baptiste Djebbari (LERM), to the AFP.

From Germany to France

While Alstom’s hydrogen train is making the news in France, it has, in fact, already been in service in Germany since 2018. After those two-year-long successful trials, two German Länder have already ordered 41 Coradia iLint to Alstom.

The story doesn’t end there. Clients have also been found in Italy, where rail operator FNM ordered 14. Tests are also going on in Austria, Sweden, and the Netherlands.

The success of Alstom’s hydrogen train is to be found on its roof, where the fuel is kept. With a range of 800 to 1 000 km, the iLint is fully capable of replacing conventional diesel locomotives while offering more flexibility than battery-powered vehicles.

In France, where 45% of the rail network isn’t equipped with electricity, and 1 200 diesel trains run daily, representing 20% of the traffic, hydrogen could be the future solution.

Dual-mode train

Four regions in France have already ordered 12 Alstom Regiolis dual-mode trains. Those are hybrid electric-hydrogen machines, which are designed to meet the mixed needs of the French national rail network with a range of up to 600 km on non-electrified sections.

Hydrogen / Technology / Top Stories Today / Transport

Hydrolog project shows feasibility of H2-powered harbor logistics

Joris Van Roy Posted On September 1, 2021

After a pilot of six weeks in the Antwerp harbor at two container terminals, the Hydrolog project shows the feasibility to operate forklifts and terminal tractors on hydrogen, WaterstofNet, and the Flanders Innovation cluster for Logistics (VIL) conclude.

Getting the official licenses proved to be time-consuming and costly as legislation still has to follow. The heavy impact on internal industrial organization and safety procedures, plus today’s cost of hydrogen, are the main hurdles to take. But the conclusion is that provided the right setup, hydrogen to be used in harbor logistics can be competitive with battery-electric alternatives.

BEV has a price advantage today

Battery-electric fork trucks have a price advantage today, the initiators say. Still, if you consider personnel costs and lower productivity during battery-swapping or charging and the expected future price drops for hydrogen, the balance tilts over. VIL developed a tool for companies to calculate exactly the costs of operating their logistic fleet on hydrogen.

The harbor environment is especially suited for hydrogen used in transport and logistics, the initiators say, as hydrogen is available in large quantities for use in the local chemical industry.

That hydrogen is ‘grey’, though, as it is produced merely from natural gas, which creates CO2 emissions in the process. For sustainable ‘green’ hydrogen, you need renewable sources like wind or solar energy.

Mobile hydrogen filling station

In the project, a mobile hydrogen filling station was provided by WaterstofNet, the Flemish-Dutch non-profit organization that brings together companies, knowledge centers, and government authorities in specific hydrogen projects.

A mobile hydrogen filling station is seen as a way to avoid the high cost associated with a fixed infrastructure, which is often the main threshold for companies to invest in green technology. Several companies could share a mobile station.

AET and PSA Antwerp

As part of the study, hydrogen-powered terminal tractors were tested at the logistic sites of Antwerp Euroterminal (AET) and later at PSA Antwerp. AET is Europe’s largest multipurpose terminal, and home to the multinational logistics group Grimaldi specialized in roll-on/roll-off vessels, car carriers, and ferries.

PSA Antwerp, the merger of former port operators, Hessenatie and Noord Natie, is part of the Singapore-based PSA International group, one of the largest port groups in the world specialized in container handling.

12-ton battery-electric terminal tractor

AET tried out using a 12-ton battery-electric terminal tractor, but it takes too long to charge an electric tractor like this, especially when it is to be used round the clock in three shifts. On the other hand, a fuel-cell-powered tractor like the one in the test, capable of pulling 70 tons, can be filled up in minutes with hydrogen.

Besides the actual harbor tests, demo’s were organized under the umbrella of the Hydrolog project with a total of 18 companies participating: Aertssen, Air Liquide, Antwerp Euroterminal (AET), Brussels Airport, Delhaize, DEME, Ecosource, Engie Electrabel, Fluxys, Inovyn, Kalmar, Motrac, MPET, POM Limburg, PSA Antwerp, Rental, STILL, and Toyota Material Handling.

Hydrogen pioneers

So far, there is one public hydrogen filling station at the Antwerp harbor. CMB-Tech, a branch of the Company Maritime Belge (CMB) shipping company and pioneer in hydrogen applications in its sector, has built a filling station at the Port House to provide both road vehicles and ships with hydrogen at the same time.

CMB Tech also worked out a mobile solution with a truck trailer capable of delivering up to 600 kg of compressed hydrogen (350 bar) on site.

Environment / Hydrogen / Technology / Top Stories Today

CMB Tech converts 37-ton excavator to hydrogen-diesel duofuel

Joris Van Roy Posted On August 30, 2021

CMB Tech, the clean technology division of Belgian shipping company Company Maritime Belge (CMB), has converted a 37-ton Hitachi excavator to run on a mixture of hydrogen and diesel, avoiding up to 8 tons of CO2 emissions or 50% less in daily operations.

For the client, the advantage is that the limited additional cost lets him switch to regular diesel with a push on a touchscreen as hydrogen supply is limited. At the same time, CMB Tech presents its mobile hydrogen delivery truck, suited to bring up to 600 kg of green hydrogen at 350 bar to the consumer’s site.

Sustainable alternative

CMB Tech started converting the Hitachi ZX350LC-7 excavator to a dual fuel engine on the request of Belgian construction and agricultural specialist Luyckx from Brecht (Antwerp). They experience a growing demand from large contractors for construction machines with lower CO2 emissions as a sustainable alternative, and that tends to score better in (public) tenders as a benefit.

The technique used is not new. CMB Tech already applied the dual-fuel engine for trucks and boats. The most recent achievement was in May, the HydroBingo, a 19-tons ferry accommodating 80 passengers that was launched in Japan. Refueling of hydrogen is done by a roll-on/roll-off container that can be switched easily while the ferry is docked.

Injected along with diesel

In the dual-fuel engine for the excavator, the hydrogen is injected along with the regular diesel. A spark plug is needed to ignite the hydrogen. Spark plugs are normally not found in diesel engine as it is based on self-ignition. CMB Tech added high-pressure tanks to carry 30 kg of hydrogen, which should be enough for two working days. But when running out of diesel, the driver can switch the engine to use only regular.

Fully electric solutions for excavators of this size would require too large (and expensive) batteries and deliver insufficient power for a 37 tons excavator, as Luyckx found out in a preliminary study to find the best solution.

Three for the price of one

Today’s fuel cells can’t cope with the heavy vibrations on a building site, and an FCEV variant isn’t in the pipeline. The conversion to dual-fuel is the best economical solution, as according to Luyckx, you can have three of these for the price of one fully electric one.

Getting the hydrogen on-site is a major problem today, but for that, CMB Tech worked out a mobile solution with a truck trailer capable of delivering up to 600 kg of compressed hydrogen (350 bar) on site.

CMB Tech’s mobile hydrogen truck /CMB

Hydrogen / Product / Technology / Top Stories Today / Weekly Newsletter

Deutz’s first hydrogen engine ready for the market

Joris Van Roy Posted On August 25, 2021

German ‘historic’ combustion engine manufacturer Deutz AG has its first hydrogen combustion engine ready for the market, the company announced. The zero-emission six-cylinder TCG 7.8 H2 engine produces 200 kW (268 hp), runs very quietly, and “is likely to be used first in stationary equipment, generators, and rail transport,” the company says.

The heritage of Deutz goes back to the very first four-stroke internal combustion engines, as their inventor, German engineer Nicolaus Otto was the founder of the company, together with entrepreneur Carl Eugen Langen in 1864. Otto and Langen initially were more interested in stationary engine solutions than in applications for automobiles.

Daimler, Maybach, Bugatti and Bosch

The company Otto & Cie was later renamed to ‘Gasmotoren-Fabrik Deutz‘ after moving from Cologne to Deutz, on the opposite side of the river Rhine in 1869. Several well-known automotive pioneers have worked with Otto for Deutz over the years, including Gottlieb Daimler, Wilhelm Maybach, Ettore Bugatti, and Robert Bosch.

The new hydrogen-powered engine is based on an existing engine design and will go into production in 2024. The H2-engine will be suitable for all current Deutz applications, from trucks and buses, over marine engines, ground support, construction machines, generators, to railway equipment.

Power generation

It will be used first in a stationary application for power generation for a regional utility company as a pilot to demonstrate the engine’s capabilities starting beginning 2022, the company says. Later generators and railway equipment will be the most likely applications for serial production.

Deutz is a diesel specialist building engines from 37 to 521 kW but works on substituting petroleum-based fuels with biofuels and e-fuels to cut emissions. It already produces zero-emission electric drivetrains for the marine sector, with its fully owned daughter Torqeedo.

The latter offers outboards from 1 to 80 hp, inboards from 40 to 80 hp, pod drives from 5 to 20 hp, a saildrive with 40 hp, and hybrid drives for yachts up to 160 hp.

Climate / Hydrogen / Mobility / Public transport / Technology / Top Stories Today

Brussels MIVB/STIB commissions its first hydrogen bus

Luc Joris Posted On August 24, 2021

The Brussels public transport company MIVB/STIB has its first hydrogen bus. The bus, presented on Monday, will be tested for two years to familiarise with the new technology and evaluate its performance.

The vehicle will be leased from the manufacturer Van Hool, which will then, at the same time, benefit from the data that MIVB/STIB provides during this test phase. From September, the bus will be used on several lines.

300 tot 500 km for 40 kg of hydrogen

The bus drives like a classic electric bus but has a longer range of 300 to 500 km for 40 kg of hydrogen on board, instead of 200 km for conventional e-buses. It is a particular challenge in terms of logistics and the supply of hydrogen. In Europe, the production of hydrogen is still limited. However, MIVB/STIB can buy hydrogen in Zaventem and have a mobile hydrogen station installed by Eoly-Energy in the Marly depot in Neder-over-Heembeek by 2022.

As clean transport as possible

MIVB/STIB already uses hybrid and fully electric buses, but now it is also going to explore the environmentally friendly and silent hydrogen bus possibilities. “We want to offer transport that is as clean as possible,” says Brussels Minister for Mobility, Elke Van den Brandt (Groen). “That’s why we have to continue to rely on multiple technologies. But, unfortunately, there is no single miracle solution.”

After the test, the company will determine whether hydrogen can be an option for tomorrow’s buses. STIB/MIVB has a fleet of 900 busses, of which 37 are electric.

In Wallonia, public transport companies are also interested in hydrogen busses. Tec Charleroi had launched a hydrogen bus project before abandoning it for cost reasons, the Walloon Region preferring to support a similar project in Liège.

Should Brussels invest more in hydrogen?

According to the Brussels Hydrogen Collective, Brussels isn’t doing anything to promote or advance hydrogen technology. For the Brussels Environment and Energy Minister, Alain Maron (Ecolo), hydrogen and fuel cell technology are interesting, but not as much as battery-electric cars. Furthermore, he points out the energy losses during the creation and consumption of hydrogen (30%).

In concrete terms, hydrogen is based on the principle of water electrolysis. Electricity is used to separate oxygen (O2) and hydrogen (H) from water (H2O). The hydrogen is recovered and stored under pressure in a tank. In the bus, it is then recombined with oxygen from the ambient air in a fuel cell, making it possible to generate electricity again without releasing any polluting emissions.

Environment / Hydrogen / Industry / Technology / Top Stories Today

Volvo gets delivery of world’s first carbon-free steel

Piet Andries Posted On August 19, 2021

On Wednesday, the Volvo Group was handed over its first carbon-free steel. The supplier is Swedish steel company SSAB Öxelund who uses Hydrogen Breakthrough Ironmaking Technology (HYBRIT) to replace coal and coke during production.

SSAB’s goal is to decarbonize the steel industry and to commercialize green steel. They plan to have all their traditional furnaces replaced by carbon-neutral ones by 2040 at the latest. And together with Volvo Group, they want to make the first vehicle in the world made from sustainable steel, most likely a truck.

Breakthrough

“The first fossil-free steel in the world is not only a breakthrough for SSAB,” commented Martin Lindqvist, President and CEO of SSAB, “it represents proof that it’s possible to make the transition and significantly reduce the global carbon footprint of the steel industry.”

Green steel is made through HYBRIT technology, a joint project involving two heavily state-owned partners: mining company LKAB and energy company Vattenfall. In this process, the blast furnace is replaced by an electric arc furnace fueled by hydrogen.

The previous stage, refining the raw material, is also conducted fossil-free. The resulting product is an iron sponge, which is then processed into steel.

‘In a few years’

Volvo Group will start using fossil-free steel this year, firstly for the construction of prototypes and machinery. As of 2022, it hopes to start a small series production for vehicles, gradually moving to mass production. The timeframe is referred to as “in a few years”. Newly-made green steel will also complement traditional and recycled steel in the truck branch of the Swedish manufacturer.

President and CEO of Volvo Group Martin Lundstedt calls it an important step in becoming a climate-neutral company by 2050 in line with the Paris Agreement.

Skepticism

The HYBRIT technology is a prestigious case for Sweden. It wants this to be a world-leading climate project with significant export potential. But it is not met without skepticism. Producing the required hydrogen demands vast amounts of electricity – 15 TWh – according to Vattenfall, which needs to be produced in an alternative green manner. Easier for Scandinavia than the rest of the world.

And that’s where the largest steel producers are: China, India, the USA, and Russia. They all rely very heavily on fossil fuels for their production sites; converting these well-established processes will be very costly for them.

The steel industry is responsible for 7-9% of the worldwide carbon footprint. Therefore, switching SSAB to HYBRIT will help decarbonize Sweden by more or less 10%.

Hydrogen / Product / Technology / Top Stories Today / Weekly Newsletter

BMW to demo iX5 Hydrogen at the IAA Mobility in Munich

Joris Van Roy Posted On August 17, 2021

BMW announced it will be demoing the iX5 Hydrogen two years after introducing the BMW i Hydrogen NEXT concept car, ‘live’ at the IAA Mobility motor show in Munich, from September 7th to 12. Visitors will have the opportunity to “be driven along the Blue Lane connecting the main exhibition grounds with other exhibition venues in the city center.”

A small series of the BMW iX5 Hydrogen, the company says in a press release, developed based on the BMW X5, will be used for demonstration and testing purposes from the end of next year. Although BMW was one of the first to pioneer using hydrogen as a fuel to burn in its experimental seven series, it’s now cautious about putting its fuel cell technology in series production.

Driving long distances

“Provided the hydrogen is produced using renewable energy and the necessary infrastructure is available, this technology can complement the BMW Group’s electrified drive train portfolio – the BMW i3, iX3, iX, and i4,” the carmaker says.

“And, in particular, meet the needs of customers who do not have their own access to electric charging infrastructure, frequently drive long distances or desire a high degree of flexibility.”

One of the main advantages of the fuel cell X5 will be its capability to drive at high speeds over long distances, something pure battery-electric cars (BEV) aren’t excelling in, as it consumes lots of electricity, affecting the range.

As powerful as a six-cylinder gasoline engine

The fuel cell of the iX5 Hydrogen is delivering an output of up to 125 kW (170 hp), with water vapor as the only emission. Two 700-bar tanks made of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) can hold almost six kilograms of hydrogen.

The electric motor was developed from the fifth-generation BMW eDrive technology also used in the BMW iX and can be used to regenerate electricity into the car’s battery while braking.

BMW doesn’t specify the battery size, but it says the energy stored in this power battery is also utilized for particularly sporty driving maneuvers – delivering a system output of 275 kW (374 hp) or exactly as much power as the most powerful six-cylinder in-line gasoline engine currently used in BMW models.

Hydrogen / Maritime / Technology / Top Stories Today / Weekly Newsletter

Japan’s first hydrogen-fueled ferry uses Belgian tech

Joris Van Roy Posted On August 11, 2021

In Japan, the first passenger ferry for commercial use with two hydrogen diesel combustion engines has been officially launched on Tuesday. The ‘HydroBingo’ was developed by Belgian shipping company CMB’s tech daughter, CMB Tech, together with Japanese shipbuilding and shipping firm Tsuneishi in a 50/50 joint venture.

It is a 19-tons ferry accommodating 80 passengers with a maximum speed of 26 knots (48 kph) and a cruising speed between 18 and 22 knots (40 kph). Refueling of hydrogen is done by a roll-on/roll-off container that can be switched easily while the ferry is docked.

Halving carbon dioxide emissions

Hydrogen-diesel dual-fuel combustion can halve carbon dioxide emissions when compared with a conventional diesel engine. CMB and Tsuneishi set up a joint venture in April to develop the hydrogen internal combustion engine (H2ICE) technology for the Japanese industrial and marine market. Next to the HydroBingo, both companies are going to build a hydrogen-powered tugboat, the HydroPhoenix.

“Thanks to this strong collaboration, we have been able to build this unique vessel. It is the result of joining forces of two families and companies with a long history in Japan and Europe,” said Alexander Saverys, CEO of CMB, in the press release.

“CMB and Tsuneishi will continue to invest in hydrogen applications for the maritime and land-based industries. This is only the beginning of a very exciting journey toward zero-carbon shipping,” he adds.

Hydrogen pioneer

CMB, running a fleet of more than ninety ships for dry bulk, container, and chemical shipping, is a real pioneer in the marine world. Its CEO Alexander Saverys is a strong believer in hydrogen as the fuel of the future in the sector.

According to Saverys, more than 95% of the 60 000 vessels transporting 12 billion tons of goods overseas use polluting heavy fuel. Therefore, the shipping industry is responsible for 2,5% of global CO2 emissions and emits more greenhouse gases than Germany. “We have to do something about it,” he declared earlier.

In 2017, CMB already launched the small Hydroville ferry on the River Scheldt in Antwerp. The ferry is used to transport CMB staff to the Antwerp harbor. The ferry, costing 1 million euros and built in the UK, is used to test hydrogen as an alternative fuel to burn in big maritime diesel engines. First in auxiliary motors, later in the main engines.

Belgian world’s first

CMB is also involved in BeHydro, a joint venture with engine manufacturer Anglo Belgian Corporation (ABC) that presented in September last year its new engine that can run on hydrogen and diesel at the same time. The world’s first and ready to replace classic diesel engines in ships, trains, or UPS systems (Uninterruptible Power Supply) for hospitals or data centers.

The engine uses a mixture of up to 85% hydrogen and 15% regular diesel to be injected and burned, generating a power output of 1 MW. This way, emissions are reduced by 85%. A 100% hydrogen-fueled engine is to be presented later.

Tugboat for Antwerp

The Antwerp Port will have the world’s first hydrogen-driven tugboat equipped with the BeHydro engine operational in 2022. It will be zero-emission for most of its working time, and the good news is that it will cost only 10% more than a conventional tugboat.

In Antwerp, CMB-Tech opened a public hydrogen filling station at the Port House near the harbor in June. It provides both road vehicles and ships with hydrogen at the same time.

Climate / Energy / Hydrogen / Industry / Top Stories Today

‘California to envision 70 000 heavy-duty fuel cell trucks by 2035’

Joris Van Roy Posted On August 6, 2021

The California Fuel Cell Partnership (CaFCP) envisions in a new report the possibility to roll out in the state a fleet of “70 000 heavy-duty class 8 fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs) supported by 200 heavy-duty truck stations by 2035”. The ultimate goal for California is 100% zero-emission trucks by 2045.

With this zero-emission fleet of hydrogen trucks, 541,8 million gallons of diesel (2 billion liters) would be economized per year, and 6,7 million tons of greenhouse gases and 18 100 metric tons of NOx avoided.

Public-private partnership

CaFCP is a public-private partnership to promote hydrogen vehicles, including cars, buses, and trucks in California. It’s an organization bringing together government agencies to somehow everybody active on fuel cells and hydrogen in the industry. It is, let’s say, an equivalent to the Hydrogen Industry Cluster we see in Belgium and the Netherlands.

According to CaFCP, heavy-duty trucks represent only 2% of vehicles on California roads. Yet, these hundreds of thousands of trucks generate more than 9% of the State’s greenhouse gas emissions, 32% of its nitrogen oxides, and 3% of its particulate emissions.

Sole alternative for diesel

“Fuel cell electric trucks are vital to achieving California’s ambitious energy, environmental, and transportation policy goals. No other existing zero-emission vehicles offer diesel truck operators the same one-to-one replacement utility for the most demanding freight movement applications,” the CAFCP adds.

“The adoption of new technology is traditionally limited by its economic impact. As such, widespread commercial deployment of FCETs requires a cost-competitive, sustainable market. To create these market conditions by the deadlines outlined in California’s existing policies, large-scale public and private investments must start immediately.”

“Getting to a zero-emission future requires the partnership of government and industry and the utilization of every tool at our disposal,” says Jerome Gregeois, chair of the CaFCP board of directors and Hyundai-Kia’s Director Commercial Vehicles Development. “We know that battery and fuel cell electric technologies are needed to meet the diverse needs of our customers.”

Self-sustaining market by 2035

The CaFCP document states – with the right policy mechanisms in place – the vision foresees a self-sustaining market by 2035. California has been a frontrunner in the world in adopting fuel cell cars (merely Toyota Mirais). The California Air Resources Board has published a study concluding that a self-sufficient, light-duty fuel cell passenger car fueling network is possible. The same could happen for trucks, CaFCP states.

In June 2020, California approved the Advanced Clean Trucks regulation, the world’s first rule requiring truck manufacturers to transition from diesel trucks and vans to electric zero-emission trucks beginning in 2024.

Truck manufacturers will be required to sell zero-emission trucks as an increasing percentage of their annual California sales from 2024 to 2035. The regulation says that by 2035, zero-emission truck sales would need to be 55% of Class 2b – 3 truck sales, 75% of Class 4 – 8 straight truck sales, and 40% of truck tractor sales.

A second part of the regulation is company and fleet reporting. From April 2021, large employers, including retailers, manufacturers, brokers, and others, are required to report information about shipments and shuttle services. Fleet owners with 50 or more trucks are required to report about their existing fleet operations.

That information will be used “to identify future strategies to ensure that fleets purchase available zero-emission trucks and place them in service where suitable.”

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Maritime / Technology / Top Stories Today

MSC to study oceangoing cruise ship on hydrogen

Joris Van Roy Posted On July 27, 2021

Italian-Swiss shipping giant Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) will study the next twelve months the feasibility of an oceangoing cruise ship on hydrogen as a zero-emission alternative. The study will be carried out together with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri and Italian gas group Snam.

The three companies formulated their intention to build the world’s first hydrogen-powered cruise ship in a joint statement on Monday. That day, in Monfalcone (Italy), the cruise ship division of MSC took delivery of its new flagship, the MSC Seashore. A giant built by Fincantieri of 339 meters long, 41 m wide, and 76 m high, with 2 270 cabins accomodating 5 877 guests and 1 648 crew.

Among EU’s top CO2 polluters

So far, the reputation of MSC as one of the world’s biggest shipping giants is not that environmentally friendly, according to Transport & Environment. They warned that although MSC claims its fleet is young, modern, and environmentally friendly, the company has climbed to sixth place in the ranking of Europe’s top CO2 polluters. Alarming is that the shipping operator pollutes more than some coal plants in Poland and Germany.

The Cruise Division of MSC Group, running 19 ships today, is committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, as the European Union targets. The study will focus on all aspects of designing and building a cruise ship and equipping it with fuel cells to generate onboard electricity and use green hydrogen or derivated fuels to propel the ship.

No sufficient hydrogen production

“We want to be on the front line of the energy revolution in our sector, and hydrogen can greatly help in this direction,” said Pierfrancesco Vago, executive chairman of MSC’s cruise division, quoted by the Reuters news agency.

“‘However, today, production levels remain low, and hydrogen fuel is still far from being available at scale. With this project, we’re taking the lead to bring this promising technology to our fleet and the industry while sending the strongest possible signal to the market about how seriously we take our environmental commitments,” he added at the same time.

Hybrid exhaust cleaning system

Meanwhile, the MSC Seashore is far from carbon-neutral as it still uses heavy fuel to propel the 170 400 gross tons ship to a maximum speed of 22,4 knots. But according to shipbuilder Fincantieri, “to achieve a net zero-impact cruise operation by 2050, each new ship represents another step toward this goal, alongside other investments to help accelerate the development of next-generation environmental technology.”

MSC Seashore features a hybrid exhaust gas cleaning system (EGCS) and selective catalytic reduction systems (SCR), achieving a 98% reduction of sulfur oxide (SOx) emissions and reducing nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions by 90%. The wastewater treatment system, says Fincantieri, has been designed “to achieve purification standards that are higher than most wastewater treatment facilities ashore.”

Energy / Hydrogen / Industry / Product / Technology / Top Stories Today

Hyundai plans more fuel cell vehicles

Gert Verhoeven Posted On July 26, 2021

Hyundai will further expand its range of alternative propulsion systems in time. In addition to electric, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid models, the Korean manufacturer also believes in fuel cell propulsion, and that range is also going to grow with three extra models.

Hyundai today offers the Nexo (SUV model) on Belgian soil, but with a price tag of nearly 82 000 euros, the number of models sold remains modest. Alongside the Nexo, Hyundai also has a bus and a truck with hydrogen technology in its range, although these will not be imported into Belgium.

Three additional models

The Korean media have just announced that three additional fuel cell models are underway, although Hyundai has not yet officially confirmed this. By 2023, there will be a hydrogen version of the Universe Coach (a touring car), the Solati (a van known to us as the H 350), and the Staria (successor to the H1).

According to Belgian importer spokesperson Wim Doms, the 5,25-meter-long Staria is expected on the Belgian market by 2021. In the first phase, this van will be offered with classic combustion engines.

Later, a van for passenger transport may follow. “In the short term, however, there are no concrete plans to commercialize a fuel cell version in Belgium,” concludes Doms.

Wider fuel cell range

Whether these models are intended for the European or Belgian market is not yet clear. Hyundai does have an extensive test program running on Swiss soil with 25 XCIENT fuel cell trucks that have now clocked up more than 1 million test kilometers, and a German test program with buses is also underway.

Hyundai Motor Company aims to bring 110 000 fuel cell vehicles to market annually worldwide by 2025 and reach 500 000 units per year by 2030. With this in mind, it seems logical that the model range will also be expanded, making the announcement in the Korean media quite credible.

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ICCT study: BEVs already emit 70% less CO2

Tony Verhelle Posted On July 22, 2021

A new study by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) experts finds battery-electric cars already have a better greenhouse gas emissions record than conventionally powered vehicles. This is not only true in Europe but also in China, India, or the USA. Moreover, by 2030, this emissions advantage will further increase.

The study was a wide-ranging life-cycle assessment (LCA) and considered the compact car class over its entire lifetime, so the emissions from the production of the vehicles and batteries are included. Furthermore, the disposal/recycling of the vehicle was also taken into account.

Almost 70% in Europe already

For an electric compact car, greenhouse gas emissions in Europe are already 66 to 69% lower than for comparable new gasoline vehicles. The use of the expected electricity mix for 2021 to 2038 (i.e., the period in which the vehicle would be used) was included. The mileage was assumed to be 234 000 kilometers – covered with one battery.

If the e-compact car were powered entirely by electricity from renewable energy sources, the battery vehicle would already achieve up to 81% lower life cycle emissions than a gasoline vehicle, according to the ICCT.

However, the researchers also assume that the electricity mix will steadily improve due to the EU requirements to expand renewable energies. Therefore, the study assumes that by 2030, the electric compact car will increase its emissions advantage to about 74 to 77% compared to the gasoline car.

Other continents

Based on the USA’s supply chains and electricity mix, the emissions advantage of the electric car is already 60 to 68% today. For China, with its high share of coal-fired power, the ICCT has calculated a saving of 37 to 45%, and for India, still 19 to 34%.

The biggest factor in all regions is the energy needed to operate the vehicles; the CO2 emissions for battery production, vehicle production, and maintenance over the vehicle’s lifetime are the much smaller items.

Battery production

The fact that battery-electric cars score so well is also because the ICCT says it used new data on battery production. With today’s more efficient processes and partly localized supply chains, significantly fewer greenhouse gases are emitted than was assumed a few years ago (and thus in earlier studies). The ICCT refers to data from the Argonne National Laboratory, a US Department of Energy research institute.

Specifically, the ICCT calculates that a 45 kWh battery production in Europe results in 2,7 tons of CO2 emissions. In comparison, the 70 kWh battery of an SUV model results in about 4,2 tons of CO2.

The calculation was based on 60 kilograms of CO2 equivalent per kWh. The same value was estimated for the USA. In China and India, 68 kg CO2/kWh was calculated in each case.

“The basic conclusions of our study are ultimately similar for all regions, despite differences in vehicle and electricity mix,” says Rachel Muncrief, Deputy Director at the ICCT.

“Already today, battery vehicles have lower greenhouse gas emissions than conventional gasoline and diesel vehicles. This is also true for countries with a high share of coal-fired power, such as China and India.”

Hybrids

For this life cycle analysis, not only fossil combustion engines and electric cars were compared but also plug-in hybrids, biofuels, SynFuels, and hydrogen.

For all types of drive, not the WLTP consumption figures but real measured consumption figures were used as a basis. However, due to the lower share of electric driving (the ICCT published a separate survey on this in November 2020), the ICCT experts only calculated savings of 25 to 27% over the life cycle for plug-in hybrids and around 20% for self-charging hybrids.

When it comes to alternative fuels for internal combustion engines, the ICCT is skeptical: the addition of biofuels and synthetic fuels (e-fuels) could “not contribute significantly to the decarbonization of passenger car transport” in the coming years.

And hydrogen?

Fuel cell vehicles achieve a greenhouse gas saving of around 26% as long as they are operated with the grey hydrogen that is predominant today. This is produced by reforming methane and natural gas.

If fuel cell vehicles are operated with green hydrogen produced by electrolysis from renewable energy sources, FCEV emissions are 76% lower than those of gasoline cars. However, the ICCT also points out that running fuel cell cars on electricity-based hydrogen is about three times more energy-intensive than using electricity directly in battery vehicles.

The production of the battery for battery-electric cars has been considered particularly energy-intensive and is, therefore, associated with CO2 emissions. According to the ICCT, however, a lot of energy is also needed to produce the fuel cell, especially the hydrogen tanks made of carbon fibers. Therefore, the production of an FCEV has about the same greenhouse gas emissions as the production of a medium-sized battery.

Clear conclusion

“Battery vehicles powered by electricity from renewable sources and fuel cell vehicles powered by green hydrogen are the only two technology paths to be able to achieve decarbonization of the European car fleet by 2050,” says Georg Bieker, author of the ICCT study.

Against this background, the ICCT researchers recommend phasing out the registration of new passenger cars with combustion engines in the EU by 2035 at the latest. This coincides with the ambitious plans ‘Fit for 55’ the European Commission had released last week. However, what the member states and the EU Parliament will finally make of it remains to be seen.

Hydrogen / Industry / Technology / Top Stories Today

Hyzon to deliver 20 hydrogen refuse trucks for Australia

Joris Van Roy Posted On July 20, 2021

American fuel cell specialist Hyzon has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Australian Superior Pak for the delivery in 2022 of twenty refuse collection trucks. Superior Pack is designing and engineering mobile waste collection and compaction equipment and has already delivered over 3 000 compaction units for more than 50 municipalities in Australia and New Zealand.

“Over 530 Australian municipalities manage waste collection for their residents, many of which have committed to net-zero emissions across their operations,” said Hyzon CEO Craig Knight. “Despite these commitments, few viable zero-emissions options exist.”

Operational in Q2 2022

The intention is to deliver a zero-emission, high-performance side lift garbage truck, capable of undertaking the 1500-2000 compactor lifts required during an 8-10 hour suburban working cycle. The first 5 vehicles are expected to be delivered and operational in Q2 2022, the press release states.

Hyzon, a spin-off from Singapore’s Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies based in Rochester, N.Y., specializes in converting existing trucks to FCEVs by replacing the diesel motor. It generally buys new trucks and makes them zero-emission. On July 19, 2021, it started trading its stock on the Nasdaq Global Select market under the ticker symbol “HYZN”.

Factory in the Netherlands

In Europe, it builds the trucks in a joint venture with Holthausen Clean Technology BV of the Netherlands. The latter is a family business that specializes in converting diesel trucks into fuel cell trucks.

50-ton milk truck on hydrogen

On of the latest examples is the first hydrogen-driven 50-ton milk truck on the roads in the Groningen region in the Netherlands, commissioned last week by Dutch dairy company FrieslandCampina.

Hyzon launched in April its leasing service in the European Union. It’s intended to be a ‘holistic fleet leasing offering’ for the European market that includes the Hyzon FCEV trucks, the hydrogen fuel, insurance, service, and maintenance.

In the Australasian region, Hyzon is already quite active selling. In the next five years, it will deliver 1 500 heavy-duty trucks on hydrogen to New Zealand’s Hiringa Energy. The New Zealand hydrogen specialist builds a countrywide network of hydrogen stations and offers the trucks to clients for sale or leasing contracts.

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Top Stories Today

WaterstofNet gets Hyundai Nexo keys

Hilde Van Raemdonck Posted On July 20, 2021

WaterstofNet (HydrogenNet), the driving force behind the Hydrogen Industry Cluster (Waterstof Industrie Cluster, WIC), of which the Korean car manufacturer Hyundai is a member, wants to be a forerunner using hydrogen for zero-emission mobility. Therefore, Hyundai Belux puts one of its hydrogen cars at WaterstofNet’s disposal for one year in the context of their cooperation.

WIC is an industrial cooperation, bringing together companies, authorities, and knowledge institutions that want to join forces to use hydrogen to store renewable energy and promote its use for zero-emission mobility and heating or other industrial applications. The cluster encourages cooperation, detects and facilitates possible hydrogen projects, and communicates with policymakers.

Hytrucks project

One of its latest initiatives announced in May, is the HyTrucks project in whitch WaterstofNet takes care of the project management at both the European and Belgian levels. French Air Liquide, Colruyt’s DATS 24, and Port of Antwerp announced their intention to deploy up to 300 hydrogen-driven fuel cell trucks by 2025 and establish six high-capacity hydrogen fueling stations.

The initiative is part of the HyTrucks project, a consortium of more than 40 companies aiming at putting a fleet of 1 000 hydrogen trucks on the roads between the ports of Antwerp (Belgium), Rotterdam (Netherlands), and Duisburg in Germany’s Rhineland. Between the three cities, some 200 km apart from each other, the project foresees 25 H2-filling stations.

Second generation fuel cell car

Hyundai Belux is one of the few car brands with a hydrogen-propelled car model, the Hyundai Nexo offered in Belgium. The company has been a member of the Hydrogen Industry Cluster for years.

Some years ago, they experimented with the Hyundai iX35 Fuel Cell model. But today, Hyundai and WaterstofNet celebrate their joint venture with the brand new Hyundai Nexo, the second-generation fuel cell car of the Korean car manufacturer.

Multimodal filling stations

Today, the sales of hydrogen cars are still marginal, mainly due to the lack of filling stations. However, according to Hyundai, the brand is convinced that demand will increase and that hydrogen cars will further contribute to the greening of the Belgian fleet.

“The introduction of the Hyundai Nexo is a giant leap for WaterstofNet,” adds Aldwin Martens, Managing Director of WaterstofNet. “We will actively push the further rollout of multimodal filling stations, and by using the Hyundai Nexo, we will put our money where our mouth is.”

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Top Stories Today / Transport

Hyzon 50-ton milk truck on hydrogen on Dutch roads

Joris Van Roy Posted On July 14, 2021

Dutch dairy company FrieslandCampina has commissioned its first hydrogen-driven 50-ton milk truck on the roads in the Groningen region. Today, only there is enough hydrogen filling infrastructure to roll out H2-trucks, says FrieslandCampina. But it is looking to expand to the rest of the Netherlands too.

FrieslandCampina is running a durability program called ‘Nourishing a better planet’ and aims at becoming CO2-neutral by 2050 in production, starting with a reduction of over a third already in 2030. It started five years ago using liquid natural gas (LNG) to propel its milk trucks but now wants to take the next step with hydrogen.

The new milk truck on hydrogen is delivered by American heavy fuel cell truck developer Hyzon. The latter announced in April it is launching its leasing service in the European Union. It’s intended to be a ‘holistic fleet leasing offering’ for the European market, including the Hyzon FCEV trucks, hydrogen fuel, insurance, service, and maintenance.

Hyzon, which is to build the trucks in the Netherlands, aims to be among the first companies to offer the transport sector an alternative with hydrogen-driven heavy trucks at a total cost of ownership (TCO) equalling a diesel truck.

Joint venture

Hyzon, a spin-off from Singapore’s Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies based in Rochester, N.Y., will build the trucks in a joint venture with Holthausen Clean Technology BV. The latter is a family business that specializes in converting diesel trucks into fuel cell trucks.

Carl Holthausen and his son Max decided seven years ago to change tack and convert the traditional oil and industrial gas supplying business into ‘Clean Technology’ with ‘green’ gas and hydrogen. They even have their own ‘green hydrogen’ production set up with a 42 000 unit solar panel park, built on a former refuse dump, providing electricity for the company’s electrolyzer to make the hydrogen.

A hobby that got out of hand

Powerful compact fuel cell

Today’s Hyzon fuel cells deliver up to 300 kW, to become 500 kW soon, and are among the most compact ones on the market. Making them easy to install in the space normally taken by the diesel engine. The benefit is that the converted fuel cell tractor is lighter than its diesel sibling, which results in higher load capacity.

After the fusion, the plan was to scale up production to 800 units in 2021 and 2 000 by 2023. With the New Zealand deal the company announced in February, that should be feasible. The first trucks of 1 500 for Hiringa Energy will be delivered by the end of this year.

The New Zealand hydrogen specialist builds a countrywide network of hydrogen stations and offers the trucks to clients for sale or leasing contracts. The trucks for New Zealand will be built in Winschoten (Netherlands) in a 6×4 configuration, include a sleeper cab option, and will have a Gross Combination Mass (GCM) of 58 metric tons and a range of 680 km.

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Shell switches on Europe’s largest green H2 electrolyzer

Félix Bouland Posted On July 7, 2021

Anglo-Dutch oil giant, Shell, has put its new 10 MW renewable hydrogen production plant into service. The biggest of its kind in Europe. The electrolyzer is located at Shell’s Rheinland refinery, near Cologne in Germany. Benefiting from European Commission funding, it will produce up to 1 300 tons of green hydrogen per year, but plans have been submitted to increase the capacity ten folds.

“This project illustrates a new type of energy future and a model for low-carbon energy production that can be replicated worldwide. Shell wants to become one of the leading suppliers of green hydrogen to industrial and transport customers in Germany. We will be involved in the whole process, from energy generation, using offshore wind, to hydrogen production and distribution to all sectors,” declared Huibert Vigeveno, downstream Director at Shell.

Europe’s largest green electrolyzer

Located at Shell’s Rheinland refinery, near Cologne in Germany, the new electrolyzer will use renewable electricity from offshore wind farms to produce green hydrogen. First of its kind in the Dutch oil giant’s portfolio, the electrolyzer should produce up to 1 300 tons of hydrogen per year. However, plans have already been made to increase the 10 MW production capacity to 100 MW.

This new green production plant is part of Shell’s ambition to become carbon neutral by 2050. Through its new strategy, the oil company plans to reduce its production of conventional fuels by 55% by 2030. At first, the hydrogen produced in Rheinland will produce fossil fuels with a lower carbon impact.

Refhyne

“The 100 MW electrolyzer will be five times bigger than anybody’s ever done before. Fifteen years ago, nobody would ever imagine that wind and solar would get to 1 gigawatt. Still, it happened,” notes Daryl Wilson, Executive Director of the Hydrogen Council, reported in Shell’s latest press release.

Benefitting from European Commission funding, the electrolyzer project is led by Refhyne, a European consortium grouping Shell, ITM Power, SINTEF, Sphera, and Element Energy. On the same Rheinland site, Shell also plans to produce sustainable aircraft fuel through renewable energy, and a renewable LNG plant is also under development.

Environment / Hydrogen / Industry / Technology

Renault releases three vans on hydrogen by end of the year

Piet Andries Posted On July 7, 2021

Renault has released more details about its hydrogen collaboration with Plug Power, baptized HYVIA. Already by the end of this year, the joint venture, which serves as an appendix to Renault’s electric branch, will be offering three vans in different sizes, equipped with a zero-emission fuel cell.

The biggest van Renault offers is the Master Chassis Cab H2-TECH, with a cargo volume of 19 m2. It’s built for the transportation of larger goods, and it can reach a distance of 250 km on a single fill. The Master Van H2-TECH is a smaller version but still offers 12 m2 of cargo volume while its autonomy doubles the distance to 500 km.

Minibus

Renault will also be launching a minibus for passenger transport. In the Master Citybus H2-TECH, up to 15 people can be seated while covering a maximum distance of 300 km. The French carmaker is pitching this Master for enterprises and governments. The tanks for hydrogen vary from 3 to 7 kilograms, depending on the version.

All these vans are equipped with HYVIA’s dual power architecture, a hybrid propulsion that relies partly on electricity stored in a battery and partly on hydrogen converted in a fuel cell. It’s the best of both worlds. However, battery propulsion is still needed in these vehicles for a good response since fuel cells have a slower reaction time. In the Master Van H2-TECH, the battery of 33 kWh accounts for 100 kilometers of driving range; the 30 kW fuel cell is responsible for the remaining 400 km.

For the decarbonization of utilitarian vehicles, hydrogen is more beneficial than battery only due to a smaller penalty of battery weight on the payload and faster refills. However, when longer distances, continuous working hours, and heavier goods are in the mix electric propulsion by fuel cell has the edge as for now.

Holistic approach

However, HYVIA is not only about the production of fuel cells to be fitted in vans. It’s an ecosystem. The joint venture also produces electrolysis machines, hydrogen filling stations, and mobile storage backed by a financing model.

This holistic approach is important since making the switch to hydrogen for professional companies is not just about the vehicle technology but also the production, storage, and efficient distribution of hydrogen.

Hydrogen / Industry / Technology / Top Stories Today

Eberspächer enters fuel cell business with ViCTORi takeover

Joris Van Roy Posted On July 6, 2021

German automotive supplier Eberspächer is taking over for 100% Boulder-based (Colorado) ViCTORi LLC and its VAIREX branded air systems.

Being a US supplier of fuel cell compressor systems to the global fuel cell industry, the latter buys the German family-owned specialist in exhaust technology, automotive controls, and thermal management a foothold in the fuel cell business.

With increasing decarbonization, hydrogen is gaining in importance as an energy carrier, the press release states.

Vairex fuel cell air compressors

ViCTORi produces under the brand name Vairex fuel cell cathode air compressors and related components. “These control the power that the fuel cell generates through accurate airflow and pressure supply, making it a key component for the performance of fuel cells and contributing significantly to the performance, packaging, and durability of the overall system.”

The Vairex air systems are used in quantities of up to 15 000 units in stationary and mobile fuel cell applications, hydrogen-powered forklifts, and conveyor vehicles. They are also used as range extenders in light delivery vehicles and stationary power generation systems.

Investing in a future market

“We are deliberately investing in a future market and want to grow purposefully with hydrogen and fuel cell technology,” says Eberspächer Managing Partner, Martin Peters, explaining the investment. The Esslingen am Neckar-based company is acquiring 100% of the shares of the U.S. company.

According to Ski Milburn, CEO of VAIREX air systems, the American company needed “to significantly expand its scale and global footprint to keep pace with the fuel cell industry. Eberspächer is an excellent fit.”

The American company has its headquarters in Colorado but also runs sales operations in Tokyo (Japan), Seoul (South Korea), and Shanghai (China). Eberspächer as an automotive supplier, employs some 10 000 people in 80 locations worldwide, realizing a revenue totaling over 4,9 billion euros.

Aviation / Energy / Hydrogen / Public transport / Technology / Top Stories Today

ZeroAvia sets bar higher with hydrogen-powered 19-seater aircraft

Joris Van Roy Posted On July 2, 2021

British-American start-up in hydrogen-powered aviation, ZeroAvia, is setting the bar higher again with the development of a 19-seater twin-engined airplane for short-haul flights, capable of covering a range of 800 km. ZeroAvia was the first to feature a six-seater H2-powered electric airplane passenger flight in September 2020.

ZeroAvia acquired two twin-engine 19-seat Dornier 228 aircraft from Guernsey’s regional airline Aurigny and AMC Aviation which used the planes on regional services. They will be converted with fuel cell-powered engines and are meant to be used for certifying them as the largest aviation hydrogen platform yet, to be commercially used from 2024.

UK Government fund

The Hyflyer II test and demonstration planes – one stationed in Kemble (UK) and one at the company’s site in Hollister (California) – will be retrofitted with two 600-kW hydrogen powertrains and a tank capacity of 100 kg of compressed hydrogen, giving them a range of 500 nautical miles (805 km).

Damaged on a rough landing

Apparently, that plane got damaged in April of this year during a routine pattern test flight, making an off-airport landing in a grass field outside Cranfield airport. According to ZeroAvia, “it caught the left main gear and wing in the uneven terrain at the end of the field at low speed. Everybody involved was safe and without injury.”

The plane ZeroAvia is taking in hand now, the Dornier 228, is a twin-turboprop STOL (short take-off and landing) utility aircraft, being capable of operating from rough runways and in hot climates. In total, 245 of them were built between 1981 and 1998 by the German aircraft builder.

German hydrogen plane

Beginning this year, the German ministry of transport provided a grant of 6 million euros for the BALIS project, which aims to develop a fuel-cell powertrain of some 1,5 megawatt, enough to power a 40-60 seat regional aircraft that can fly 1 000 km. That would then rather be a Dornier 328 turboprop, being a 30-44 seater regional aircraft.

ZeroAvia’s ambitions go further than the 19-seater for regional flights too. It raised another $13 million (€10,9 million) from a series of venture capitalists, among which AP Ventures, Shell Ventures, and Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund to start up a 50- to 80-seater project to be realized in 2026. That should pave the way for a +200 seater with a +3 700 km range by 2030, and ultimately one capable of flying more than 5 000 nm or 9 260 km by 2040.

Airbus to burn hydrogen

European aerospace company, Airbus, has presented in September last year three concepts of zero-emission airplanes using liquified ‘green’ hydrogen as fuel. So Airbus is planning to burn the hydrogen rather than use it in fuel cells to propel electric engines.

It believes these planes will be ready to start test-flying by 2028 and ready to fly by 2035 commercially. That’s the date set by the French government to put €1,2 billion on the table by 2022 to support it as part of the rescue plan for the aviation industry.

120 to 200 passengers

The most ‘classic’ designs are the turbofan – with jet engines – for 120 to 200 passengers and a turboprop design – with propellers – for up to 100 passengers for the short haul. They’ll have a range of more than 2 000 nautical miles (3 700 km), capable of operating transcontinentally and powered by a modified gas-turbine engine burning hydrogen.

The most spectacular design is the delta wing Airbus is working on since 2017, the MAVERIC. Airbus already revealed a demonstrator scale model in February. It is a so-called ‘blended-wing body’ design for up to 200 passengers in which the wings merge with the main body of the aircraft.

Hydrogen / Product / Technology / Top Stories Today

Preordering opened for French H2-powered Hopium Machina

Joris Van Roy Posted On June 22, 2021

Last week, French racing driver Oliver Lombard presented at the Viva Technology event in Paris the official ‘Alpha 0’ prototype of his dream car he’s going to build, the hydrogen-powered Hopium Māchina.

At the same time, preordering is opened for the first 1 000 numbered cars, at the symbolic price of 410 euros. The reservation fee requested refers to the hydrogen spectral line. The sleek FCEV sedan will feature 500 hp, a top speed of 230 km/hour, and a range on hydrogen of 1 000 km. Estimated basic list price for the car due in 2026: €120 000.

Hopium was founded in 2019 by Olivier Lombard (30), who started his racing career with karting in 2004 to grow into the Formula BMW series later and become the youngest winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans Series in 2011.

Racing as a lab

Lombard has been driving hydrogen-powered racing cars for seven years, working with Swiss pioneer of fuel cell racing cars, GreenGT. According to Lombard, the race was like an open-air laboratory, making it possible for him and the team to reflect on new mobility solutions to meet contemporary environmental challenges.

Meanwhile, Lombard, majority shareholder, and CEO gathered a team of specialists around him, lured away from the competition. Like Hopium’s Head of Programs, Loïc Bouillo, former fuel cell engineer at PSA and Safran.

Porsche Mission-E and Tesla 3

Hopium’s Chief Designer, Félix Godard, learned the tricks of the trade successively at Porsche on the Mission E-project, the forerunner of the Taycan, worked on the Model 3 at Tesla, and the Air at Lucid Motors. He also made a passage at autonomous vehicle company HYPR.

Today, the team has expanded to some 30 people, working merely at a site at the race circuit of Linas-Montlhéry, about thirty kilometers south of Paris, and in an engineering studio in Munich (Germany) and a technology center in Los Angeles (US).

In a video released by the company, the sleek black prototype car is seen on the circuit. According to Lombard, it is already reaching a top speed of over 200 km/hour in its first basic prototype version, both on the test bank as the circuit, close to the 230 km/hour set for the final production version.

The car has its purpose-developed fuel cell built-in in the front and a hydrogen tank holding six kg at 700 bar in the form of a ‘T’ , delivered by French automotive supplier Plastic Omnium. The latter wants to become one of the main players in the field of hydrogen for automotive.

In October last year, Plastic Omnium announced it had courted German spare parts manufacturer ElringKlinger to develop fuel cells jointly. The fruit of that courtship – a newly setup joint venture – is called EKPO, with 60% held by ElringKlinger and 40% by Plastic Omnium.

The Hopium Māchina won’t be available before 2026. However, Olivier Lombard hopes to announce the beginning of 2022 more details of how the car will actually be produced. So far, Lombard managed to raise some 7,5 million euros for his project with private investors, including himself.

€7 billion French hydrogen plan

He hopes to get a piece of the pie when the French government allocates the €7 billion set aside to create a new hydrogen economy. As part of the €100 billion rescue plan, France will allocate two billion euros for ‘green’ hydrogen between 2021 and 2022. After that, the remaining five billion euros will be invested in a second fold.

First, France wants to focus on the industry using ‘grey hydrogen’ made from natural gas, which is still a C02-emitting process, to switch to ‘green hydrogen’ made with renewable sources like wind and solar power.

The second part of the plan focuses on what the government likes to call ‘heavy mobility solutions’, such as trucks, trains, and airplanes. But, unfortunately, a lightweight, high-performance luxury car doesn’t fit in that category exactly.

Energy / Environment / Hydrogen / Product / Top Stories Today

BMW starts hydrogen X5 testing

Tony Verhelle Posted On June 16, 2021

The BMW Group is beginning to test near-standard vehicles with a hydrogen fuel cell drive train on everyday European roads. Prototypes of the BMW i Hydrogen NEXT will examine how effectively the CO₂-free drive train, model-specific chassis technology, and vehicle electronics systems work together under real-life conditions.

The BMW i Hydrogen NEXT is a purely electric vehicle that uses hydrogen as fuel by converting it into electricity in a fuel cell. The recently launched testing program will pave the way for the BMW Group to present a small-series model with this sustainable drive technology, developed based on the BMW X5, in late 2022.

Flexible drive train strategy

“Hydrogen fuel cell technology has the long-term potential to supplement internal combustion engines, plug-in hybrid systems, and battery-electric vehicles within the BMW Group’s flexible drive train strategy,” the company states.

It could become an attractive alternative to battery-electric drive trains – especially for customers who do not have their own access to electric charging infrastructure or frequently drive long distances.

“Hydrogen fuel cell technology can be an attractive option for sustainable drive trains, especially in larger vehicle classes,” declares Frank Weber, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Development. “That is why road testing of near-standard vehicles with a hydrogen fuel cell drivetrain is an important milestone in our research and development efforts.”

The intensive testing program conducted under everyday conditions, with thousands of kilometers driven in real traffic situations, helps development engineers validate all components’ efficiency, safety, convenience, and reliability.

Link with Toyota

The BMW i Hydrogen NEXT uses fuel cells from the product development cooperation with the Toyota Motor Corporation. The individual cells come from Toyota, while the fuel cell stack and the complete drive system are original BMW Group developments.

The cooperation was established in 2013 and sought to optimize the everyday practicality and scalability of hydrogen fuel cell technology for use in each company’s respective production vehicles through the intensive exchange of experience.

Part of the family

The complete drive system in the BMW i Hydrogen NEXT combines hydrogen fuel cell technology with fifth-generation BMW eDrive technology, like in the BMW iX3 and the future iX and i4.

The fuel cell delivers an electrical output of 125 kW/170 hp. An electric converter located below the fuel cell adjusts its voltage to that of the electric motor. Energy stored in a performance buffer battery is also used for dynamic acceleration maneuvers and short bursts of speed for overtaking. This energy is generated in a particularly efficient way during driving by recovering energy from coasting overrun and deceleration phases.

As a result, the system delivers a total output of 275 kW/374 hp that corresponds exactly to that of the most powerful six-cylinder in-line gasoline engine currently used in BMW models – thereby guaranteeing the driving dynamics the brand is known for.

The hydrogen needed to supply the fuel cell is stored in two 700-bar tanks made of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP), which holds six kilograms of hydrogen together.

Energy / Hydrogen / Industry / Product / Technology / Top Stories Today

Jaguar Land Rover develops FCEV Defender

Tony Verhelle Posted On June 16, 2021

The British/Indian manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is developing a fuel cell-powered prototype of the recent Land Rover Defender, which starts testing in the UK later this year. The H2 off-road vehicle is created as part of Jaguar Land Rover’s research and development into future technologies.

The development project represents one aspect of the company’s new ‘Reimagine’ strategy, which CEO Thierry Bolloré presented in February. He announced that Jaguar would become an all-electric car brand from 2025. The former Renault CEO took over the chief executive post at JLR from Ralph Speth in September 2020.

Zeus project

Jaguar Land Rover announced less than a year ago that it was working with partners on the UK government-funded ‘Zeus’ project to develop future technologies in general and fuel cell versions of its larger vehicles in particular.

‘Zeus‘ is co-funded by the government’s Advanced Propulsion Center. The project aims to provide engineers and developers with new and deeper insights into how hydrogen propulsion can be optimized.

The prototype H2 Defender is due to begin testing in the UK toward the end of the year. According to JLR, the tests will focus on aspects such as off-road characteristics and fuel consumption.

For the research, development, and production of the fuel cell prototype, the British company is enlisting the help of several partners, including Delta Motorsport, AVL, Marelli Automotive Systems, and the UK Battery Industrialisation Center (UKBIC).

“We know hydrogen has a role to play in the future powertrain mix across the whole transport industry, and alongside battery electric vehicles, it offers another zero tailpipe emission solution for the specific capabilities and requirements of Jaguar Land Rover’s world-class line-up of vehicles,” says Ralph Clague, Head of Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology at Jaguar Land Rover.

Alongside battery-electric models, hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles offer another zero-emission solution to the unique capabilities and requirements of Jaguar Land Rover’s advanced model range. “The work done alongside our partners in Project Zeus will help us on our journey to become a net-zero carbon business by 2039 as we prepare for the next generation of zero tailpipe emissions vehicles.”

Electrification ahead

In February, JLR already announced that a purely electric variant would be available for all model series by the end of the decade. At Jaguar, 100% of sales will be locally emission-free (logical given the e-targets for 2025).

At Land Rover, the company states 60% as a target. In concrete terms, Land Rover aims to bring six purely electrically powered models to market in the next five years, the first of which will be in 2024.

Under Thierry Bolloré, JLR wants to invest €2,8 billion annually in electrification and the development of connected services. At the same time, the company already stated that it wants to develop battery-electric vehicles and fuel cell drives “to be prepared for future demand”.

Hydrogen / Industry / Technology / Top Stories Today

HYVIA: Renault targets 30% of market with fuel cell LCV joint venture

Joris Van Roy Posted On June 7, 2021

French Renault Group has finalized its intended 50/50 joint venture with American fuel cell developer Plug Power to capture a 30% share of the EU market of hydrogen-driven light commercial vehicles (LCVs).

The first three fuel cell vehicles brought to market by HYVIA, as the joint venture is baptized, will be based on the Renault Master platform and should be available in Europe by the end of 2021 and accompanied by the deployment of charging stations and the supply of green hydrogen, the press release states.

Headquartered in north-central France

“HYVIA is a contraction of ‘HY’ for hydrogen and the Latin word ‘VIA’ for road, embodying the ambition to open a new path toward low-carbon mobility. Commercial vehicles such as LCVs require greater range and shorter refueling time, operational demands where hydrogen fuel cells are the unparalleled energy solution.”

Headquarters and the R&D center will be based in Villiers-Saint-Frédéric in north-central France, known for having one of the largest Renault tools and component factories in France. Manufacturing and logistics teams will be based in nearby Flins as part of the Re-Factory project and plan to begin assembling fuel cells and recharging stations by the end of 2021.

The fuel cell integration will be carried out by PVI, a subsidiary of Renault Group since 2017, located in also nearby Gretz-Armainvilliers. The actual production of the FCEV Renault Master will be done at the Batilly plant, Meurthe-et-Moselle (France). This bodywork and assembly factory already produces the Master in over 350 versions.

Ex-Aftersales Director BENELUX

The new CEO of HYVIA will be David Holderbach, who started his automotive career in 2003 as a Chassis Design Manager with Auto Chassis International and moved after a passage with Nissan to Renault 12 years ago, where he was Aftersales Director BENELUX from 2019 to June 2021.

“Renault has been a hydrogen pioneer since 2014 with more than a hundred light commercial vehicles on the road. We are excited to join forces with Plug Power with its integrated solutions approach toward green hydrogen,” Holderbach says in the press release.

Complete offering of solutions

“HYVIA is now opening a new path toward decarbonization with a complete offering of hydrogen solutions. HYVIA builds on the complementary skills of Renault Group and Plug Power and will target a 30% market share in hydrogen-powered light commercial vehicles in Europe by 2030.”

“The HYVIA integrated hydrogen technology complements Renault’s E-TECH technology, increasing vehicle range to 500 km with a rapid recharging time of three minutes. These advantages are particularly well-suited to certain uses of light commercial vehicles while simultaneously addressing the regulatory challenges of decarbonizing city centers.”

Renault equips its electric vans – Kangoo Z.E. and Master Z.E. – with a fuel cell range extender on hydrogen since 2019. With that technology from Michelin daughter Symbio, the Kangoo extends its range from 230 to 370 km, the Master from 120 to 350 km (WLTP).

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First multimodal hydrogen filling station opens in Antwerp

Luc Joris Posted On June 4, 2021

Near the Port House on the Antwerp Eilandje, the company CMB has opened a multimodal hydrogen filling station on the border of the city and the port.

According to CMB, an Antwerp shipping company that focuses on hydrogen solutions for maritime and industrial applications, it’s the first filling station in the world that produces green hydrogen used to power ships, tube trailers, cars, trucks, and buses.

In 2017 CMB already launched the Hydroville, the world’s first hydrogen-powered passenger ship. Until now, the ship had to work with a mobile hydrogen refueling station – a tube trailer – but from now on, it can also dock to refuel in Antwerp.

Ports will become hydrogen hotspots

“With the realization of the hydrogen filling station, CMB-Tech proves that it controls the entire chain from the production of the green fuel to the use of hydrogen in various applications,” says Roy Campe, chief technical officer (CTO) of the company and the clean-tech division CMB-Tech.

According to CMB, ports will become “hydrogen hotspots” in the future, as such areas have a high concentration of applications that are difficult to electrify. Moreover, many ports will gain access to hydrogen either through large electrolysis plants or through imports.

Strategic location

The location on the Eilandje between the port and the city, and not in the middle of the Antwerp port area, is a deliberate choice. “On the one hand, to supply the many industrial applications in the port with hydrogen, and on the other hand, keep it easily accessible for the general public,” says Roy Campe, as quoted by the Belga news agency.

One of the first users will be a tugboat from the port itself, which will be delivered next year.

Two docks for ships, an ultra-fast charging station for cars

In the hydrogen filling station, electricity and water are converted into hydrogen via an electrolyzer, pumped up to very high pressure via a compressor to various buffers that allow cars, trucks, or ships to fill up.

The filling station also can pump hydrogen to mobile filling stations that can then serve vehicles or vessels elsewhere in the port area. Two docks are provided for supplying mobile hydrogen refueling stations, and there are ultra-fast charging stations for electric (fuel cell) cars.

Export of expertise to Japan

According to De Tijd, CMB has been contacted by the Japanese conglomerate Itochu and the Japanese hydrogen producer Nippon Coke because of its hydrogen expertise.

They want to build a similar maritime and industrial hydrogen filling station in Japan on the island of Kyushu. It would be ready in 2023. CMB has already developed a hydrogen-powered ferry for 80 passengers for the Japanese market.

The Lenoir-truck: the first dual-fuel hydrogen truck

Yesterday, CMB-Tech also presented a new vehicle that can refuel there. The first dual-fuel hydrogen truck christened the “Lenoir truck”, a reference to a French-speaking Belgian who built the first hydrogen-powered internal combustion engine in 1860.

According to CMB-Tech, trucks with a normal combustion engine can easily be converted into dual-fuel trucks. In time, CMB says it wants to produce and market hundreds of similar trucks.

Fewer emissions

“This truck can burn hydrogen, but also diesel,” says CEO Alexander Saverys. “An important element in the energy transition is to ensure that ships continue to sail and trucks continue to run if hydrogen is not available at some point.

We can already reduce emissions by 70 to 80% with this truck, and we think the logistics sector will switch to something like this rather than a battery truck. You can also recharge faster, the distances you can drive are longer, and the payload is greater.”

Saverys calls the Lenoir truck the “kickstart of emission reduction within the logistics sector” and hopes to find partners in that sector to carry out the necessary tests, for example, on the precise range of the vehicle.

The new ‘rock star’ in the EU energy landscape

The CEO is therefore convinced that for shipping and heavy industry, hydrogen is the only solution. “Batteries and other alternative fuels do not reduce CO2 emissions or are not practically feasible. It is true that we still need to get the price of hydrogen down and the availability up.”

European Green Deal Commissioner Frans Timmermans, who was present at the opening, emphasized the importance that Europe believes hydrogen will have for the energy transition.

“Until recently, nobody thought that hydrogen would mean anything in the economy of the future,” said Timmermans. “Now it’s the new ‘rock star’ in the European energy landscape. Projects like this make an enormous contribution to saving our planet because they allow one of the most polluting means of transport – shipping – to switch to green energy. But it is also a huge economic opportunity. The problem with hydrogen is just the scale: demand has to go up, and production has to go up.”

Three hydrogen filling stations in Belgium

Last year, a ‘record number’ of 107 new hydrogen filling stations was opened throughout the world, bringing the total to 560 according to the 13th Annual assessment of H2stations.org,

Today, only two public hydrogen filling stations are operational in Belgium: Air Liquide in Zaventem near Brussels and one owned by the Colruyt Group at its headquarters in Halle (Brussel). With Antwerp, there now will be three.

Limburg Hydrogen Society, a consortium of companies and institutions active in the Belgian province, also aims to produce green hydrogen locally and have a filling station operational in Genk by 2023.

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ING survey: 8 in 10 transport companies want to be emission free

Piet Andries Posted On June 4, 2021

The transportation and logistics sector is moving towards a zero-emission scenario just as rapidly as the car sector. But since fuel cost has a severe impact on their business models, the switch is much more significant.

The willingness from the sector is already in place. According to a survey conducted by the bank ING (jointly with Vlaams Instituut Logistiek (VIL), Logistics in Wallonia, and Thomas More-hogeschool), one in three Belgian companies already has some form of alternative propulsion in their fleet.

Furthermore, part of the study reveals how the industry feels about the transition to alternative transportation options. Four in five (80%) transportation companies in our country want to decarbonize their operations. And more than half (53%) names ecological reasons as their impulse to transition towards sustainable alternatives.

Politics are pushing

But make no mistake, it is clearly indicated that an environmentally conscious approach is only effective if it is accompanied by sufficient economic profitability. For example, the limited number of charging and refueling stations is still considered a major obstacle. Infrastructure needs to be supported more.

Of course, the move is pushed by politics. The Belgian federal government decided that emission-free commercial vehicles must become the norm from 2026 onwards.

And the European Green Deal is increasing the pressure among transport and logistics companies for emission-free solutions. This plan has the ambition to reduce CO2 emissions by more than 50% already by 2030.

Chances for hydrogen

Which types of alternative fuels are regarded viable by the sector? While fuel companies and truck manufactures have put a lot of effort into liquid natural gas (LNG), that path seems to be a dead-end. It’s hard to be profitable with this technology, putting zero-emission technologies more to the forefront.

Biodiesel is still a contender, especially if excise taxes on regular diesel and gasoline rise, the advantage could tilt. Only the production of biodiesel, which is in many cases made from vegetable oil and renewable energy, is a big hurdle.

In that case, the sector sees more benefit in hydrogen. The position of Scania, which announced earlier this year that it rules out hydrogen because fuel-cell trucks will be too inefficient and expensive compared to battery-powered vehicles, is not followed.

The Belgian transport sector refers to the Green Deal, which involves the roll-out of a network of hydrogen stations, which will be a major asset.

And electric?

The transportation and logistics sector does question whether hydrogen is de-carbonized enough, now that only part of our electricity supply is green. Electric trucks could also become an important player, but the charging complexity remains a hurdle.

Unlike cars, it is not currently possible to fast-charge trucks at dedicated stations on the move. This always has to be done in the hub, which means that this type of truck will remain condemned to short distances (nearby deliveries) for the time being.

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Hyve: six Belgian hydrogen pioneers join forces

Joris Van Roy Posted On June 1, 2021

Six Belgian pioneers in hydrogen production as a clean alternative energy source are joining forces in a consortium baptized ‘Hyve’.

The goal is to integrate new electrolyzing techniques into green hydrogen production of gigawatt-scale in two years and actually use it in different applications, like transport.

In the consortium, Flemish research centers Imec and VITO, both partners in EnergyVille, will deliver new technologies to boost hydrogen production efficiency by electrolysis.

“Imec’s expertise in solid-state electrolytes, electrode surfaces, and process technology at the nanoscale is combined with VITO’s expertise in membranes, catalysis, and system integration,” the press release states.

Belgian steel wire and coating specialist Bekaert will supply Metallic Porous Transport Layers for electrolysis, while John Cockerill, a world leader in electrolyzers’ production, will integrate it all.

50 MW hydrogen plant in Ostend

DEME, another Belgian giant and a world player specializing in dredging and building offshore wind parks, will use the electrolyzers to produce ‘green’ hydrogen and derived products like e-fuels.

DEME announced last year it would set up in Ostend a 50 MW ‘green’ hydrogen plant by 2022 to result in a 300 MW installation by 2025. The so-called Hyport project involves two partners: The Port of Ostend and the Flemisch investment trust PMV.

Through the Hyport project, DEME also aims to import green hydrogen from sunny regions where it can be produced cheaply, to complement local European production.

Longtime pioneer Colruyt

The sixth partner is a longtime pioneer of hydrogen in Belgium, retailer Colruyt Group, producing its own green hydrogen for nearly ten years. The latter is used to fuel a fleet of hydrogen forklift trucks at its main distribution center.

But Colruyt also was one of the first to set up a publicly accessible hydrogen fueling station in Belgium and is currently setting up four more of them via its DATS24 fuel station network.

Fleet of hydrogen trucks

It currently is running tests with a 44-ton hydrogen truck for the retail distribution sector and is a partner in the HyTrucks project. The latter is a consortium of more than 40 companies aiming to put a fleet of 1 000 hydrogen trucks on the roads between Antwerp (Belgium), Rotterdam (Netherlands), and Duisburg in Germany’s Rhineland.

Colruyt Group is also a longtime investor in offshore wind energy. With Belgian gas grid manager, Fluxys, it will build a 25 MW hydrogen electrolysis plant in the harbor of Zeebrugge. The project called HyoffWind will use ‘green’ electricity from the offshore windmill parks to produce ‘green’ hydrogen too.

Cheaper than natural gas?

So, a lot of Belgian hydrogen know-how bundled and a lot of investing power too. The ultimate goal is to develop a new breed of electrolyzers that makes the production of ‘green’ hydrogen using sustainable electricity, in the long run, cheaper than hydrogen made from natural gas. Today’s most used method for the production of so-called grey hydrogen still produces a lot of CO2.

Alain Bernard, Director of affiliated companies of the DEME Group, told Belga he estimates the development of the new electrolyzers to take until the end of next year, followed by building a prototype and testing the installations.

Clean, ‘green hydrogen’ made with renewable energy will become cheaper sooner than expected, with costs dropping by 85% to become even cheaper than natural gas itself by 2050. The latter is predicted by BloombergNEV (BNEV) after readjusting its energy outlook.

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Total invest in Hype’s hydrogen taxis

Félix Bouland Posted On May 27, 2021

On Wednesday, French petroleum group Total announced the purchase of a 20% share of Hysetco, the company managing the Hype hydrogen taxis running in Paris.

The joint venture between Air Liquide, Toyota, Kouros, and the Société du taxi électrique parisien (STEP) currently operates one hundred hydrogen taxis and two filling stations. The aim is to expand to twenty stations and transport the 2024 Olympics’ visitors in taxis running on green hydrogen.

“After investing in the new Bélib network of charge points for EVs, Total is contributing to position Paris as a showcase for new carbon-neutral urban mobility for businesses and consumers, declared Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of Total, in a press release.

“Total is thus continuing to accelerate its transformation into TotalEnergies, a leading broad-energy player in the energy transition,” he added.

Hydrogen taxis

Hysetco is running hydrogen filling stations and one of the largest fleets of hydrogen taxis in the world since 2015 in the Île-de-France region under the Hype brand.

The French joint venture in which Total just invested is currently operating around 700 taxis, most of which are running on diesel. The aim is to gradually upgrade them to hydrogen to run a fleet exclusively comprised of hydrogen vehicles by 2024, just in time for the Paris Summer Olympics.

20 hydrogen stations

As of today, Hysetco and Hype are operating two hydrogen filling stations. To fuel their ambition to upgrade their fleet of cars fully, the French companies aim to build around 20 hydrogen stations in and around Paris.

The arrival of Total in the game is good news for Hysetco, as it has declared that it will make its network of service stations available to contribute to the growth of the hydrogen stations network.

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Mercedes-Benz goes for green steel

Tony Verhelle Posted On May 26, 2021

In 2025, Mercedes-Benz will try to use ‘green steel’ to produce all its vehicles, thus reducing its carbon footprint further.

The Stuttgarters are the first car manufacturer to take an equity stake in the Swedish start-up H2 Green Steel (H2GS) to introduce CO2-free steel into series production.

The partnership with HSGS is another step towards CO₂ neutrality, which Mercedes-Benz is pursuing as part of Ambition 2039. Its goal is to achieve a fully connected and CO₂ neutral vehicle fleet in 2039 – eleven years earlier than the EU legislation requires.

Together with its steel suppliers, the company is retooling its supply chain to focus on the prevention and reduction of CO₂ emissions rather than compensation.

“With an equity stake in H2 Green Steel, Mercedes-Benz is sending an important signal to accelerate change in the steel industry and increase the availability of carbon-free steel. As a first step, we are investing a single-digit million amount. As a preferred partner of the start-up, we will be launching green steel in various vehicle models as early as 2025,” says Markus Schäfer, responsible for Daimler Group Research and the Mercedes-Benz Cars COO.

CO2-free manufacturing

A Mercedes‑Benz sedan is made from about 50% steel, accounting for about 30% of CO₂ emissions in production. With the partnership, Mercedes-Benz is actively and consistently tackling one of the biggest challenges in the automotive industry on the road to CO₂ neutrality.

Using a new, innovative manufacturing process, the production of steel at the supplier level is CO2-free. By contrast, steel produced using a classic blast furnace emits an average of more than two tons of CO₂ per ton.

The supplier uses hydrogen and electricity from 100 % renewable energy sources instead of coking coal in steel production in the new process. The hydrogen serves as a reduction gas, which releases and binds the oxygen from the iron ore.

Unlike the use of coking coal, this does not produce CO₂ but water. The supplier uses electricity from 100% renewable sources for the energy requirements generated in the manufacturing process.

CO2-neutral supply chain

Mercedes-Benz is a member of the Responsible Steel Initiative and is actively involved in developing a certifiable sustainability standard for the steel industry. The aim is to ensure environmentally friendly and socially acceptable steel production along the entire value chain.

Suppliers representing more than 85% of Mercedes-Benz’s annual purchasing volume have already signed an Ambition Letter, agreeing to supply the company only with CO2-neutral products in the future.

This includes important steel suppliers. At the same time, Mercedes-Benz is working with its partners to gradually increase the proportion of secondary materials in components and materials.

Who is H2GS?

H2 Green Steel (H2GS) was founded in 2020, aiming to build a large-scale fossil-free steel production facility in northern Sweden. H2GS will produce 5 million tons of fossil-free steel by 2030.

By doing this, the company will contribute to the decarbonizing of the European steel industry, one of the largest carbon dioxide emitters. H2GS will establish operations in Boden and Luleå.

The founder and largest shareholder is Vargas, co-founder and one of the largest shareholders in battery producer Northvolt.

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HDF Energy to assemble fuel cells in (ex-Ford) Blanquefort plant

Félix Bouland Posted On May 26, 2021

Hydrogène de France (HDF Energy) is settling on the grounds of the abandoned Ford Blanquefort plant in Bordeaux, France, to build high-power fuel cells for high-capacity hydrogen power plants.

The new company should start production in 2023, four years after Ford stopped its gearbox production and closed the plant.

The huge, 80 hectares assembly site in the French Bordeaux agglomeration was used to assemble gearboxes from the ’70s until Ford shut down production and closed the plant in 2019.

Fuel cells for green hydrogen power plants

In 2023, Hydrogène de France (HDF Energy) is set to settle in the old Ford factory, with a fresh assembly line occupying around 3,5 hectares. The French company will build high-power fuel cells under license from Canadian Ballard Power System.

These fuel cells will be used in high-capacity power plants using green or decarbonized hydrogen. Currently, HDF Energy is developing the CEOG (Centrale électrique de l’Ouest guyanais) plant in French Guiana.

According to CEO Damien Havard, it’s the first multi-megawatt hydrogen power plant in the world producing renewable, stable, and competitive electricity. HDF Energy is also developing projects of hydrogen power plants in Indonesia and Mexico.

HDF Energy has invested around € 20 million in its new Bordeaux assembly line. While it only employs around 25 people currently, for a turnover of two million euros, the young French fuel cell specialist hopes to reach 100 million by 2025.

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Mercedes-Benz GenH2 truck prepping for road tests (update)

Joris Van Roy Posted On May 21, 2021

Since April, Daimler Truck’s heavy-duty hydrogen truck, the Mercedes-Benz GenH2 presented as a prototype in September last year, is doing ‘rigorous’ test laps on the circuit, prepping for road tests by the end of this year.

Meantime, Daimler Truck joins forces with Dutch Shell for a ‘hydrogen-powered freight corridor’ with 150 fueling stations between Rotterdam, Cologne, and Hamburg and 5 000 Mercedes-Benz heavy-duty fuel cell trucks by 2030. On Thursday, the latter was announced on Daimler Truck’s inaugural ‘Strategy Day ‘ for investors, setting its ambitions as an independent company.

H2Accelerate

Both companies are among the founding members of the H2Accelerate (H2A) alliance. Truck manufacturers Daimler Truck, Volvo Group, and Iveco are teaming up in this H2A alliance with oil and gas companies Royal Dutch Shell and Austrian OMV to accelerate the rollout of hydrogen trucks in Europe. They want to put hundreds of fuel cell trucks on the road and set up 20 high-capacity fueling stations in the first phase by 2025.

Daimler Trucks aims with its GenH2 truck at a range of at least 1 000 km without refueling. Customer tests are expected to start at the beginning of 2023, with the first series-produced GenH2 Trucks delivered in 2027. According to the press release, the current prototype is loaded during the tests with a payload of up to 25 tons for a gross vehicle weight of about 40 tons, as the final specs foresee.

1,2 million kilometers

The fuel-cell truck has to meet the same durability requirements as a comparable conventional Mercedes-Benz Actros. This means 1,2 million kilometers on the road over a period of ten years and a total of 25 000 hours of operation.

Mercedes launched its heavy-duty truck Actros back in 1996, which, after three generations, was completely redesigned from the ground up in 2011 to start a new generation. The hydrogen-powered Mercedes-Benz GenH2, which again is designed starting from white paper, has two 40 kg tanks with minus 253° C cooled liquid hydrogen and two fuel cells.

Liquid or gaseous hydrogen?

Daimler Truck believes in liquid hydrogen rather than its gaseous form, which requires compression (usually 350 bar for trucks) but needs far larger storage tanks. Smaller and lighter hydrogen tanks give the truck more cargo space and a higher payload, says the manufacturer.

“At the same time, more hydrogen can be carried, which significantly increases the trucks’ range. This makes the series GenH2 Truck, like conventional diesel trucks, suitable for multi-day, difficult-to-plan long-haul transport and where the daily energy throughput is high.”

But for the time being, until the liquid hydrogen tanks system has matured in development, Daimler Trucks is using a gaseous system for rigorous internal testing. It demonstrates that both variants – gaseous and liquid – can be technically implemented, the truckmaker says.

Road transport or pipelines?

Liquid hydrogen has more energy density and can be transported by road more easily to remote corners by ships, trucks, or trains. Gaseous hydrogen is to be compressed to 350 or 700 bar but can be transported by pipelines. But ultimately, the ‘industry will tell’ which form will prevail.

And the ‘industry’, is, in this case, also competitor and partner at the same time, Volvo Group with the Volvo and Renault branded trucks. A month ago in April, Daimler Truck AG and Volvo Group outlined their plans for their Cellcentric joint venture, envisioning starting mass production of fuel cells for trucks as soon as 2025.

Hydrogen or battery-electric?

Both truck builders now hedge their bets on both hydrogen and battery-electric to “offer customers the best genuinely locally CO2-neutral vehicle options, depending on the application.” Battery-electric trucks like both are offering already in different sizes, won’t do the trick alone.

Daimler Truck presented in September 2020 its battery-electric version, the eActros LongHaul, which will have a range of about 500 kilometers and should hit the roads in 2024. It intensified its partnership with Chinese battery manufacturer CATL to deliver the lithium-ion battery packs for its Mercedes and Freightliner trucks beyond 2030.

“Battery power will be rather used for lower cargo weights and shorter distances, while fuel-cell power will tend to be the preferred option for heavier loads and long distances,” Daimler Truck’s CEO believes.

From this year, Daimler Truck will launch a series of smaller battery-electric trucks. Volvo Truck just opened this year, the ordering of a complete line-up of electric trucks, up to 44 tons, and depending on the battery pack with a range up to 300 km

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IEA: ‘We have to stop selling cars on fossil fuels by 2035’

Hilde Van Raemdonck Posted On May 19, 2021

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), we all will have to make radical decisions to meet the Paris climate goals. We have to stop exploring new oil and gas fields and we have to aim at zero emissions by 2050, the agency says in a new report. It all depends on how energy is produced, transported, and used globally.

The report explains in 400 steps how we have to make sure by 2050 not to emit additional CO2 emissions into the atmosphere without compensation. One of those steps is to stop selling cars on fossil fuels by 2035. We also have to stop investing in new coal plants and produce much more renewable energy to make the worldwide electricity sector emission-free by 2040.

Comprehensive study

By 2050, global demand for energy should come for almost 90% from renewable sources, like solar panels or wind farms. The rest will be produced by nuclear plants.

The report is the world’s first comprehensive study of how to transition to a net-zero energy system by 2050 while ensuring stable and affordable energy supplies, providing universal energy access, and enabling robust economic growth.

Greatest challenge

“The scale and speed of the efforts demanded by this critical and formidable goal – our best chance of tackling climate change and limiting global warming to 1,5°C – make this perhaps the greatest challenge humankind has ever faced,” said Fatih Birol, the IEA Executive Director.

Governments need to quickly increase and reprioritize their spending on research and development – as well as on demonstrating and deploying clean energy technologies – putting them at the core of energy and climate policy. Progress in the areas of advanced batteries, electrolyzers for hydrogen, and direct air capture and storage can be particularly impactful.

Fair and inclusive

“The transition to a net-zero energy system is also a huge opportunity for our economies,” Birol continues. “The transition must be fair and inclusive, leaving nobody behind. We have to ensure that developing economies receive the financing and technological know-how they need to build out their energy systems to meet the needs of their expanding populations and economies in a sustainable way.”

The IEA stands ready to support governments in preparing their own national and regional roadmaps, to provide guidance and assistance in implementing them, and to promote international cooperation on accelerating the energy transition worldwide.

The special report is designed to inform the high-level negotiations that will take place at the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) of the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention in Glasgow in November.

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Opel unveils Vivaro-e fuel cell van

Joris Van Roy Posted On May 18, 2021

After Stellantis Group announcing the beginning of April it will have three hydrogen-powered vans in its dealerships by the end of the year, Opel had unveiled its part of the trio, the Vivaro-e HYDROGEN. It offers an extended range of more than 400 km and an increased payload to 1 100 kg compared to the one-ton standard.

The fuel cell version (FCEV) has the same 6,1 cubic meters of cargo capacity as its diesel and battery-electric sibling and will be available in two lengths: 4,95 and 5,30 meters. Based primarily on the electric version, the latter’s 50 kW or 75 kW battery is replaced by three carbon fiber 700 bar tanks for the hydrogen and a 45 kW fuel cell from Symbio.

The Vivaro-e Hydrogen gets a 10,5 kWh lithium-ion battery instead, which allows driving 50 km on pure battery power and can be plugged in to charge like the BEV version. The battery, situated under the front seats, can deliver dynamic peak power when required, for example, at start-up and under acceleration.

Increased range

The biggest advantage of the fuel cell version is an increased range of more than 400 km and the possibility to refuel in less than three minutes. The battery-electric version offers ranges of 230 km (50 kW battery) or 330 km (75 kW), respectively.

The fuel cell Peugeot Expert, Citroën Jumpy, and Opel Vivaro will be assembled at Opel Special Vehicles (OSV) in Russelsheim (Germany), which has become home to Stellantis’ competence center for hydrogen. The German government has allocated it a 5,6 million euro aid.

Zafira on hydrogen?

In October last year, according to the German press, Opel was working to equip its ‘lounge on wheels’, the Zafira Life, with a fuel cell too and would start testing in 2021. The Zafira Life people mover is available as a battery-electric version, available with the same batteries as the Vivaro-e.

Opel used to be one of the frontrunners in fuel cell technology with the first generation Zafira on hydrogen – the Zafira HydroGen1 Concept already developed in 2000 in cooperation with GM. Opel then ran an Alternative Propulsion Center in Mainz-Kastel from 1997 to 2012.

HydroGen3 longest range

A few years later, the third generation, Zafira HydroGen3, was the fuel cell car with the longest range (400 km) approved for public roads in Japan. It had its hydrogen compressed to 700 bar. The HydroGen4, with a fuel cell of 97 kW, added another 20 km to its range.

Under GM’s parenthood, in 2008, some 30 of them were operated in a demonstration program for the German government. But like many other experimental hydrogen cars from other manufacturers, the fuel cell Zafira was never commercialized.

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HyTrucks: 300 fuel cell trucks and six H2-stations for Antwerp Port

Joris Van Roy Posted On May 6, 2021

French Air Liquide, Colruyt’s DATS 24, and Port of Antwerp announced their intention to deploy up to 300 hydrogen-driven fuel cell trucks by 2025 and establish six high-capacity hydrogen fueling stations.

WaterstofNet (HydrogenNet) takes care of the project management of HyTrucks at both the European and Belgian levels. The latter is a non-profit organization that brings together companies, knowledge centers, and government authorities in specific hydrogen projects.

Avoiding 30 000 tons CO2 per year

“The HyTrucks initiative is one of the largest European projects to deploy zero–emission heavy–duty fleets in Europe’s most intense traffic areas. It aims at reducing CO2 emissions significantly by an estimated amount of more than 100 000 tonnes per year, equivalent to 110 million kilometers driven,” the press release states. In Belgium, the project aims at reducing CO2 emissions by more than 30 000 tonnes per year, equivalent to 33 million kilometers driven.

It was selected for EU notification as an “Important Project of Common European Interest” (IPCEI). That means it is eligible for enhanced state funding by the EU, the Belgian federal government, and the Flemish regional government.

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Japanese marine engine manufacturers join forces in hydrogen

Joris Van Roy Posted On May 6, 2021

Three major Japanese marine engine manufacturers, Yanmar, Kawasaki, and J-ENG, have joined forces to develop hydrogen technology for ocean-going and coastal vessels and bring hydrogen-fueled engines and ship generators to the market by 2025.

But it will be Belgian technology, by CMB.Tech that will take the lead in Japan’s first hydrogen-fueled ferry for 80 passengers, to be launched this year by Japanese shipbuilder Tsuneishi Facilities & Craft.

According to the press release, Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) will develop medium-speed 4-stroke engines. Yanmar Power Technology will focus on medium- and high-speed 4-stroke engines, and Japan Engine Corporation (J-ENG) will develop low-speed 2-stroke engines.

“All three simultaneous developments will enhance the product line-up of propulsion and auxiliary (generator) engines for a wide range of vessels. In addition, a hydrogen fuel storage and supply system will be developed as part of the integrated hydrogen fuel system.”

With further developing 4-stroke and 2-stroke engines, the marine engine manufacturers focus on the combustion of hydrogen as a clean fuel without CO2 emissions for larger ships.

Toyota fuel cells

In June last year, diesel engine specialist Yanmar has signed a memorandum of understanding with carmaker Toyota to use its fuel cell technology of the Mirai for hydrogen-powered electric boats. Yanmar’s goal is to realize an easily installable marine fuel cell system with an increased range for smaller boats.

Yanmar is already offering electric boat propulsion systems, but these are fed by diesel generators commonly used in the maritime world. By using the Toyota technology, the latter could be deployed rapidly.

Burning hydrogen

When it comes to ocean-going and coastal vessels, the industry is looking at burning hydrogen to replace today’s heavily polluting marine engines, often running on heavy fuel or diesel. Both Yanmar and KHI are involved in developing small hydrogen-powered ferries for domestic routes.

But it will be Belgian technology used for Japan’s first hydrogen-fueled ferry to be launched this year. The HydroBingo was developed by CMB.Tech, part of the Belgian shipping group, Compagnie Maritime Belge, and Japanese shipbuilder Tsuneishi Facilities & Craft.

It is a 19-tons ferry accommodating 80 passengers with a maximum sailing speed of 26 knots (48 kph) and a cruising speed between 18 and 22 knots (40 kph). Refueling of hydrogen is done by a roll-on/roll-off container that can be switched easily while the ferry is docked.

Hydrogen pioneer

In 2017, CMB already launched the small Hydroville ferry on the River Scheldt in Antwerp. The ferry is used to transport CMB staff to the Antwerp harbor. The ferry, costing 1 million euros and built in the UK, is used for testing the use of hydrogen as an alternative fuel to burn in big maritime diesel engines. First in auxiliary motors, later in the main engines.

Belgian world’s first

CMB is also involved in BeHydro, a joint venture with engine manufacturer Anglo Belgian Corporation (ABC) that presented in September last year its new engine that can run on hydrogen and diesel at the same time. A world’s first and ready to replace classic diesel engines in ships, trains, or UPS systems (Uninterruptible Power Supply) for hospitals or data centers.

The engine presented uses a mixture of up to 85% hydrogen and 15% regular diesel to be injected and burned, generating a power output of 1 MW. Emissions are reduced by 85% this way. A 100% hydrogen-fueled engine is to be presented later.

Tugboat

In Antwerp, CMB-Tech is actually building a public hydrogen filling station at the Port House near the harbor. It will provide both road vehicles and ships with hydrogen at the same time.

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BMW preps for small-series i Hydrogen NEXT production

Joris Van Roy Posted On May 5, 2021

Announced for ‘late’ 2022, BMW is currently preparing for small-series production of its i Hydrogen NEXT FCEV at its Landshut factory in Germany. At the Lightweight Construction and Technology Centre (LuTZ) in Landshut, complex components like the so-called stack housing are made for the Toyota-made core fuel cell system.

“However, conditions needed to be able to offer customers a hydrogen vehicle are not yet in place,” BMW says, referring to the need for more hydrogen filling infrastructure first. Although Europe has made hydrogen a focal point in its ‘Green Deal’, the German carmaker is rather looking at Asian markets, such as Japan, Korea, and China, for its next FCEV.

Largest component plant

Landshut is the BMW Group’s largest component plant, making parts for virtually every BMW, MINI, or Royce Rolls, as well as for BMW’s two-wheelers. On ‘Hydrogen Technology Day’, the Bavarian Minister of Economy, Hubert Aiwanger, got a guided tour hosted by BMW board member Andreas Wendt, responsible for Purchasing and Supplier Network.

The Minister showed to be less reticent about the future of hydrogen than his hosts. “I am convinced hydrogen technology will gain traction – and I am committed to making Bavaria a high-tech location for hydrogen technology. This is a constructive way of responding to the climate debate,” Aiwanger stated in the press release.

First insights

In March last year, BMW gave the first virtual insights into the powertrain system of its hydrogen car, i Hydrogen NEXT, first shown at the 2019 Frankfurt Motorshow IAA. The second-generation FCEV from BMW is based on the current X5 and its experience with the fifth-generation e-drives used for the first time in the BMW iX3.

The (Toyota) fuel cell system generates up to 125 kW (170 hp) of electric energy from the chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen from the ambient air. A high-voltage battery that sits above the e-drive serves as a performance buffer and provides additional dynamics for acceleration. The drive train system delivers a total output of 275 kW (374 hp).

No detailed specs yet

A pair of tanks made from carbon fiber reinforced plastic hold six kilograms of hydrogen at a pressure of 700 bar. How far the i Hydrogen NEXT will get with that, BMW hasn’t revealed yet as more detailed specs are not available.

The parts that are made in Landshut today are the stack housing that holds the actual fuel cells. It is made of light metal, and besides the fuel cells, it houses the end plate made of plastic and light metal castings, in which the hydrogen, air, and coolant are channeled for the chemical reaction. It creates an air and watertight seal around the stack housing.

Fork-lift trucks ‘make more sense’

These are essential components, BMW says, for the hydrogen-electric drive train that will be installed in the BMW i Hydrogen NEXT from 2022. Landshut will supply them for the installation of the fuel cell system in Munich, where the FCEV and the technology are developed.

BMW might pretend to be very reticent for using hydrogen for cars. It sees opportunities for hydrogen “wherever it makes sense to do so”. Apparently, the German carmaker already uses several hundred fork-lift trucks with fuel cell drive trains at its car plants in Spartanburg (US) and Leipzig (Germany). A fleet BMW will further expand in stages.

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Flanders demos use of hydrogen for terminal tractors of the future

Joris Van Roy Posted On May 4, 2021

The Flanders Innovation cluster for Logistics (VIL) demoed in the Antwerp harbor the use of hydrogen for empowering a terminal tractor to move containers. It’s part of the so-called Hydrolog project, studying the use of hydrogen for internal logistics within companies, rather than the classic focus on transport.

In the project, a mobile hydrogen filling station is provided by WaterstofNet, a Flemish-Dutch non-profit organization that brings together companies, knowledge centers, and government authorities in specific hydrogen projects.

Mobile hydrogen filling station

As part of the study, hydrogen-powered terminal tractors are tested at the logistic sites of Antwerp Euroterminal (AET) and later at PSA Antwerp. AET is Europe’s largest multipurpose terminal and home to the multinational logistics group Grimaldi specialized in roll-on/roll-off vessels, car carriers, and ferries.

Charging takes too long

AET tried out using a 12-ton battery-electric terminal tractor, but it takes too long to charge an electric tractor like this, especially when it is to be used round the clock in three shifts. A fuel-cell-powered tractor like the one in the test, capable of pulling 70 tons, can be filled up in minutes with hydrogen.

In Beveren, at the AET terminal, Hilde Crevits (CD&V), Flemish Minister for Work and Innovation, minister in charge of VIL, could demonstrate her skills in filling up a hydrogen terminal tractor at the mobile station.

Hydrogen pioneers

So far, there is no hydrogen filling station at the Antwerp harbor yet. CMB-TECH, a branch of the Company Maritime Belge (CMB) shipping company, a pioneer in hydrogen applications in its sector, is actually building a public hydrogen filling station at the Port House near the harbor. It will provide both road vehicles and ships with hydrogen at the same time.

In Belgium, retail group Colruyt is a ‘rare example of an early adopter of hydrogen used in logistics for its own fleet of forklift trucks at its main distribution center in Halle near Brussels. But Colruyt has its own electrolyzer installation to produce ‘green’ hydrogen with wind and solar power and runs one of the two Belgian public hydrogen filling stations operational at the moment.

Colruyt is to set up new hydrogen stations through its DATS24 fuel station network in Wilrijk (Antwerpen), Haasrode (Louvain), Herve (Liège), and Erpe-Mere between Brussels and Ghent.

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Daimler Truck and Volvo Group aim for fuel cell ‘gigafactory’

Joris Van Roy Posted On April 30, 2021

Daimler Truck AG and Volvo Group have outlined their plans for their Cellcentric joint venture, envisioning to start mass production of fuel cells for trucks as soon as 2025. In the online presentation, Martin Lundstedt, CEO of the Volvo Group, described it as a ‘giga-factory’ for fuel cells.

Where they’re going to plump down this ‘giga-factory’ has to be decided yet, probably in the course of next year. Meanwhile, preparations for pre-series production are taking place at a new site in Esslingen near Stuttgart.

On Friday, news broke that Matthias Jurytko, currently Plant Manager and Head of Production at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Wörth, will become the new CEO of Cellcentric, as of 1 June 2021. succeeds Andreas Gorbach, who becomes head of the Truck Technology Group on the Daimler Truck AG board.

Customer truck tests in three years

In a press release, both parties state that “the goal is to start with customer tests of fuel-cell trucks in about three years and to be in series production of fuel-cell trucks during the second half of this decade. All vehicle-related activities are carried out independently from each other. Both companies remain competitors in all vehicle and product ranges, particularly in fuel-cell integration solutions for all products. “

It’s up to the customer to choose which truck he prefers, Mercedes-Freightliner or Volvo-Renault, Daimler Truck CEO Martin Daum said. “We are only working together on the heart of the powertrain.”

All new trucks fossil-free by 2040

CEOs of all European truck manufacturers agreed in December 2020 – under the umbrella of EU car federation ACEA – to have all new trucks sold by 2040 run fossil-free. In a joint letter to the EU Commission, ACEA and T&E later warned for three to six times more zero-emission trucks to hit the road by 2030 than assumed so far by the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, which counts on 80 000.

To accommodate this fleet, both organizations plead for stringent standards for all member states by the EU, to have a network of at least 11 000 heavy EV truck chargers and 300 hydrogen filling stations by 2025. By 2030, this should be 42 000 public heavy-duty chargers and 1 000 H2-filling stations at least. A statement both Lundstedt and Daum endorse.

Hydrogen or battery-electric?

“Battery power will be rather used for lower cargo weights and shorter distances, while fuel-cell power will tend to be the preferred option for heavier loads and long distances.”

Volvo Trucks just opened this year, ordering a complete line-up of electric trucks, up to 44 tons, and depending on the battery pack with a range up to 300 km. In September last year, Daimler Trucks unveiled in Berlin its concept for the next-generation heavy long-haul truck powered by hydrogen: the Mercedes-Benz GenH2.

Liquid or gaseous?

Armed with two 40 kg tanks with minus 253° C cooled liquid hydrogen and two fuel cells, the 40-ton truck will have a range of 1 000 km. And it’s to arrive at the first test clients in 2023. It’s clear, Daimler Truck CEO Daum has a preference for using liquid hydrogen instead of its compressed gaseous form. But ultimately, the ‘industry will tell’ which form will prevail.

Liquid hydrogen has more energy density and can be transported by road more easily to remote corners. Gaseous hydrogen is to be compressed to 350 or 700 bar but can be transported by pipelines.

300 highly specialized experts

Daimler Truck AG and Volvo Group signed in November 2020 the binding agreement on the joint venture they announced in April of that year to bundle their efforts in developing and producing hydrogen-driven fuel cells for heavy-duty vehicles. Volvo Group gets a 50% stake of it for roughly €600 million “on a cash and debt-free basis.” In February, the European Commission approved the joint venture under the EU Merger Regulation.

The agreement foresees that Daimler consolidates all its fuel cell activities in the joint venture. That implies the operations of Mercedes-Benz Fuel Cell GmbH in Nabern and Stuttgart (Germany) and Burnaby (Canada). At the moment, more than 300 ‘highly specialized experts’ work for Cellcentric in inter-disciplinary teams.

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