Truckers and subsidies rev up interest in fuel cell vehicles
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[February 16, 2023] By
Nick Carey and Christina Amann
LONDON/BERLIN (Reuters) - Interest in using hydrogen fuel cells to power
trucks and vans is getting a boost from fleet operators looking for a
more practical alternative to electric vehicles and rising government
aid, particularly the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
While most of the world's combustion engine cars and short-distance vans
and lorries should be replaced by battery electric vehicles (BEVs) over
the next two decades, fuel-cell proponents and some long-haul fleet
operators say batteries are too heavy, take too long to charge and could
overload power grids.
Vehicles with hydrogen fuel cells, in which hydrogen mixes with oxygen
to produce water and energy to power a battery, can refuel in minutes
and have a much longer range than BEVs.
"The fact is we need both BEVs and hydrogen," Daimler Truck Chief
Executive Martin Daum told Reuters. "The amount of energy BEVs need is
so enormous that I see a strain on our grid that ultimately it can't
fulfill."
Daimler Truck will invest up to 15 billion euros ($16 billion) on fuel
cells over the next decade, Daum said.
British supermarket chain Asda, with 1,000 large diesel vehicles hauling
goods around the clock between hubs and stores, would be forced to add
to its fleet if it turned to BEVs, and so is looking closely at fuel
cells.
"I'm not closing the door on batteries, but the benefit of hydrogen is
it doesn't need that dwell time (for charging) and has better range,"
Asda fleet manager Sean Clifton said.
Like BEVs, hydrogen's main challenge is infrastructure, which is too
scant to support fleets today. But more governments are offering
subsidies, including for producing more hydrogen from renewable power or
rolling out fuelling stations.
Asda, for instance, is part of a consortium including British fuel cell
startup HVS that has received a UK government grant to develop a
self-driving hydrogen heavy goods vehicle.
In the United States, the IRA provides subsidies for cheap hydrogen and
fuelling infrastructure that industry executives say will speed
development of hydrogen semi-trucks and heavy-duty pickup trucks.
The European Union is negotiating renewable energy targets, including
hydrogen.
"Thanks to the IRA, things will move faster in the U.S.," said Philippe
Rosier, CEO of French fuel cell maker Symbio, a joint venture between
Faurecia and Michelin.
Carmaker Stellantis is buying a stake in Symbio. Rosier said that will
accelerate plans, particularly in North America where it aims to be
ready for hydrogen pickup trucks by 2026.
Symbio, which supplies fuel cells for Stellantis vans, expects global
fuel cell vehicle sales to reach 2 million units annually by 2030 and
wants a 10% share.
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Hydrogen Vehicle Systems (HVS) CEO Jawad
Khursheed presents a prototype hydrogen fuel cell-powered
medium-sized vehicle that the startup has developed, in Nuneaton,
Britain, January 26, 2023. REUTERS/Nick Carey/File Photo
'NOT SUSTAINABLE'
Vittore Fulvi, owner of a trucking company based in Perugia, central
Italy, runs a fleet of 60 diesel semi-trucks that manage 2,000 km
(1,243 miles) - four days driving - on one tank.
Fulvi Trasporti is considering hydrogen because heavy BEV
alternatives would cut its load capacity 15% and require daily
charging.
"We would need to buy more lorries, more than one for every 10 we
own," Fulvi said. "That is not sustainable."
Ford fleet customers run large diesel vans up to 600 miles (966 km)
daily, often carrying refrigerated goods requiring extra energy that
would overwhelm a BEV.
"We need a plan B for those customers," Ford's UK head Tim Slatter
said.
Heavy-duty pickup trucks used for everything from delivery trucks to
ambulances in the United States could also switch to hydrogen.
With the notable exception of Tesla, whose CEO Elon Musk derides
fuel cells as "fool cells," almost all automakers have invested in
hydrogen technology.
Both General Motors (GM) and Toyota are testing fuel cells for
larger vehicles including semi-trucks and trains to build scale and
lower costs.
Toyota recently received UK government funding in partnership with
insurance industry research group Thatcham Research to develop a
hydrogen version of its Hilux pickup, with prototypes due this
summer.
GM has received a U.S. government grant to develop four heavy-duty
hydrogen fuel cell pickups, which should become a "sweet spot" for
the technology, said Charlie Freese, executive director of GM's
Hydrotec business.
Volkswagen truck unit Traton is not currently investing in hydrogen,
because it is so saddled with debt from its acquisition of U.S.
truckmaker Navistar it can only afford BEV investments, CEO
Christian Levin said.
Traton will rely on others for hydrogen if needed, he said. While
Volkswagen is not currently investing in fuel cells, it has hundreds
of patents around the technology.
($1 = 0.9352 euros)
(Reporting by Nick Carey and Christina Amann; Additional reporting
by Giulio Piovaccari in Milan; Editing by Ben Klayman and Mark
Potter)
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