H2XGlobal strengthens ties with Gothenburg; West Midlands to add 124 hydrogen buses
The growing interest in hydrogen fuel cell technology in Europe has accelerated as the need to find alternatives to natural gas and oil increases with tensions in Europe's north.
H2X Global Ltd (Australian hydrogen fuel cell vehicle manufacturer) signed an agreement with Renova (Sweden’s municipal waste company) to provide hydrogen fuel cell-powered trucks and light vehicles.
Under the MoU, H2X Global provides Renova with five commercial vehicles from the H2X range: One 18 tonne back loader truck, one 28 tonnes demountable truck and three 3.5 tonne tail-lift vehicles. Renova operates in 10 municipalities across the Gothenburg Region in western Sweden.
The agreement opens the way to grow H2X Global operations in Scandinavia to develop and produce vehicles for the transport industry using Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric propulsion.
The goal is for Sweden to reach net zero before 2045, and by 2030, emissions will be reduced by 70% compared with 2010.
The City of Gothenburg plans to make its vehicle fleet fossil-free as early as 2023, and by 2030 the carbon emissions will be reduced by 90% in the city’s entire transport system. Within Gothenburg Green City Zone, the city aims to achieve emission-free transport by 2030 – that is, transports solely driven by electricity or hydrogen.
H2X Global Ltd also plans to set up its European HQ in Gothenburg, where leading Automotive companies are located, and various innovation activities related to hydrogen are in place and ongoing.
West Midlands secures £30 million government funding for hydrogen buses
A fleet of 124 new environmentally friendly hydrogen-fuelled buses will be taking to the streets of the West Midlands following the approval of a £30 million Department for Transport grant.
It follows a successful bid to the Zero-emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) fund to promote cleaner and greener bus transport and will cover the cost of a refuelling facility and the new vehicles.
Twenty-four of these new vehicles will be articulated tram-style buses that run on the new Sprint rapid transit routes along the A34 and A45 between Walsall, Birmingham and Solihull.
Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), part of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), will now work with bus company partners and the hydrogen production industry to get the fleet up and running.
The West Midlands is already leading the way with 20 hydrogen double-decker buses, bought by Birmingham City Council and operated by National Express West Midlands. The region will have 144 hydrogen buses on the streets, the largest fleet in the Western World.
