PKN ORLEN and Alstom to cooperate on hydrogen railway

PKN ORLEN has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Alstom to supply zero-emission, eco-friendly trains and hydrogen fuel for public rail transport.

Under the agreement, Alstom will cooperate with PKN ORLEN in participating in proceedings organised by public rail transport operators. Alstom will be responsible for supplying zero-emission trains powered by hydrogen fuel cells. PKN ORLEN will be responsible for the distribution, storage, and supply of hydrogen fuel for these trains.

In 2021, an analytical laboratory for hydrogen research and the first hydrogen hub was commissioned in Trzebinia, which is currently producing grey hydrogen for transport but will eventually produce low-emission hydrogen from renewable energy sources. By the end of this decade, ten hydrogen hubs are to be operational in Włocławek and Płock, among others.

PKN ORLEN is also the leader of the Mazovian Hydrogen Valley, which cooperates with 36 entities in the field of production, storage and use of zero- and low-emission hydrogen, inter alia in transport, power generation, municipal economy and agriculture.

Józef Węgrecki, PKN ORLEN Management Board Member for Operations, said, “Cooperation with Alstom will enable us to implement pilot hydrogen projects in public rail transport and strengthen our position in Poland and the whole Central European region.”

Daniel Obajtek, President of the PKN ORLEN Management Board, said, “By 2030, we intend to allocate about PLN 7.5bn into investments. This will translate into a reduction of 1.6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions and, most importantly, an increase in Poland’s energy security. Cooperation with Alstom is another important step that will strengthen our position as a regional leader in hydrogen technologies.”

Sławomir Cyza, President and MD of Alstom in Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic States, said, “We were the first to introduce high-speed trains to Poland – 20 Pendolino trains. I hope that Alstom will also be the first to introduce hydrogen trains to Poland. The signing of today’s agreement with PKN ORLEN is another step towards the transformation of the Polish railway with the use of state-of-the-art global technologies.”

Artur Fryczkowski, VP at Alstom, added, “Cooperation with PKN ORLEN will allow us to more effectively realise our ambition of technological leadership in rail transport, as well as Poland’s ambition as one of the key countries where hydrogen technologies are being developed and implemented.”