The first Hyundai XCIENT Fuel Cell hydrogen trucks for Germany have arrived in Bremerhaven. The first seven trucks are part of a total of 27 vehicles that are scheduled to be delivered to Germany in the coming weeks directly from the Hyundai plant in South Korea.
The arrival of the latest Hyundai hydrogen electric trucks marks a milestone in Germany’s mobility history – one that has the potential to decarbonise heavy-duty road transport. Daniel Keller (Chief Operating Officer, Hyundai Hydrogen Mobility) and Hojun Suh (Chief Strategy Officer, Hyundai Hydrogen Mobility) travelled to Bremerhaven for the handover to the first customer in Germany. Hylane GmbH, a subsidiary of DEVK Insurance based in Cologne, Germany, is taking delivery of a total of 17 trucks in a first phase. Hylane will be offering the trucks in a usage-based rental model and has received funding for this purpose from the Directive on the Promotion of Alternative, Climate-friendly Commercial Vehicles and Infrastructure (KsNI – Richtlinie über die Förderung von alternativen, klimaschonenden Nutzfahrzeugen und Infrastruktur ) of the German Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport (BMDV – Bundesministerium für Digitales und Verkehr).
An important step for hydrogen mobility in heavy-duty transport in Germany
Beat Hirschi, CEO of HHM: “This represents a historic moment. After the successful launch of the Hyundai XCIENT Fuel Cell in Switzerland, we are expanding our activities in Europe, with an initial focus in Germany. With Hylane, we were able to secure a young company that shares our values and makes a real contribution to environmental protection and the decarbonisation of heavy transport.”
Sara Schiffer, Managing Director of Hylane: “These first series-production trucks are the basis for a long-term cooperation with Hyundai, which we will continuously expand from now on. We are renting the vehicles at a fixed price per kilometre, enabling an easy and low-risk use of the trucks for our users.”
All delivered vehicles have received funding support from the BMDV. The support via the KsNI guideline was coordinated by NOW GmbH. Kurt-Christoph von Knobelsdorff, CEO of NOW: “Commercial vehicles with hydrogen fuel cell drive systems have great potential to make road freight transport in Germany and Europe more sustainable – especially over long distances. The logistics industry is showing great interest in hydrogen fuel cell trucks, so the arrival of the first series-produced vehicles is very good news. NOW congratulates Hylane on this milestone and looks forward to continuing to support this DEVK start-up.”
First series-produced hydrogen-electric truck
The XCIENT Fuel Cell vehicles from Hyundai offer a range of approximately 400 kilometres. They store the hydrogen in seven tanks, with an average refuelling time of ten minutes. The XCIENT Fuel Cell vehicles delivered to Hylane are the advanced generation of the first series-produced H2 trucks to be deployed in Germany. The vehicles will go directly from the ship to the body manufacturer, where the customised versions (e.g. refrigerated and dry boxes) will be built.
Image source: Hylane GmbH