Preparations are being finalised for road and track testing of new hydrogen fuel cell powered vans in the UK in June.
The vehicles are being developed by a partnership of First Hydrogen Corporation, Ballard Power Systems and AVL Powertrain UK, and are based on two demonstrator vehicles sourced from MAN, part of the Volkswagen Group.
Hydrogen fuel cells and the H2 fuel tanks are being fitted to the vehicles at AVL’s Basildon Technical Centre and road/track testing is expected to be on schedule for June, with final delivery for road use in September 2022.
First Hydrogen then intends to showcase its zero-emission commercial van, which it claims will have a range of 500-plus kilometres on a full tank, as a replacement for petrol/diesel powered fleets.
In parallel with the development of the demonstrator vehicles, the company is pursuing green hydrogen production projects in the UK and elsewhere.
Steve Gill, CEO Automotive of First Hydrogen, said: “We are very pleased with the progress for the delivery of our two demonstrator vehicles, working with our partners AVL and Ballard.
“We are substantially on track to showcase our road-going vehicles with customers in September 2022, as originally planned. Our joint development of this hydrogen fuel cell vehicle will set us apart as a market leader for fuel cell vehicles in the light commercial space and in good stead for our next generation of bespoke hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, which will incorporate all the technical development we have achieved so far.”
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