Europe’s Road Freight to Revolutionize with the Advent of Hydrogen Ecosystem

As per the memorandum of understanding signed between the multinational oil and gas company, Total Energies, and the multinational automotive corporation, Daimler AG, a hydrogen ecosystem will be established for the revamp of the European road transportation starting with the fuelling of heavy-duty trucks.

The creation of a hydrogen ecosystem will require its sourcing, logistics for the distribution of hydrogen to the fuelling stations, manufacturing a greater number of hydrogen fuel compatible vehicles and defining a customer base. The agreement aims towards showcasing the feasibility and the competency of hydrogen fuel in transport that could pave way for bringing the green energy transformation in the road freight sector.

As agreed, Daimler AG will be promoting the transport decarbonization initiative by supplying hydrogen powered fuel cell trucks to its customers spread across Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and Luxemberg, by 2025, further extending its services to guarantee easy operation and adequate uptime. The planned initiative falls in line with Total Energies’ ambition to successfully operate as much as 150 hydrogen refuelling stations in Belgium, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Luxemberg, by 2030.

Hydrogen, despite being expensive, is being viewed as a definitive resort for bringing sustainability in the automobile industry as it is a zero-carbon emission fuel that releases only water from the tailpipes when used in a vehicle. The formulation of strict environmental laws has intensified the call for increasing hydrogen powered transport mediums in the developed countries and regions with evolving economies.

As per ChemAnalyst, road freight is a vital part of logistics and establishing a robust supply-chain network by transporting goods across different regions. A paradigm shift to sustainability in the road transport fuelling is bound to have a long-lasting positive impact on the environment. The demand for hydrogen is taking long strides with growing recognition of its potential to curtail environmental pollution. Its capability to fuel transport and generate electricity accounts for its expanding market which is expected to grow further in the coming 5 years with a CAGR of over 5%. The establishment of a hydrogen ecosystem is expected to cause an exponential rise in hydrogen consumption. This scenario will prove to be most opportune for the companies involved in hydrogen production. The firm demand is expected to drive new players in hydrogen production and sales causing the otherwise-scarce hydrogen supply to become stable. A downturn in hydrogen prices is also expected causing the hydrogen market to flourish like never before.