Hexagon Purus is set to supply hydrogen storage and battery packs to Toyota Motor North America for the series production of its heavy-duty fuel cell powertrains. These HFC powertrains will be manufactured at the Toyota facility in Georgetown, Kentucky.

The funding package, dubbed ‘Hy2Move’, is the fourth “Important Project of Common European Interest” (IPCEI) related to hydrogen which the European Commission has approved over the past two years.

One of the joint ventures will be based in Germany and will be majority owned by Voith, while the other will be established in China with Weifu as majority owner.

Under the themes of “energy transition and sustainable mobility”, the European public transport industry met to demonstrate its new sustainable products/technologies as the sector looks to rapidly decarbonise to meet climate pledges outlined in the European Green Deal.

The specialist facility offers HVS complete build capabilities encompassing a complex toolroom ensuring quality design and prototyping. Each of the prototypes will be used to test specific aspects of the vehicle involving strength, durability and efficiency.

The EUR3m investment into Zepp has come from an “energy transition” fund provided by the City of Rotterdam and an unnamed private investor who is “deeply embedded in the Rotterdam tech scene”.

The bus will integrate BAE System’s electric powertrain, Ballard’s hydrogen fuel cell and Gillig’s low-floor body. Production is set to begin in Q1 2026 for the North American market.

The 2023 strategic highlights include the second-generation stack design, offering performance improvements. Furthermore, a megawatt electrolyser demonstrator completed testing in Germany and has arrived at partner Shell’s R&D centre in Bangalore, India for further testing.

Ballard has announced an additional USD 54 million in U.S. federal funding (investment tax credits) for its planned fuel cell production facility in Rockwall Texas. This brings the total in federal funding to USD 94 million, through various U.S. departments including the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office and now the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as part of the Qualifying Advanced Energy Project Tax Credit (48C*), funded by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

HVS has appointed Dr Utz Claassen as the new Chairman of the Board. Claassen is tasked with overseeing the growth strategy and bringing the HVS Hydrogen Fuel Cell HGVs to market next year.

Some 1,000 units are to be made up of approximately 800, FCmove-HD 70 kW and 200, FCmove-HD+ 100 kW engines which will be integrated into the Solaris 12-metre and 18-metre buses. Included in the contract are after-market and extended warranty services. Delivery will occur from 2024 to 2027.

The HVS tractor unit was powered by green hydrogen with the aim of demonstrating its real-world capabilities with each testing phase concentrating on specific aspects of the vehicle design and performance (electric and thermal) in various weather conditions.