According to the terms of the non-binding agreement, Ford Otosan will support Quantron in fitting F-Max trucks with a fuel cell electric powertrain, comprising e-axle, high-power battery, fuel cells, and hydrogen storage tanks.

French vehicle upfitter Groupe Gruau will promote REV Mobilities’ retrofit services to its own customers through its existing networks.

Phoenix Motor’s retrofit kit is designed for medium-duty vehicles, similar to the Class 4-5 vehicles which make up the company’s current product portfolio.

The actual repowering has been made possible with the first Kleanbus “advanced modular electric platform,” (a modular driveline package) which combines battery-electric powertrain components from Tier 1 suppliers with its own integration technology and proprietary software, with a conversion taking just 2 weeks once a system has been designed and tested.

The work was carried out on a used 12-tonne 'Renault Trucks D' in partnership with a firm enrolled in Volvo’s ‘CampX’ startup incubator in Lyon, called ‘Novumtech’.

The ten vehicles are all Ankai double-deckers which will feature Equipmake’s zero-emission drivetrain and a 327-kWh capacity battery pack, providing a 193 km (120 miles) range. The first vehicle will enter service in Q1 2024.

The exhibition, which took place from the 6th to the 7th of September, attracted over 150 exhibitors involved in low-carbon mobility. The exhibition had a small collection of companies dedicated to the commercial vehicle market sector.

By the end of September, 210 ambulances and 50 emergency vehicles will be fitted with transmitters and receivers, along with on-board diagnostics, for remote data exchange.

About the retrofit of the H2 ICE engine, Lord Bamford, JCB Chairman, said: “We have retrofitted this vehicle with a JCB hydrogen engine to demonstrate how simple it will be to convert existing vans and to show that it is not only construction and agricultural machines that can be powered by hydrogen. While converting vans will not be for JCB to do, it does prove there is something else other than batteries that can work very effectively.”

UK operator, Newport Transport, appoints Equipmake to convert 8 of its double-deckers to electric power with its Zero Emission Drivetrain (ZED).

A multi-year deal signed earlier this year with waste management company, Biffa, ensures that an initial order of up to ten 26-tonne Mercedes-Benz Econic diesel-powered refuse vehicles will be repowered with Lunaz electric drivetrains, saving an estimated 210 tonnes of carbon a year.

In the past year, Phoenix Mobility has rebranded itself as ‘Tolv’ and attained UTAC and CNRV certification for the conversion of Renault mid-sized vans to electric power.