| Ford revealed its plans to test a prototype fleet of hydrogen fuel-cell versions of the E-Transit van. The automaker will collaborate with BP over a three-year period on hydrogen infrastructure, testing the vehicles with online supermarket group Ocado. This would not be the first consortium to tackle the U.K. market with hydrogen vehicles, as Toyota received a £5.6M (~$6.97M) grant from the U.K. government and £5.7M ($7.1M) from private investors to develop a hydrogen pickup truck. Yet, production and demand for Toyota's current hydrogen offering in the passenger cars segment have not scaled. 
Ford is entering an unproven area, despite Toyota's low sales numbers for the Mirai in Europe (see chart) and the U.S. (668 unit sales in the first quarter of 2023). "Ford believes that the primary application of fuel cells could be in its largest, heaviest commercial vehicles to ensure they are emission-free while satisfying the high daily energy requirements our customers' demand," said the chairman for Ford U.K., Tim Slatter. Thus, this could indicate the E-Transit van test is preparation for a heavier vehicle designed for freight. This also appears in line with Toyota's strategy, as it signed an agreement with French fuel cell truck developer Hyliko earlier this year. The truck would have to compete with Honda's FCEV truck it plans to develop with Isuzu. On the other hand, Nikola sold its stake in a European joint venture with Iveco Group for $35M and 20.6 million shares of stock, refocusing its business on hydrogen fuel production in the U.S. and a reduction in its vehicle production going forward. Map of U.K. hydrogen stations, May 2023
 Map: Inside.com. Data: GlpAutogas. Created using QGIS, CartoDB base map. Questions remain about the ability of hydrogen vehicles and infrastructure to reach mass scalability for commercial and passenger units. Shell began quietly shutting down hydrogen stations in the U.K. In October, the energy company stated that it was "assessing multifuel refueling forecourts which could include EV, hydrogen and other cleaner fuels for the heavy-duty market;" however, it currently operates three locations. Globally, the number of hydrogen stations for ground vehicles surpassed 1,000 locations in January. One-third of the stations are located in China, where central planners expect 50,000 FCEVs on the roads by 2025. In the .S., currently, there are 62 stations in the U.S. and Canada, concentrated mostly in the San Francisco Bay area, Sacramento, and Los Angeles. Ford has been working on hydrogen fuel research since the 1990s without much to show for it. The automaker did, however, recently write a patent for a hybrid fuel-cell combustion engine, claiming it produces 15% more power than a regular gasoline engine. The E-Transit test will be funded in part by the Advanced Propulsion Centre, a non-profit that collaborates with the U.K. government on advancing zero-emission vehicle research. Planning ahead, Ford may also be eyeing a U.S. test, as a provision of the Inflation Reduction Act grants a tax credit of $3 per kilogram of hydrogen produced for vehicles, which it could possibly get through a consortium with an energy company. Given Slatter's comments, if Ford decides to produce heavy-duty FCEV trucks, the Inflation Reduction Act also earmarked $1B in grants for zero-emission heavy-duty trucks. |
Comments
Post a Comment