Air Liquide, CaetanoBus and Toyota Motor Europe have signed a memorandum of understanding with the aim of developing integrated hydrogen solutions. This will include infrastructure development and vehicle fleets, to accelerate the expansion of hydrogen mobility for both light and heavy-duty vehicles.
The three companies will use their complementary expertise to address the entire value chain of hydrogen mobility, ranging from renewable or low-carbon hydrogen production, distribution and refueling infrastructure to the deployment of different vehicle segments. Initially, the focus will be on buses, light commercial vehicles and cars, with the further aim to accelerate the heavy-duty truck segment.
“As a key solution to reduce CO2 emissions of the mobility sector, low-carbon hydrogen is a crucial enabler of the energy transition,” says Matthieu Giard, vice president and a member of the executive committee of Air Liquide, notably supervising hydrogen activities. “Air Liquide is pleased to partner with Toyota and CaetanoBus. Such partnerships are essential to create efficient ecosystems that will foster the emergence of hydrogen mobility in Europe. Air Liquide has been committed for more than 50 years to develop the entire hydrogen value chain and will bring its expertise in both the production of low-carbon hydrogen and the development of hydrogen mobility infrastructures. This partnership illustrates the capacity of the industry to bring concrete solutions to the fight against climate change.”
By exploring joint opportunities, the three major players of hydrogen mobility will contribute to the emergence of new hydrogen ecosystems across Europe, a key step to stimulate the demand and facilitate hydrogen access for other mobility applications. This includes the infrastructure and refueling stations, as well as integrated vehicle offers (leasing and service) to customers such as taxi companies, fleet operators, local authorities, and others. The integration of different applications and projects within a hydrogen ecosystem, where supply and demand meet, will enable the overall hydrogen infrastructure to further mature. This initiative represents another step along the path of decarbonization, which is consistent with the stronger focus from European governments and the readiness of hydrogen technologies.
“We are excited by the opportunity to combine our strengths to expand the development of hydrogen clusters. Toyota’s role is to bring the hydrogen applications into the ecosystem, and by working together with our partners we want to accelerate and intensify the use of hydrogen as a carbon neutral solution for mobility,” comments Matt Harrison, president and CEO at Toyota Motor Europe. “This will gradually reduce the costs of hydrogen and its infrastructure while improving the business case for many future applications including mobility.”
“It is a great pleasure to work on hydrogen projects with these partners and have the chance to reinforce the role of new forms of energy in the pursuit of a sustainable way of living,” adds Patrícia Vasconcelos, CEO of CaetanoBus. “We are aware of the responsibility of the mobility sector in this mission and our goal as a bus manufacturer is to continuously develop new hydrogen buses, to reduce the carbon footprint in the cities. If we can do It in partnership to create a full ecosystem, the better it is, because energy transitions are only effective with true alignment between companies, countries, and policies.”
