HDrive to supply up to 12,000 hydrogen trucks

AUSTRALIAN hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) procurement specialist HDrive has announced that it has entered an agreement with Pure Hydrogen and Wisdom Motors for the manufacture, distribution, sales and procurement of up to 12,000 FCEVs over the next five years.

In a development from last month’s announcement that HDrive planned to enter production, under the agreement Wisdom Motors will partner with major shareholder and fuel cell supplier Ballard to initially build the vehicles at the company’s site in Zhangzhou, China. 

A subsidiary of Australian specialist vehicle manufacturer BLK Auto, HDrive will procure the vehicles – which it says are Australian designed and engineered – for Pure Hydrogen to purchase and then lease them to customers.

Pure Hydrogen will also have the capability to supply hydrogen fuel and associated infrastructure providing a turn-key approach for future operators.

Under the new agreement, HDrive will supply prime movers (rated from 49 to 70 tonnes), waste management heavy rigid and refuelling trucks.

As GoAuto has reported, HDrive says it has already taken “several orders” for its HFCV trucks, which include a dual control side lifter waste truck and a 6x4 prime mover.

Parent company BLK Auto released Australia’s first hydrogen coach last year following an 18-month research and development program, with 10 coaches already sold for use in Western Australia’s harsh Pilbara region.

The firm says the new truck production agreement – a catalyst for which is understood to be the Pilbara coach deal – cements its strong relationships with Pure Hydrogen and Wisdom Motors and represents a “crucial step for the company as it continues to define and deliver on the requirements for the rapidly expanding FCEV truck market”.

HDrive says hydrogen technologies and specifically hydrogen vehicles have strong industry and bipartisan government backing, with FCEVs experiencing extraordinary demand growth as fleet owners look to replace retired vehicles with zero-emissions alternatives.

State governments including New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia have all committed to “significant investment in hydrogen technologies”, HDrive says.

According to HDrive, New South Wales is targeting 20 per cent hydrogen government vehicles by 2030 and has pledged up to $3 billion to support industry development including $70 million for the establishment of hydrogen hubs.

The Western Australia Government has committed $160 million to supporting the development of a renewable hydrogen industry in the state, and in April 2022, received a $140 million bipartisan Federal funding commitment to contribute to the development of two new hydrogen hubs in the state.

HDrive says that in 2021, more than 296,000 commercial vehicles were sold in Australia. The heavy-duty truck segment saw a 22.5 per cent increase with about 13,000 new vehicles sold.

Nationally, an estimated 700.000 to 80,000 prime movers for long haul logistics operations will need to be replaced within the next five years.

The application of hydrogen to waste management fleets represents a specific high-growth area. In the coming five years, it is believed that over 3000 waste trucks will need to be replaced with zero-emission trucks.