The deployment of hydrogen in heavy-duty road transport in the EU must start now and ramp up quickly if its ambitious emissions reductions targets for the transport sector are to be met, according to a report by industry group H2Accelerate.

The EU aims to cut the emissions of the road transport, buildings and agriculture sectors by 40pc below 1990 levels by 2030. But analysis by NGOs such as Transport & Environment has found that, at current rates of emissions cuts, the bloc is likely to miss the target.

One key enabling factor for transport decarbonisation is the development of hydrogen fuel-cell truck fleets, according to a research paper from H2Accelerate.

The total cost of ownership for hydrogen fuel-cell fleets is more than €1.2/km ($1.2/km)—almost double the €0.60/km for diesel-powered fleets.

Policy support will be needed to bridge the gap between incumbent diesel vehicles and hydrogen-fuelled options.

Phased support

The paper sees policy support falling into four phases. From 2023 to 2026 capital support for projects needs to be developed, alongside incentives for green hydrogen, carbon taxes and road tolls for diesel vehicles. Carbon taxes on diesel must start at a minimum of €30/t CO₂ and rise to €60/t CO₂ by 2030.

€30/t CO₂ – Minimum carbon tax needed to displace diesel fleets

From 2026 to 2028 these policies must remain in place and be supported by vehicle-purchase support schemes. From 2028 to 2030 there must be an increasing use of mandates and bans to encourage the switch from diesel fleets to hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. After 2030, governments will need to introduce outright bans on new diesel vehicle purchases.

“In order to ensure that hydrogen trucking rolls out uniformly across Europe, it will also be important that these policy measures are applied harmoniously, at a similar level and time across all European member states, as well as the UK,” says the paper.

As soon as cost parity with diesel is reached, the road transport sector could see a tipping point where investment flows suddenly start to move away from infrastructure and vehicles based on the internal combustion engine model.

Hydrogen fuel cells are seen as a better option than battery electric vehicles for decarbonising the trucking sector.

H2Accelerate is a collaboration between hydrogen infrastructure players Linde, OMV, Shell and TotalEnergies, and hydrogen truck manufacturers Daimler Truck, Iveco and Volvo Group.

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Author: Tom Young