Swedish truck maker Scania and Norwegian hydrogen fuel company ASKO have combined to produce four hydrogen fuel cell trucks and a new ASKO’s new hydrogen gas station in Trondheim.
As many other companies start to explore various zero emission options, Scania says there isno one-size-fits-all-universal solution when it comes to electrification of heavy commercial vehicles.
One of the technology tracks that Scania has explored with its customer ASKO is fuel cell electrictrucks powered by hydrogen gas.
With other companies like US start up Nikola, which has recently scored significant investment from European truck maker Iveco, Daimler and Paccar, all exploring hydrogen there is some belief that the technology maybe at least one way to go in creating zero emission heavy transport.
Scania has announced that this venture is now going into the next phase with four trucks beingput into real operation in a pilot that is one of the first of its kind. The pilot will be the basis forfurther learning and development for both companies.
“Scania continues to work with cutting edge technology that supports the shift to fossil freetransport. An important part of this is done together with some of our most progressive partners,such as ASKO, in customer-near development”, says Karin Rådström, head of sales andmarketing at Scania.
Scania is working with its electrification roadmap in the same way as with the combustion engine-technology; a multi-facetted approach with a broad range of solutions. The company hasresearched and developed different kinds of bio-fuelled hybrid-electric technologies, as well as fully-electric vehicles. Scania’s battery electric bus was launched in 2019 and we also work with electric vehicles that can be charged via electrified roads or through hydrogen-powered fuel cells as is thecase with ASKO.
“Hydrogen gas is an interesting option for long haulage electrified transport and early tests showthat the technology also works well in colder climate. We will continue to monitor the performanceof these trucks closely. I also want to commend ASKO for taking early and bold steps to ensure asupply of hydrogen sourced from renewable sources and infrastructure for fuelling. The company isa player who really take action to catalyse a shift toward sustainable transport,” says Rådström.
As always, Scania’s work is based on a modular approach. In the four trucks deployed in ASKO’soperations, the internal combustion engine in the powertrain is replaced by an electric machine,powered by electricity from fuel cells fed with hydrogen and from rechargeable batteries. The rest ofthe powertrain is composed of the same standard components used in the hybrid trucks and busesthat Scania already delivers.
