Five hydrogen trucks for Ikea Australian operations

Furniture giant Ikea has revealed plans to use hydrogen trucks to cut its transport emissions, just one week after adding electric vehicle recharging stations at another of its Australian stores. The five hydrogen fuel-cell trucks, announced, will join the company’s European operations, where they are expected to cut 160 tonnes of carbon emissions each year.

IKEA Austria chief sustainability officer Alpaslan Deliloglu said the five Quantron QLI FCEV trucks were the first hydrogen trucks deployed by the furniture group worldwide and were chosen to cut its carbon emissions over long distances. “We want to show that a transformation to zero-emission delivery is already possible today,” he said.

The trucks, created by German firm Quantron AG in collaboration with Canada’s Ballard Power Systems, were drafted, built and delivered within 18 months. They have been supported by a grant from the Austria government.

Quantron executive chairman Andreas Haller said the vehicles could travel up to 400km on a one tank of hydrogen thanks to its energy management system and aerodynamics. The five hydrogen trucks would be deployed alongside a fleet of 56 electric delivery trucks, Haller said, to cut a total of 610 tonnes of carbon emissions annually.

Ikea’s use of hydrogen vehicles comes after the Australian government launched a AU$2 billion funding program, Hydrogen Headstart, through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to boost the production of green hydrogen in the country.

It also follows the announcement of a two-year trial by NSW to allow heavier electric and hydrogen trucks on the state’s roads, increasing the axle weight limit.

Source: thedriven