Hydrogen Hyundai XCIENT heads to Europe

Hyundai Motor has announced it has shipped the first 10 examples of its hydrogen-powered truck, the XCIENT Fuel Cell, to Europe, with the zero-emission vehicles due to reach customers in Switzerland from September.

The trucks are at the spearhead of the Korean manufacturer's ambitious production schedule, which will see 50 hydrogen fuel cell trucks built in 2020 and a total of 1600 by 2025.

Hyundai says the rigid 4x2 trucks, each with a 190kW hydrogen fuel cell system, have an estimated range of 400 kilometres per tank, while the company is hard at work on a prime mover with a range of around 1000 kilometres.

"XCIENT Fuel Cell is a present-day reality, not a mere future drawing-board project," said In Cheol Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of Commercial Vehicle Division at Hyundai Motor.

"By putting this groundbreaking vehicle on the road now, Hyundai marks a significant milestone in the history of commercial vehicles and the development of a hydrogen society.

"Building a comprehensive hydrogen ecosystem, where critical transportation needs are met by vehicles like XCIENT Fuel Cell, will lead to a paradigm shift that removes automobile emissions from the environmental equation.

"Having introduced the world's first mass-produced fuel-cell electric passenger vehicle, the ix35, and the second-generation fuel cell electric vehicle, the NEXO, Hyundai is now leveraging decades of experience, world-leading fuel-cell technology, and mass-production capability to advance hydrogen in the commercial vehicle sector with the XCIENT Fuel Cell."

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At the heart of the XCIENT Fuel Cell is a 190kW hydrogen fuel cell system with dual 95kW fuel cell stacks. Seven large hydrogen tanks offer a combined storage capacity of around 32kg of hydrogen. Hyundai says the refueling time takes around eight to 20 minutes.

There are several reasons behind Hyundai choosing Switzerland at a starting point for the XCIENT Fuel Cell in Europe. The manufacturer formed a joint venture (Hyundai Hydrogen Mobility) with Swiss firm H2 Energy in 2019. H2 Energy will lease the fuel cell trucks to commercial truck operators on a pay-per-use basis, so there's initial investment required by commercial fleet customers.

Also, Switzerland does not apply a road tax on zero-emission trucks, which Hyundai says "nearly equalises the hauling costs per kilometre of the fuel cell truck compared to a regular diesel truck".

Finally, Switzerland has a large supply of hydropower, which is essential to generate the clean, green hydrogen required by these vehicles.

The Hyundai XCIENT Fuel Cell trucks heading to Switzerland are all 4x2 rigid models fitted with a day cab. With a 5130mm wheelbase, the trucks measure 9.7m long and have a GVM of 19,000kg, along with a GCM of 36,000kg.

The fuel cell stack powers a Siemens motor/inverter said to produce 350kW and 3400Nm, along with an Akasol battery with a 73.2kWh capacity. Power is transmitted to the rear wheels via an Allison six-speed ATM S4500 transmission and top speed is said to be 85km/h.

While Hyundai estimates a range of 400km for the XCIENT Fuel Cell, the supplied specifications state "accurate range to be confirmed later".

The truck is equipped with disc brakes and airbag suspension, along with advanced safety features including collision mitigation, lane departure warning, and adaptive cruise control.

Hyundai says it plans to expand the project to other European countries in due course, in addition to selling 670,000 electric passenger vehicles annually by 2025, of which 110,000 will be fuel cell electric vehicles.