Scania in hydrogen backflip

Scania has often said that battery electric vehicles were the company’s main technology to drive the shift towards a sustainable transport system.

However, this week the Swedish manufacturer put out a press statement saying that it was developing the company’s first fuel cell trucks for delivery to four Swiss customers.

The fuel cell trucks, with GVMs of between 40 to 70 tonnes, will be delivered to Switzerland in 2024 and 2025. The recipients of the trucks have varied operations: Emmi AG is a dairy company, Genossenschaft Migros Zürich operates in retail, Gysin Tiefbau AG is a construction company that transports heavy machinery in the Basel region and Traveco Transporte is a national logistic company.

Scania has previously developed fuel cell trucks in research projects and collaborations. However, the Swiss trucks are Scania’s first to be sold commercially to customers.

Long-term Scania partner Gysin Tiefbau AG said it is keen to explore alternative fuels. “The Scania trucks we already have fulfil our expectations, but we would really like to stop using fossil fuels,” said General Manager Alex Gysin.

“For us, a truck with fuel cells is a great option, and to contribute to further development in this area is something we all will benefit from.”

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Another of the companies, Traveco Transporte has seen its sister company Agrola investing in hydrogen filling stations for some time.

“For this reason, it is obvious for us to invest in hydrogen technology,” said MD Otti Hafliger.

“Moreover, it is an energy carrier in which we see potential for the future. With Scania, we have a long-standing and reliable partner who supports and accompanies us in the goal of decarbonisation,” he added.

In its press statement, Scania said that just as it expands its electric truck offering to cater for even more segments and applications, the company has great interest to learn more about what role green hydrogen might play.

“To accelerate the transition to emission-free transports, we need to be open-minded and consider that some types of transports are hard to abate in other ways,” said Tony Sandberg, Head of Scania Pilot Partner.

“Battery electric vehicles remain Scania’s priority, as those in general offer the best solution to our customers and are the first zero-tailpipe emission technology to reach the market broadly,” Sandberg added.

“But to accelerate the shift, Scania needs all sources of renewable energy. Hydrogen is a promising energy carrier, a good way of storing renewable energy over long cycles, and it will play an important role in decarbonisation the energy system if produced from renewable energy.”