Air Liquide builds EU long-haul H2 infrastructure with Redexis and Iveco

Air Liquide has entered into two collaborations to build hydrogen refuelling stations for heavy-duty, long-haul vehicles. One is with the Spanish gas infrastructure company Redexis and the other with Italian commercial vehicle manufacturer Iveco and includes the introduction of heavy-duty hydrogen fuel cell trucks.

Redexis and Air Liquide have named their hydrogen refuelling infrastructure project DESIRE H2. The project is aimed at hydrogen infrastructure for heavy-duty vehicles in Spain. The two companies want to analyse the potential for setting up a network of up to 100 stations that should link Spain’s main industrial centres before 2030. Construction plans are being made for Madrid and Barcelona, as well as targeting those transport corridors that link Spain with the rest of Europe, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.

Bénédicte Levinson, CEO of Air Liquide in Spain and Portugal, said (translated from Spanish): “As a hydrogen pioneer, Air Liquide is proud to work with Redexis to contribute to the development of an ecosystem for heavy hydrogen mobility in Spain. Hydrogen is a key element of the energy transition, especially for industrial and mobile applications.”

Desire H2 has already been registered for funding with the Spanish Ministry for Ecological Change as well as with the European Hydrogen IPCEI and the ECH2A (European Clean Hydrogen Alliance).

In the other major cooperation, Air Liquide will be cooperating with Iveco to develop a network of hydrogen refuelling stations along the main trans-European transport corridors. In conjunction with these stations, the French-Italian duo says it will also be jointly exploring the introduction of heavy-duty fuel cell trucks.

“Hydrogen can contribute significantly to reducing emissions in the transport sector, as it is particularly well suited to heavy long-haul vehicles,” said Air Liquide manager Matthieu Giard. “Air Liquide is pleased to be working with a leading company like Iveco to explore how to set this revolution in motion. In line with its sustainability objectives, Air Liquide is committed to developing hydrogen ecosystems and contributes to the emergence of a low-carbon society.”

The two companies are already collaborating on a number of different projects. In July last year, the Port of Rotterdam Authority and AirLiquide, as well as several European companies (including Iveco) joined forces to provide a hydrogen corridor for fuel cell trucks in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. The project targets 1,000 trucks by 2025. The two companies are also collaborating on a hydrogen project in southern France with the HyAMMED (Hydrogène à Aix-Marseille pour une Mobilité Écologique et Durable). This involves the development of a fleet of 44-ton fuel cell-powered trucks in conjunction with a high-pressure hydrogen refuelling station with a capacity of one ton per day. Iveco and Air Liquid cooperations in larger industry initiatives also includes the H2Haul project (Hydrogen fuel cell trucks for heavy-duty, zero-emission logistics) launched in 2019.

renewablesnow.com (Redexis), airliquide.com (in Spanish), airliquide.com (Iveco cooperation)