German hydrogen train network runs dry

Germany has the first fleet of hydrogen-powered trains in the world. Too bad the operator is missing one essential thing to keep them running - hydrogen fuel. It is still uncertain when operations will go back to normal.

Image: Alstom

Because of delivery bottlenecks, the hydrogen train in the German state of Lower Saxony cannot operate as planned. Instead, five diesel trains currently service the line, while the hydrogen trains are shorter than usual to conserve fuel.

It is still unclear when the delivery of the much-needed hydrogen fuel will continue. The supplier currently hopes that he will be able to deliver in full again by midweek. Until now, the train has used hydrogen that is a waste product from the Dow Group’s chemical plant in Stade. It is then transported about 40 kilometres to Bremervörde by truck. In the future, the needed hydrogen will be produced in Bremervörde using green electricity.

Bremervörde is where the filling station for the trains was set up. It is operated by Linde and has a storage capacity of 1,800 kilograms of hydrogen, distributed over 64 500-bar high-pressure storage tanks. The trains have a range of 1,000 kilometres with one tank of hydrogen and can thus cover their daily mileage without a refuelling stop – at least when there is fuel available.

The 14 hydrogen-powered Coradia iLint regional trains replaced 15 diesel trains in 2022, servicing the routes between the cities of Cuxhaven, Bremerhaven, Bremervörde and Buxtehud. They are operated by the  Eisenbahnen und Verkehrsbetriebe Elbe-Weser (evb) on behalf of the public transport operator Landesnahverkehrsgesellschaft Niedersachsen (LNVG). The operator says that it is the world’s first hydrogen train network.

spiegel.de (in German)

7 Comments

about „German hydrogen train network runs dry“
Brian Kenward SR
12.09.2024 um 12:51
Every new technology experiences bumps in the road along it's way towards full implementation. Does anyone want to take a real hard look at the bumps experienced by the petroleum industry over the past two hundred years, as they developed their industry? These temporary problems in the hydrogen economy could be compared with those problems experienced in the petroleum industry.
Martin Southworth
12.09.2024 um 15:42
Will they be using ITM Power Electrolysers?
Kevin P
12.09.2024 um 19:48
Hydrogen tanker behind locomotive?
Greg
16.09.2024 um 15:00
Lots of demand for green hydrogen supply and yet so little actual production of it. As stated in the article they are using the waste gas from a petrochemical plant right now, relatively cheap since its a byproduct but still as a byproduct its not plentiful enough.
Eric Fisher
17.09.2024 um 05:44
If there was any Green Hydrogen, it should be required to be used in the Steel industry, not wasted on this silly train idea which could just be ran on electricity much more efficiently.
Fred
17.09.2024 um 13:47
Dilletantic planing & operating driven by well sponsored politicians and corrupt & criminal GAS Industry. The taxpayer pays as usual. And the voter will vote for the idiots next time again. H2 is nearly of worst efficiency and has a bad level of CO2 emission, compared to BEV.
Tony
18.09.2024 um 16:24
Virtue signalling isn't easy. Using hydrogen produced as a waste product makes a lot more sense that wasting green energy on making it, with all the loss of energy involved in production, then turning it back into electricity to drive the train. Trains should use electricity directly, which is much more efficient. Germany seems to have lost its way on clean energy.

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