Hyliko recently opened the doors to its hydrogen centre of excellence for HGVs to experts from the industry for a tour of the facility, which is located in Villabé, 30km south of Paris, and due to officially open in September.
The Hyliko hydrogen centre of excellence comprises:
- A green Hydrogen refueling station for HGVs, with high throughput and a compression capacity of 350 bars (with plans to expand to 700 bars)
- A maintenance facility for hydrogen-powered HGVs, staffed by professionals trained in this technology
The public station will allow HGVs to refuel in approximately 20 minutes with green hydrogen currently produced by Lhyfe, a French supplier of green and renewable hydrogen.
From this summer, a total of five vehicles – three HGVs retrofitted by Hyliko and two vehicles from Korean manufacturer Hyundai – will be operating on the site, forming the largest group of hydrogen-powered HGVs in France.
Ovarith Troeung, CEO of Hyliko, stated: “2024 marks the real start of hydrogen road freight transport in France, and Hyliko is leading this revolution. We have designed, assembled and introduced France’s first h2 HGVs, built the fuelling and service infrastructures, set up the physical and digital services, and now, together with our hauliers and partners, we are ready to continue decarbonising heavy mobility with green hydrogen.”
Hyliko also reports that the first hydrogen vehicles retrofitted by the company are in use with transporters for Point P, including the Berto Group and Labatut Group, as well as Bert&You and Toyota Motor.
This center is part of a larger plan that includes the Grand-ParHY ecosystem, which will feature a new supply site in Paris-Nord, followed by the construction of the Grand-LHYon ecosystem in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. These ecosystems aim to improve access to hydrogen energy by integrating into major French routes and connecting with European corridors.
Troeung added: ”We call on hauliers and shippers committed to decarbonising our economy to join the movement. Hydrogen-powered low-carbon mobility is no longer a concept in France: the transition to zero-emission hydrogen-powered mobility has already begun.”
