H2X Global was recently featured in the Australian Financial Review discussing harnessing hydrogen to decarbonise the automotive industry. The industry is on the precipice of the transition from traditional fossil fuels toward electricity, struggling to adapt as it battles its existing reputation as one of the biggest CO2 pollution sources; a direct factor in the effects of climate change.
H2X's Warrego Ute – a Ford Ranger with the diesel engine replaced by an H2X hydrogen fuel cell drivetrain.
The transition is facing inertia from potential customers as they face the reality of the new EV vehicles. BEVs have a relatively limited range at a higher cost in comparison to traditional vehicles and also need hours-long recharge times.
Australian company, H2X Global has short-circuited the transition to electricity by navigating around this issue, leveraging their hydrogen fuel cell technology, and onboarding electricity generation. This fuel cell consumes hydrogen and oxygen in a chemical process producing electricity, heat and water as the only byproducts. H2X's powertrain incorporates supercapacitors, used to power its range of delivery vans and other commercial vehicles from 2024.
This system is already put into practice via buses made in Malaysia and Vietnam under partnership arrangements.
“The advantage we’ve got is the delivery vehicle can be refilled with hydrogen in three minutes and then it’s capable of running for around 700 kilometres – double or more the range of a battery electric delivery vehicle,”
Brendan Norman, CEO and Founder, H2X Global
"It means professional drivers can drive the vehicle all day without having to put it in storage for eight hours while it recharges. That’s the benefit of our system."
The supercapacitor technology allows for extremely fast charging and generates around 75% of the energy created via regenerative braking as the vehicle slows. Comparatively, EVs recoup less than 20% of this energy because batteries cannot absorb it as quickly.
H2X is currently in the final development stages of its three fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV) in conjunction with KTM, the Austrian motorcycle and sports car manufacturer, planning to launch the Darling van in Europe in late 2024.
H2X will use an extremely different and cheaper production method than currently used in automotive manufacturing, ensuring that a rate of 20,000 vehicles a year can be profitable.
“There’s still enough skills around in Australia that we think we can put together a pretty good production team.” - Brendan Norman, CEO and Founder, H2X Global
Read the full article here.
H2X Global Limited
H2X is an automotive and power unit company focused on absolute sustainability. The company is focused on harnessing the most efficient and effective technologies, with the onus on capturing free and renewable energy sources. A specialisation in hydrogen is the basis of H2X’s growth, however with a strong platform as a maker of electrically powered vehicles, the company has a versatile approach to finding the right vehicle for the right task. H2X Global has operations in Australia, Malaysia, India, and throughout Europe.
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