The light, urban delivery vehicle weighs 863 kilos and can take a load of up to 700 kilos. It is has a range of 180 kilometres and can reach 40 kilometres per hour. According to a press release issued by the three companies, a vehicle covering five thousand kilometres a year, “will avoid 0.975 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per annum, if hydrogen is produced using renewable energies, or 0.357 tonnes of carbon dioxide, if the hydrogen is produced, for example, through natural gas reforming (including the transportation of natural gas, the production of compressed hydrogen and roadside supply)”.
These low emissions are the result of a research project co-funded by Spain’s Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade and led by the transport company, Boyacá, which has a fleet of 170 heavy goods vehicles, 1,200 vans and 300 light delivery vehicles. The need to find sustainable solutions to its activity has led it to start using electric vehicles for small deliveries.
Boyacá has been supported by the bus and coach chassis manufacturer, Hispano, and the company Besel, which has been involved through its Bes Electric brand in the R&D of a hybrid electric power train based on hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.
According to Besel, “this vehicle represents a turning point in the race to develop more efficient propulsion systems and widens the debate about the rivalry between electric and hydrogen vehicles”. José Sierra, R&D Director of this company, considers that “there is no conflict between one system and the other, because the development and growth of electric vehicles as a sustainable form of transport boosts the demand for hydrogen and, therefore, the development and spread of its technologies for both vehicles and infrastructures”.
Consequently, adds the press release, hydrogen technologies do not compete with batteries because “each has its niche market and the success of electric vehicles depends on the correct use of a combination of both depending on the application”. The three companies finally conclude that: “the electric vehicle is a real alternative to meeting transport needs, because hydrogen offers what the sector requires such as load capacity, range and operating cycles”.
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