Hyundai Motor Company has now shipped the first 10 of the Hyundai XCIENT Fuel Cell – world’s first mass-produced fuel cell heavy-duty truck – to Switzerland where it will begin its commercial use. A total of 50 XCIENT Fuel Cell trucks will be exported to Switzerland, followed by Hyundai handing them over to commercial fleet owners starting September. The manufacturer plans to roll out 1,600 XCIENT Fuel Cell trucks by the year 2025.
The XCIENT is powered by a 190-kW hydrogen fuel cell system with dual 95-kW fuel cell stacks. It gets seven large hydrogen tanks for a combined storage capacity of around 32.09 kg of hydrogen. The driving range for XCIENT Fuel Cell is about 400 km (in the 4X2 truck with refrigerated upfit configuration while operating 34ton truck + trailer combination) and a refuelling time of approximately 8-20 minutes.
Equipped with an enhanced fuel cell system, a long-distance tractor unit with a 1,000 km range is also in the works. It will be aimed at global markets including North America and Europe.
Building a comprehensive hydrogen ecosystem, where critical transportation needs are met by vehicles like XCIENT Fuel Cell, will lead to a paradigm shift that removes automobile emissions from the environmental equation, In Cheol Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of Commercial Vehicle Division at Hyundai Motor, said.
Also read: Hyundai HDC-6 Neptune: Heavy-duty hydrogen truck to launch within 3-4 years
With its sights set on future, zero-emissions mobility as a significant part of the company’s strategy, Hyundai aims to sell 670,000 electric vehicles annually, including 110,000 FCEVs by 2025. Besides, XCIENT Fuel Cell trucks, Hyundai is also the manufacturer of NEXO, its second-generation hydrogen-powered SUV.
Under its long-term roadmap “Fuel Cell Vision 2030” announced in December 2018, Hyundai Motor Group aims to secure a 700,000-unit-a-year capacity of fuel cell systems for automobiles as well as vessels, rail cars, drones and power generators by 2030.
