Germany inaugurates world’s first hydrogen-powered train fleet

Berlin: Almost four years after the start of trial operations, Germany has inaugurated a railway line powered entirely by hydrogen, a “world premiere” and a significant step forward for green train transport despite nagging supply challenges. 

As per details, the world's first passenger train network powered by hydrogen was launched in the German federal state of Lower Saxony on Wednesday. 

According to the local transport authority of Lower Saxony (LNVG), a fleet of 14 trains with hydrogen fuel cell drive produced by French manufacturer Alstom are to replace diesel trains.

Five of the new trains are already in operation, with the others to follow by the end of the year.

During two years of trial operations, two pre-series trains "ran without any problems," the LNVG noted. The total cost of the project is around 93 million euros (92.4 million U.S. dollars).

The locomotives will save 1.6 million liters of diesel fuel and thus reduce CO2 emissions by 4,400 tonnes per year. 

The train has a maximum speed of 140 kilometers per hour.

“We are very proud to put this technology into operation together with our strong partners as a world premiere,” Alstom CEO Henri Poupart-Lafarge said in a statement on Wednesday.

Hydrogen trains have become a promising way to decarbonise the rail sector and replace climate-warming diesel, which still powers 20 percent of journeys in Germany.

Billed as a “zero emission” mode of transport, the trains mix hydrogen on board with oxygen present in the ambient air, thanks to a fuel cell installed in the roof. This produces the electricity needed to pull the train.