Hydrogen truck for VOS Transport Group to decarbonise Toyota logistics in Europe built by VDL Special Vehicles

Eindhoven – Deventer – Vos Transport Group (Vos) has joined forces with VDL Special Vehicles (VDL) to break into the zero emission heavy duty hydrogen truck market in Europe. Vos uses fuel cell technology from Toyota. Together with Toyota Motor Europe (TME), Vos and VDL aim to help accelerate the decarbonisation of the logistics sector, a key factor in achieving TME’s goals of being fully carbon neutral by 2040.

Vos’ fleet currently consists of 450 trucks, a large percentage of which now run on the biodiesel HVO100. Director Jules Menheere: ‘With this, we are already achieving CO2 savings of up to 90%. We are also realising a hydrogen truck within the Dreamh2aul project. So VDL’s truck will be the second hydrogen truck we will commission this year’.

Vos is already investing heavily in several hydrogen projects: ‘As a sustainable frontrunner, you can’t just stop at words, you must then turn your words into deeds to ultimately make a difference. We get a lot of appreciation for this and that encourages us. The fact that a customer (Toyota) has now stood up and wants to go down this path with us was the decisive factor for us to embark on this project together with VDL’. Says Jules Menheere.

Like their partner Toyota Parts Centre Europe (TPCE), he sees hydrogen as an important alternative energy source to make long-distance transport more sustainable. Menheere: ‘The vehicles can refuel easier and faster and the range is also longer, which is very important in the type of work we do. We see electric transport as a nice alternative for our distribution routes, but have major concerns about the feasibility of the necessary infrastructure.’

Hans Bekkers, commercial director of VDL Special Vehicles: ‘Just like now, there will be an energy mix in the future. It is a utopia to think that we can cover all situations with battery-electric drives. We see hydrogen as a good and obvious addition when it comes to larger and heavier forms of transport, or in locations where power is insufficiently available. Also, storing excess capacity from renewable sources and the developments and targets agreed in the AFIR (H2 refuelling stations in every city and every 200km along the TEN-T road network in Europe) offer good opportunities for hydrogen as an alternative to existing electric drives.’

Vos will first deploy the hydrogen truck on short regional routes to gain experience with the fuel and technology. In time, Vos will expand this to longer international routes.

‘VDL Special Vehicles believes in a zero-emission future for medium and
heavy on- & off-road machines. We are therefore particularly proud to be working with Vos Transport Group
to collaborate on this innovative technology project, which will enable us to expand our hydrogen powertrain business.’
Hans Bekkers, Commercial Director VDL Special Vehicles

 

‘The demand for emission-free solutions is evident today not only in road transport but also in many other sectors,’ Bekkers says. ‘However, there is no ‘one-size fits all’ and various technologies are at various stages of development, which directly or indirectly affects their affordability. It is therefore important to take steps in the development of hydrogen propulsion systems, which will eventually allow us to reduce the TCO (total cost of ownership) of H2 vehicles and make them competitive with other forms of propulsion. The cooperation with Vos and TME in this project provides an important step forward in this respect. By starting to deploy the truck in a realistic, heavy duty environment, we are learning a lot about how the product behaves in a real-life environment and how we can improve it. We are thus rapidly bringing the affordability of these vehicles closer,’ says Hans Bekkers.

Menheere also sees the achievable TCO as a key issue for hydrogen trucks to make their entrance in the Netherlands: ‘First, we have to arrive at a feasible TCO. Important here is that such vehicles enter series production as soon as possible and become more affordable. At the moment, this is far from the case and Vos as a company has to invest a ‘fortune’ itself to make such a truck a reality.’

 

‘The government needs to express a clear vision in terms of the use of
hydrogen in the logistics sector. Transport companies investing in this should be
be supported much more financially and not only at the time of purchase, but also throughout
the whole project phase’.
Jules Menheere, Director Vos Transport Group

 

Not only the price of the truck is important, according to Menheere, it is also important that the hydrogen price quickly becomes more stable and a whole lot lower in terms of price. ‘The latter could/should be encouraged by the government in the first few years to arrive at a better case. With the current high hydrogen prices, it is actually better for the carrier to stop the vehicle and that should not be the intention! Another point which is important is that multiple refuelling points are realised on key corridors,’ Menheere points out.

Thanks to their years of expertise in the market, Vos fulfils an important link in the supply chain of many renowned clients with its sustainable transport solutions. Vos provides Warehousing and transport to and from Great Britain, the Benelux countries, Germany, France and the whole of Scandinavia. This involves looking at the complete supply chain together with the client to organise it in the best possible way and, where possible, to make it more sustainable.

VDL Special Vehicles will build the first demo hydrogen truck in summer 2023, followed by Vos’ hydrogen truck produced and tested on TME logistics routes in autumn 2023. The project consolidates knowledge on hydrogen truck deployment and supports the TME’s long-term vision to decarbonise the logistics sector and further reduce its carbon footprint.