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Daimler Targets CO2-Neutral Operations by 2039, Deploying GenH2 Trucks in 2024
Date: June 14, 2024
Germany/Japan- Kawasaki Heavy Industries (Kawasaki)., a Japanese public multinational corporation, and Daimler Truck AG., a commercial vehicle manufacturer, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to study the establishment and optimization for the supply of liquid hydrogen.
The MoU was pre-signed last week in Tokyo by Yasuhiko Hashimoto, President and CEO of Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Dr. Manfred Schuckert, Head of Regulatory Strategy of Daimler Truck, in the presence of European Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson and Ken Saito, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry. Yoshinori Kanehana, Chairman of the Board of Kawasaki Heavy Industries, and Martin Daum, Chairman of the Board of Management and CEO of Daimler Truck, completed the signing during the Hydrogen Council annual meeting in Berlin (Germany) in the presence of the German Parliamentary State Secretary, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, Stefan Wenzel, European Commission Executive Vice President Maroš Šefčovič, Kazuchika Iwata, Japanese State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry and Hidenao Yanagi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Germany.
The collaboration between the two pioneering companies marks a major step forward in expanding the use of liquid hydrogen, particularly in road freight transport. Their joint initiative will study the entire liquid hydrogen supply chain, covering LH2 terminals, large- and medium-sized overseas shipping, and large-scale liquid hydrogen storage.
Mr. Yoshinori Kanehana, Chairman of the Board of Kawasaki Heavy Industries, said, “Kawasaki Heavy Industries focuses on liquefied hydrogen out of various hydrogen carriers. We are simultaneously developing all core technologies necessary to establish international hydrogen supply chains, such as hydrogen liquefiers, liquefied hydrogen carriers, liquefied hydrogen storage tanks and its usage. In the context of the European hydrogen market, which has the world's largest demand, Germany’s efforts are indeed crucial. Daimler Truck is advancing the development of next-generation fuel cell trucks powered by liquified hydrogen, aiming to be a pioneer in the liquified hydrogen market. We are proud to be able to contribute to this collaboration, which is highly gratifying.”
Mr. Martin Daum, Chairman of the Board of Management and CEO of Daimler Truck, said “We at Daimler Truck aim to lead sustainable transportation, and hydrogen plays a key role in decarbonization. Besides providing the right trucks and buses, it is absolutely crucial to establish the supply and lower the costs of green hydrogen. Our initiative with Kawasaki underlines the comprehensive view and activities Daimler Truck is pursuing to make economically priced green liquid hydrogen a reality for our customers.”
The Kawasaki Group is pursuing innovative solutions to meet the goals of Group Vision 2030, focusing on a safe and secure remotely-connected society, near-future mobility, and energy and environmental solutions. Aiming to realize hydrogen-based societies, Kawasaki is collaborating with government agencies and companies in Japan and abroad to develop technology for an early hydrogen supply chain from production to usage.
Daimler Truck, committed to the Paris Climate Agreement, aims for CO2-neutral operations in its truck and bus range by 2039. To decarbonize transportation, it is focusing on hydrogen-powered and battery-electric vehicles. The company signed an MoU with Masdar to explore liquid green hydrogen from Abu Dhabi to Europe by 2030. Demonstrating feasibility, the prototype Mercedes-Benz GenH2 Truck completed a 1,047 km trip across Germany on one fill of liquid hydrogen. Daimler Truck plans to deploy a customer-trial fleet of GenH2 Trucks in mid-2024.
