Alstom has signed a collaboration agreement with French company Liebherr-Aerospace & Transportation SAS to research hydrogen systems.

Alstom‘s hydrogen strategy is part of its ambition to innovate by pioneering smarter and greener mobility solutions for all, whilst Liebherr specialises in the manufacture of compressors for fuel cells, and is developing air management technology that is particularly well suited to hydrogen fuel cells.

The collaboration will investigate how hydrogen systems can be optimised, including improving the reliability and durability of fuel cells, increasing their power density, and reducing their cost.

Last April, Alstom acquired Helion Hydrogen Power, an innovative start-up specialising in high-powered fuel cells, and has now chosen to collaborate with the Liebherr group, which has extensive experience in fuel cell technology for automotive and aerospace applications. Liebherr, as a supplier of turbochargers to fuel cell system integrators, will play a major role in the process of reducing emissions from rail transport.

In 2020, Alstom signed an agreement with Società nazionale Metanodotti (Snam), Italy’s leading natural gas transport company, to develop hydrogen trains and associated infrastructure. Alstom will be responsible for the production and maintenance of the hydrogen trains, either new or retrofitted, while Snam will develop the infrastructure for the production, transport, and refuelling of these trains.

Alstom has also signed a memorandum of understanding with Plastic Omnium, a major player in hydrogen mobility, to develop high-end hydrogen storage systems for the rail sector.

Jean-Baptiste Eyméoud, President of Alstom France, said:

“Our ambition is to accelerate the adoption of hydrogen in the rail industry and to develop innovative solutions in the context of the greening of heavy mobility, including regional trains, shunting locomotives and freight locomotives.”

“Alstom has made sustainable mobility one of the pillars of its strategic plan Alstom in Motion 2025. Our ambition is to accelerate the adoption of hydrogen in the rail industry and to develop innovative solutions in the context of the greening of heavy mobility, including regional trains, shunting locomotives and freight locomotives.

“To develop a hydrogen ecosystem, particularly in France, we need to mobilise the public authorities and all the players in this sector. As in many fields, we are innovating with structuring partnerships: SNAM, Plastic Omnium, Hynamics, Eversholt and now Liebherr”.

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