In Partnership with 5 Global Firms
Hyundai Motor has begun to work with global companies such as Toyota to develop charging equipment for commercial hydrogen electric vehicles.
The company announced on March 4 that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with five global companies in February to form a global consortium for the development of standardized parts for a large-capacity high-voltage charger for commercial hydrogen electric vehicles. The five partners are automaker Toyota, industrial gas company Air Liquide, hydrogen charging equipment company Nel, hydrogen electric truck manufacturer Nikola and energy and petrochemical group Shell. The automaker will step up its efforts to popularize commercial hydrogen electric vehicles and standardize large-capacity hydrogen charging technology via the partnership.
Filling hydrogen into small tanks requires high-pressure (700 bar) charging technology and the standardization of vehicle and charger components that can withstand such high-pressure (700 bar). Charging technology and parts for hydrogen electric passenger cars such as Hyundai's Nexo have been standardized, but those for commercial hydrogen vehicles have not yet been standardized. At the moment, carmakers develop commercial hydrogen vehicles based on parts for hydrogen passenger cars so they take more than 20 minutes to charge. The development and standardization of charger parts is required for fast and safe charging of commercial hydrogen vehicles.
The consortium will develop parts for charging equipment such as receptacles (hydrogen inlet) for cars and nozzles, hoses and brakeaways for fueling stations as required by high-pressure hydrogen charging conditions of commercial hydrogen electric vehicles. In the future, the consortium will promote the international standardization of commercial hydrogen-electric car charging technology.