In a statement on its website, DB said, “We at Deutsche Bahn have committed ourselves to an ambitious goal in terms of climate protection: climate-neutral by 2040. An important building block on the way there is the increased use of alternative drives. That is why we are testing solutions for the use of green hydrogen, among other things. For example, we are currently working with Siemens Mobility in the H2goesRail project on an innovative overall hydrogen system consisting of a filling station, train, and maintenance infrastructure.”
DB Energie, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn, will work with Lhyfe for the provision of green hydrogen at the refueling site in Tübingen, Germany. Lhyfe will build an electrolyser at the site, which is set to open in 2024. According to DB, after commissioning, an annual hydrogen production of around 30,000kg will be achieved.
"We are very proud to announce this first project in Germany, with a major partner which has very strong ambitions in terms of innovation and decarbonisation. This is proof that solutions exist. It is urgent that all the major transport players take steps to decarbonise their sectors," said Mathieu Guesné, Lhyfe's founding president.
In the H2goesRail project, DB Energie will ensure the hydrogen supply for the one-year trial run of the overall system. To this end, the DB subsidiary is developing and building a hydrogen filling station with a new type of rapid refueling with its partners Wystrach and Wenger Engineering. With Lhyfe, the innovative overall hydrogen system has now been supplemented by a further partner.
Trial operation of the new train and refueling station will begin between Tübingen, Horb, and Pforzheim in Germany in 2024 and last for one year. Approximately 120,000km of scheduled rail service are planned. The route is particularly suitable based on the timetable intervals and topography. Siemens Mobility’s Mireo Plus H hydrogen train will replace a diesel railcar used on this route and save about 330 tons of CO2.
According to Siemens Mobility, Mireo Plus H trains will be able to achieve ranges of up to 600km as a two-part train, and from 800-1,000km as a three-part train, depending on the line profile and mode of operation.