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In early February, DHL Freight put a hydrogen truck from the manufacturer Paul Nutzfahrzeuge into operation. The Paul Hydrogen Power Truck, a vehicle based on a Mercedes-Benz Atego, will be used during the one-year pilot for distribution and line transport at the location in Cologne. This is already the second hydrogen truck for DHL Group in Germany. Another vehicle is in operation for the Post & Paket Deutschland division at the Cologne West branch.
(Bonn/Cologne) The corporation and its divisions are testing and implementing various sustainable drive solutions as part of their sustainability strategy and the interim goal of reducing their emissions to less than 29 million tons by 2030. “Especially in land transport, where no alternative drive solution has yet been established, it is important for us, in the spirit of a technology-open approach, to test various sustainable solutions. These include not only battery-electric trucks but also hydrogen vehicles, which particularly excel in range and quick refueling on longer routes. Ultimately, our goal is to identify the best technology and drive mix to achieve our target of net-zero emissions logistics by 2050,” said Dr. Thomas Vogel, CEO DACH, UK & IE DHL Freight.
Range of 400 to 600 km
The two 15.6t trucks with a range of about 400 km with a trailer and 600 km without a trailer were manufactured by Paul Nutzfahrzeuge on behalf of Shell in Vilshofen on the Danube, Lower Bavaria. The basis for the first series-produced medium-duty fuel cell truck in Germany is provided by a Mercedes-Benz Atego. The vehicles are operated by DHL Freight and Post & Paket Deutschland through the innovative platform model Shell Hydrogen Pay-Per-Use. In addition to the vehicle and the hydrogen refueling infrastructure, Shell’s offering also covers all necessary services and support during the usage period. The vehicles are exclusively serviced through the workshop of the commercial vehicle center of Daimler Truck AG in Frechen. Hydrogen trucks emit only water vapor from the exhaust. If the hydrogen used is produced with green electricity, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions can be up to 100%.
150 sustainable vehicles in operation
Currently, around 150 vehicles with no or significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions are already in operation for DHL Freight in Germany – battery-electric vehicles in local transport, bio-CNG, and bio-LNG vehicles in long-distance transport. Further pilot projects with battery-electric vehicles in long-distance transport or articulated trucks with hydrogen will be added in 2024.
Photo: © DHL
