Germany has started to implement the "Future Package", allocating 7 billion euros to support the launch of hydrogen, with another 2 billion euros to promote international cooperation (Germany’s National Hydrogen Strategy, 2020).
As the German government considers only hydrogen produced from renewable energy to be sustainable in a long term. Germany expects to become a leader and exporter in the green hydrogen space, establishing an international bilateral partnership with more than 10 countries to secure a future supply of hydrogen. The bilateral partnership is exclusively a government-to-government agreement that can encompass trade relations around hydrogen, such as importing or exporting hydrogen fuel and/or technologies.
Source: Energy News
· The world’s first railway line running entirely on hydrogen
· Pure hydrogen fuel trains operating on a regional line
· Only steam and condensed water are produced while driving
Germany launched the world’s first hydrogen-powered passenger train in August 2022. This is the world’s first railway line running entirely on hydrogen and was designed in France by Alstom, and assembled in Germany.
It is a fleet of fourteen trains that use hydrogen as the only fuel running on a regional line around 100 kilometers long. hydrogen fuel cells were installed on the roof of the train, they mix onboard hydrogen with oxygen present in the ambient air to generate electricity for the fraction of the train, only steam and condensed water are produced while driving.
The line mainly operated diesel trains, 1 KG of hydrogen could replace about 4.5 litres of diesel. In Germany, 2500 to 3000 diesel trains could be replaced by hydrogen (Energy News, 2022).
Hydrogen Trains Possibilities in China and NZ
- Fixed routes and small regional lines are the best application scenario for hydrogen trains
- Hydrogen trains did not require electrification infrastructures
However, both China and NZ may face the same challenges such as the supply of hydrogen and insufficient hydrogen refuelling stations. Establishing an international partnership with other countries to import hydrogen fuels and hydrogen technologies might be a favourable option.