Powered by hydrogen: From Bergen to Bolzano with the ix35 Fuel Cell
- Five countries in five days with zero emissions: Hyundai Motor has sent its ix35 Fuel Cell electric vehicle on a 2,500-kilometre pan-European journey
- The road trip started in Bergen, Norway, crossing Denmark, Germany and Austria to end in Bolzano, Italy
- Long distance easily covered thanks to expanding infrastructure and ix35 Fuel Cell’s near-600 km driving range
Press material
-
Download
-
Images
Hyundai Motor has sent its ix35 Fuel Cell on pan-European road trip: in five days participants will travel from Bergen, Norway across Denmark, Germany and Austria to finally arrive in Bolzano, Italy.
On the 2,500-kilometre journey the Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell proved its endurance and practicality under different weather and road conditions. The road trip also served to demonstrate the growing hydrogen infrastructure across Europe and promote its further development.
The route across Europe marks hydrogen history: Bergen, where the trip started on 12 June, will open a new hydrogen filling station soon, connecting the Oslo region with the Norwegian south and west coast. On its first day, the convoy crossed Norway from Bergen to Larvik to take the ferry to Hirtshals, Denmark and finish the day in Aalborg. Denmark is the first European country with a nationwide hydrogen-refuelling network with nine filling stations in total.
The group started its second day in Aalborg to travel 450 kilometres down south to Hamburg, Germany, stopping in Kolding, Denmark on the way. In Kolding participants learned more about hydrogen and fuel cells in Denmark, promoted by The Danish Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells. Germany is also on track to install a nationwide network of hydrogen filling stations in the years ahead.
After having crossed Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, the convoy arrived in Hamburg. The city of Hamburg is home to four hydrogen refilling stations in total.
Fuel cell technology milestones along the way
The route across Europe marks hydrogen history: Bergen, where the trip started on 12 June, will open a new hydrogen filling station soon, connecting the Oslo region with the Norwegian south and west coast. On its first day, the convoy crossed Norway from Bergen to Larvik to take the ferry to Hirtshals, Denmark and finish the day in Aalborg. Denmark is the first European country with a nationwide hydrogen-refuelling network with nine filling stations in total.
The group started its second day in Aalborg to travel 450 kilometres down south to Hamburg, Germany, stopping in Kolding, Denmark on the way. In Kolding participants learned more about hydrogen and fuel cells in Denmark, promoted by The Danish Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells. Germany is also on track to install a nationwide network of hydrogen filling stations in the years ahead.
After having crossed Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, the convoy arrived in Hamburg. The city of Hamburg is home to four hydrogen refilling stations in total.
On day three, the road trip convoy continued its journey from Hamburg to Düsseldorf, Germany. In Düsseldorf the group was joined by Air Liquide, a key actor in the development of the hydrogen industry in Europe. In Germany, Air Liquide opened its first hydrogen refilling station to the general public for private cars in Düsseldorf in 2012. Following this, 9 hydrogen stations will be designed and built by Air Liquide as part of a large-scale demonstration project carried out by the German government. By 2023, the German network shall be expanded to about 400 hydrogen stations covering the whole country.
The ix35 Fuel Cell convoy travelled from Düsseldorf to Munich on its fourth day. During a stop at Hyundai Motor Europe headquarters in Offenbach near Frankfurt am Main, participants also got exclusive insights to the All-New IONIQ ahead of its official market launch. With its ix35 Fuel Cell car and the IONIQ line-up, Hyundai Motor is the only manufacturer in the world to offer four alternative powertrains: fuel cell, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and all-electric.
In Munich the tour was joined and co-hosted by technology company and hydrogen pioneer The Linde Group. Under the BeeZero brand name the Group’s newly-founded subsidiary, Linde Hydrogen Concepts, is about to offer the world's first car sharing service to exclusively use hydrogen-powered fuel-cell cars. From this summer on, 50 Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell cars will be available to car sharing customers in several Munich districts. Linde is the leading supplier of hydrogen refuelling solutions and has built or equipped many of the hydrogen stations along the route of this pan-European road trip. The company expects to gain valuable information from day-to-day fleet operations, which it will use to further develop its hydrogen technologies and to help expanding the hydrogen infrastructure.
On 16 June the ix35 Fuel Cell convoy arrived in Innsbruck, Austria for the opening of the Green Energy Center, a project office and information centre working towards a more sustainable future by exploring and developing electric and hydrogen powered mobility based on the philosophies of global and regional companies. At the final tour stop in Bolzano, Italy, participants visited the Institute for Innovative Technologies (IIT). The institute is the first Italian company to run a fleet of ten Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell cars since 2014 and offering them for rent to the people of Bolzano.
The ix35 Fuel Cell convoy travelled from Düsseldorf to Munich on its fourth day. During a stop at Hyundai Motor Europe headquarters in Offenbach near Frankfurt am Main, participants also got exclusive insights to the All-New IONIQ ahead of its official market launch. With its ix35 Fuel Cell car and the IONIQ line-up, Hyundai Motor is the only manufacturer in the world to offer four alternative powertrains: fuel cell, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and all-electric.
In Munich the tour was joined and co-hosted by technology company and hydrogen pioneer The Linde Group. Under the BeeZero brand name the Group’s newly-founded subsidiary, Linde Hydrogen Concepts, is about to offer the world's first car sharing service to exclusively use hydrogen-powered fuel-cell cars. From this summer on, 50 Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell cars will be available to car sharing customers in several Munich districts. Linde is the leading supplier of hydrogen refuelling solutions and has built or equipped many of the hydrogen stations along the route of this pan-European road trip. The company expects to gain valuable information from day-to-day fleet operations, which it will use to further develop its hydrogen technologies and to help expanding the hydrogen infrastructure.
On 16 June the ix35 Fuel Cell convoy arrived in Innsbruck, Austria for the opening of the Green Energy Center, a project office and information centre working towards a more sustainable future by exploring and developing electric and hydrogen powered mobility based on the philosophies of global and regional companies. At the final tour stop in Bolzano, Italy, participants visited the Institute for Innovative Technologies (IIT). The institute is the first Italian company to run a fleet of ten Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell cars since 2014 and offering them for rent to the people of Bolzano.
A connected journey offering safety, convenience and great fun
During the road trip safety of the passengers on board was ensured by Hyundai’s remote diagnostic function, which permits the remote tracking of all cars during the tour. The Remote Diagnostics Function records distance, speed and used hydrogen fuel and is therefore not only able to send drivers helpful notifications in real time, but also to gain valuable information and insights that will be used to promote the further development of hydrogen technology and infrastructure worldwide, making a substantial contribution to innovation in Fuel Cell technology.
To coordinate refuelling, drivers on this trip used Hyundai’s new Fuel Cell mobile app that has just been launched for iOS and Android. It is the first app to include live information on the availability of all hydrogen filling stations across Europe.
A leader in alternative powertrain technology
The Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell is the world’s first mass-produced and commercially available fuel cell vehicle. The ix35 Fuel Cell is already the fourth generation of FCEV, following the Santa Fe FCEV in 2000, the Tucson FCEV in 2004 and the ix35 FCEV in 2012. There are currently 300 Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell cars on European roads in 12 countries. That is more than all FCEVs from every other manufacturer combined.
The all-new Hyundai IONIQ line-up introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2016, consisting of the IONIQ Hybrid, IONIQ Electric and IONIQ Plug-in, further demonstrates Hyundai’s leading position in alternative powertrain technology by offering fuel cell, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and all-electric powertrains.
Contacts
-
Florian Büngener
Head of Department PR & Communications
fbuengener@hyundai-europe.com LinkedIn ProfileAdriana Cerami
Head of Section Corporate & Brand PR
acerami@hyundai-europe.comKatharina Kupper
Hyundai Newsroom Lead
kkupper@hyundai-europe.comAnja Wente
Product PR & Communications Expert
awente@hyundai-europe.comElvira Herrera
Corporate Communications Expert
eherrera@hyundai-europe.comÁngel Pino Pérez
Product Communications Professional
apinoperez@hyundai-europe.comMaria Bricio
Corporate & Brand Communications Expert
