The H2Accelerate collaboration has released the latest in a series of whitepapers addressing the need for supportive policy frameworks to facilitate the commercialization of the hydrogen truck sector. This whitepaper focuses on the UK landscape, examining the existing policy framework for zero-emission trucks and proposing policy changes to enable the large-scale deployment of hydrogen trucks.
Exploring the Existing UK Policy Framework
The UK was among the first countries to develop a hydrogen strategy and has been a world leader in policy support for low-carbon transport. The recent publication of the UK Zero-Emission Road Freight Demonstrator (ZERFD) shows the government’s commitment to supporting the early-stage deployment of zero emissions trucks. However, long-term support is needed to provide vehicle OEMs with the certainty to invest in right-hand drive vehicles and to instill confidence in fuel suppliers to develop a nationwide network of hydrogen refueling stations.
Oliver Bishop, Global Head of Hydrogen Mobility at bp, commented, “At bp, we are excited by the opportunity to invest in zero-emissions refueling for heavy-duty vehicles in the UK. We are exploring opportunities to kick-start a UK hydrogen mobility offer to our truck customers. However, in order to make further investments that will enable the large-scale deployment of heavy-duty hydrogen vehicles across the UK, we need sustained supporting policies from the UK government.”
Policy Recommendations Outlined for the UK Government
The policy paper outlines a series of recommendations aimed at fostering confidence in the UK’s commitment to hydrogen trucking and enabling the ambitious targets to ban all non-zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles by 2040.
The key recommendations include:
- Setting out a minimum level of alternative refueling network coverage, with large-scale hydrogen refueling stations located every 200km on major networks by 2030, and a more comprehensive network required by 2035 comprising 250 refueling stations with a total capacity of 500 tonnes of hydrogen per day.
- Strengthening and broadening the scope of the plug-in truck grant to allow all available zero-emission HGVs to be assessed, and covering 80% of the cost difference between diesel and hydrogen-fueled trucks for the first 1000 trucks.
- Adapting the UK standards for renewable hydrogen so that hydrogen production plants can be connected to existing renewable electricity plants, provided they enter operation within 36 months.
- Reviewing the Hydrogen Production Business Model’s Agreement to allow the participation of third-party companies, so that hydrogen production projects do not need to develop the entire downstream supply chain.
- Creating exemptions for zero-emission trucks from levies, tolls, and taxes while the sector scales up.
The above measures, implemented together, would allow H2Accelerate members, as well as other hydrogen truck manufacturers and refueling players, to invest with confidence in a zero-emission long-haul truck sector in the UK.
Hannah Bryson-Jones, spokesperson for the H2Accelerate collaboration, stated: “The UK government has the opportunity to unlock large-scale investment in long-haul zero-emissions freight. Ambitious targets have been set for the complete ban on diesel trucks, but these can only be achieved if the sector is supported in scale-up starting today. Aligned and progressively larger deployments of low-carbon hydrogen production, refueling, and trucks will secure a smooth transition to zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles.”
