A pioneering transport trial in Finland is testing how high capacity electric battery power and hydrogen fuel cells can combine to keep heavy freight moving over long distances. The project, led by the VTT Technical Research Centre, features a 76 tonne articulated truck built by Sisu Auto. The vehicle runs primarily on a 650 kilowatt hour battery pack, supported by a 120 kilowatt hydrogen fuel cell that acts as an onboard rapid top up power source during demanding hauls.
Transport operator Jylha Logistics will run the truck over a 540 kilometre daily route between the port at Vuosaari in the south and Jyvaskyla in central Finland. High powered megawatt charging stations and a hydrogen refuelling facility along the corridor will support the trial. Researchers will measure fuel and electricity consumption in severe winter conditions, comparing the overall operating economics directly against diesel to help design future long distance freight vehicles.
The EV Café Panel Take:
John Curtis: Commended the engineering ambition of running continuous real time monitoring and digital twin performance modelling in sub zero conditions, while joking about mastering the Finnish route pronunciations.
Sam Clarke: Passionately questioned the logic of adding hydrogen hardware to an already massive 650 kilowatt hour battery. Sam argued that with megawatt chargers installed at both ends of a 335 mile daily run, modern battery electric drivetrains can complete the route comfortably during mandatory driver rest breaks, rendering the expensive hydrogen fuel cell redundant and echoing past European trials that proved pure electric is superior.
Paul Kirby: Weighed in on the efficiency debate, agreeing that while real world cold weather data is always valuable, adding complex dual fuel powertrains inflates maintenance overheads when dedicated megawatt charging corridors offer a far simpler, cheaper commercial route for haulage.