Ballard Fuel Cell Modules to Power Yard Trucks at Port of L.A.

Vancouver, Canada – Ballard Power Systems announced that it will provide fuel cell modules to power two port terminal yard trucks as part of a project being managed by GTI, a leading research, development and training organization, and partially funded by the California Air Resources Board (CARB).

The ZECAP Project will validate the commercial viability of zero-emission fuel cell electric hybrid yard trucks operating in a demanding, real-world cargo-handling application. The ZECAP Project is part of California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative that puts billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy and improving public health and the environment — particularly in disadvantaged communities.

The project will develop, validate, and deploy two Capacity TJ9000 fuel cell electric hybrid yard trucks at the Port of Los Angeles in California. Ballard will provide 85 kilowatt (kW) Fcvelocity-HD fuel cell modules for primary propulsion of each yard truck and BAE Systems will provide the electric drive system and will have responsibility for systems integration. The yard trucks will move cargo containers within the terminal yard. Ballard plans to deliver power modules in 2019 and a 12-month operating period is planned for the project, beginning in March 2020.

"Heavy duty vehicles have a disproportionate impact in terms of air pollution, with buses and trucks accounting for less than 10 percent of vehicles on the road but about one-quarter of all carbon dioxide emissions plus a significant amount of pollutants in California,” said Rob Campbell, Ballard’s Chief Commercial Officer. “This heavy duty vehicle project with GTI and BAE Systems is an important step forward in addressing this issue, particularly at shipping ports where a significant amount of pollution currently occurs. Hydrogen and fuel cells deliver an attractive value proposition, including zero emissions, extended vehicle range, long duty cycles, rapid refueling and zero compromise on payload.”

Source: IWR Online, 19 Oct 2018