The Port of Los Angeles has teamed up with partners to launch five new hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) and the opening of two hydrogen fuelling stations.
As part of the $82.5 million Shore-to-Store (S2S) project, over a dozen public and private sector partners have collaborated for a 12-month demonstration of the FCEVs.
The zero-emission Class 8 trucks will locally pickup, deliver, and drayage near the port and short regional haul applications in the Inland Empire region of Southern California.
Partners also aim to expand the project to include five more hydrogen-fuelled heavy-duty trucks, two battery-electric yard tractors, and two battery-electric forklifts.
The multiyear demonstration with partners advances the Port’s Clean Air Action Plan goals to reduce greenhouse gases and poor air quality in the state of California.
The project is also designed to assess the operational and technical feasibility of the vehicles in a heavy-duty setting, as well as to expand infrastructure to support hydrogen throughout the region.
Partners will also study the technical feasibility of hydrogen-fuelled tractors and battery-electric cargo handling equipment operating under the rigorous demands of the Southern California market.
At the same time, they will measure the reduction of nitrogen oxide, particulate matter, and greenhouse gas emissions, as well as other pollutants.
Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka commented, “This project is a model for developing and commercialising the next generation of clean trucks and cargo-handling equipment for the region and beyond.
“Just as the air we breathe extends beyond the port’s footprint, so should the clean air and economic benefits we believe this project will yield.”
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is supporting the project with a matching grant of $41.1 million. Project partners are contributing the remaining $41.4 million in financial and in-kind support.
Partners operating the trucks are Toyota Logistics Services (TLS), UPS, and trucking companies Total Transportation Services Inc. (TTSI) and Southern Counties Express (SCE).
The port’s technology development partners are: Toyota Motor North America, which designed and built the powertrain’s fuel cell electric power supply system; Kenworth Truck Co., which designed and built the Class 8 trucks with Toyota’s fuel cell electric system; and Shell Oil Products US (Shell), which designed, built and will operate the project’s two new high-capacity hydrogen fuelling stations in Wilmington and Ontario.
Air Liquide is also participating as a fuel supplier. The Port of Hueneme will partner on drayage runs and serve as the site for testing the zero-emissions yard tractors.
Other public sector partners are the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD), serving as a project advisor; the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, which will collect and analyse project data; and the Coalition for a Safe Environment, representing the community.
