Japan’s largest railway company will begin testing the country’s first hydrogen-fueled train next month as a step towards the country’s goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050.
The two-car “hybari” train – a combination of a hybrid and the Japanese word for a lark – cost about 4 billion yen ($35 million) to develop and could travel up to 140 kilometers (87 mi) at a top speed of 100. can travel. km/h once filled with hydrogen.
The East Japan Railway Company, which developed the train in partnership with Toyota Motor Corp. and Hitachi Ltd., plans to replace its diesel fleet and use them to export markets. Commercial services should start in 2030.
Japan has made hydrogen a major source of clean energy to reach net zero. Toyota is targeting a tenfold increase in production of hydrogen-fueled Mirai cars with its second generation models, while more fuel-cell buses and commercial vehicles are on the road.
The government has said it aims to increase the amount of hydrogen used to 20 million tonnes by 2050, while energy companies such as Iwatani Corp and Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd are trying to build a hydrogen supply chain to reduce its cost.
Europe has been a leader in hydrogen trains, with Germany launching the world’s first train built by Alstom SA in 2018. Siemens AG and Deutsche Bahn AG are developing new regional trains and special fuel stations and will test them in 2024.
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