Hyundai New Zealand has unloaded the nation’s first hydrogen-powered truck, the Xcient Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle, which has touched down on New Zealand soil.

It is the first of five trucks planned to run freight across the country in a real-world demonstration within commercial fleets.

New Zealand is just the second market outside Korea to commence a multiple-truck programme. (The Xcient Fuel Cell trucks in Switzerland are in commercial operation, and have now exceeded more than 2 million kilometres of regular commercial service.)

The trucks will be introduced into an on-road (in-service) demonstration programme, with specialists in heavy vehicle transport and road transport logistics. Those partners are still to be confirmed.

The Xcient Fuel Cell has a manufacturer gross vehicle weight of 28 tonnes and a combined gross combination weight of 42 tonnes. It will operate lower than this in New Zealand due to local road weight limitations.

Power is by a 350kW electric motor with 2237Nm of torque. Driving energy is provided by a 180kW hydrogen fuel cell system with dual 90kW fuel cell stacks that combine with a 72kWh battery. Seven tanks make for a combined storage capacity of about 32.09kg of hydrogen. (The location of the tanks in the images are for transport position only. Once in operation they are located vertically behind the cab.) The range is about 400km – the driving distance between Auckland and Palmerston North.

Hyundai New Zealand says each Xcient Fuel Cell vehicle on our road in place of a diesel truck will save 50 tonnes of CO2 per year (based on 80,000km per annum) from being emitted into the environment. The trucks have been secured with the help of funding from ECCA.