Hyundai Motor today delivered 50 units of ix35 Fuel Cell to The Linde Group in Munich, Germany. Under the presence of representatives from Hyundai Motor and The Linde Group, the handover ceremony laid the foundation for the world’s first fuel cell powered zero-emission car sharing service BeeZero, which will start on July 16, 2016.
Launched by a newly founded subsidiary Linde Hydrogen Concepts³ of The Linde Group, BeeZero leverages the century of experience that The Linde Group has with Hyundai Motor. The program also synergizes two mobility trends of car sharing and zero emissions.
“BeeZero’s pioneering concept is the result of great collaborative effort of Hyundai Motor and The Linde Group,” said Thomas A. Schmid, Chief Operating Officer at Hyundai Motor Europe.
“Fuel cell technology for zero-emission mobility is ready for everyday life. With today’s handover of the world’s largest number of fuel cell vehicles to Linde Hydrogen Concepts, we are one step closer to making this sustainable technology available to everyone,” added Schmid.
“Hydrogen technology can be a substantial part of future mobility,” said Dr. Christian Bruch, member of the Executive Board of Linde AG. “Together with our customers, we want to gain practical insights in day-to-day operations and jointly build this future. We expect BeeZero to stimulate both the further development of our hydrogen technologies as well as a hydrogen infrastructure build-up.”
600 kilometers on a single tank
The BeeZero car sharing service will operate on a zone-based model. Fifty units of ix35 Fuel Cell will be available in Munich’s city center and also in different areas of Munich. As with conventional car sharing services, the cars can be easily booked online or via a smartphone app.
The Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell can travel about 600 kilometers on a single tank, making it ideal for not only short trips within the city but also longer journeys to lakes or mountains. Hydrogen fuel for BeeZero is sourced from sustainable production processes.
A leader in electric mobility
The ix35 Fuel Cell is the world’s first mass-produced and commercially available fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV). Currently, there are more than 250 units of Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell on European roads in 13 countries. That is more than all FCEVs of other manufacturers combined. Going forward, Hyundai Motor will launch the eco-friendly dedicated model IONIQ in Europe, introducing the world’s first car to offer hybrid, plug-in hybrid and all-electric powertrains in a single body type.
Hydrogen For Innovative Vehicles Project (HyFIVE)
The ix35 Fuel Cell deployed are partially funded by the HyFIVE Vehicles Project. HyFIVE is funded by The Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU), a public private partnership supporting research, technological development and demonstration (RTD) activities in fuel cell and hydrogen energy technologies in Europe.
