Euronext - Bedrijfsnieuws > Persberichten > (Euronext Paris) - Air Liquide : Launch of the HYCHAIN Project:150 hydrogen vehicles to be tested in 4 regions of Europe: "The European Union has committed to using 20% alternative fuels by 2020 to address two goals: to reduce its member States� dependence on fossil fuels (petroleum, natural gas, coal) and to limit emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants, responsible for climate change and some respiratory illnesses.


Using hydrogen as a source of energy is a promising alternative solution. Used in a fuel cell, hydrogen combines with oxygen from the air to produce electricity, with water as the only emission, and has tremendous potential to provide clean and silent energy.

Today, only several hundred prototype vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel-cells are on the road across the world. In addition to their high cost, their widespread use is also curbed by their restricted operating range and by a limited infrastructure for hydrogen distribution, essentially a few dozen �pilot service stations� where it is possible to �fill up� with hydrogen.

The HYCHAIN-MINITRANS Project will allow users in four regions of the European Union to test 150 full size electrically-powered vehicles fuelled by hydrogen fuel cells: scooters, tricycles, wheelchairs, small utility vehicles and minibuses. The initial priority will be fleets belonging to municipal departments in the partner cities (maintenance workers, gardeners, etc.) as well as wheelchairs in use in partnership with some hospitals in the Rh�ne-Alpes region of France (the greater urban community of Grenoble Alpes M�tropole), Emilia Romagna in Italy (city of Modena), Castilla y Le�n in Spain (cities of Soria and Le�n) and Nordrhein Westfalen in Germany "