Royal Mail is to trial a dual fuel hydrogen van in Aberdeen for a 12-month period, to determine whether hydrogen is operationally suitable within its fleet.
On 30 November, it announced that the Ford Transit van has been converted to dual fuel with up to 60% of its power coming from green hydrogen. It is able to travel up to 120 miles in dual fuel mode and will be trialled at the Altens Delivery Office in Aberdeen. The van has been provided by the City Council as part of the EU-funded Civitas Portis project, which is setting out to support Aberdeen in improving its air quality and sustainable transport options.
Should the preliminary trial prove that hydrogen is workable within Royal Mail’s fleet, then the results will be considered in future strategy developments for the company.
Councillor Philip Bell, the council’s Hydrogen Spokesman, said: “We are absolutely delighted to support green transport technology in our city by providing Royal Mail with a hydrogen-powered van to operate from its Altens Mail Centre in Aberdeen for an initial 12-month trial period. Aberdeen is already a global leader in pioneering transport technologies and we at Aberdeen City Council have demonstrated our commitment to innovation by helping fund in partnership, the world’s first hydrogen-powered double decker buses. We are determined to meet our environmental obligations by tackling air pollution while also establishing the city as ‘Centre for Excellence’ for hydrogen.”
