Hydrogen trains arrive in Italy. The revolution of hydrogen mobility, in the name of decarbonisation, is therefore also about to invest rail transport, thanks to the agreement between Snam, the company that manages the gas network in Italy, and Alstom, one of the world's leading manufacturers of trains and railway infrastructure. The agreement is for five years and will be inaugurated with a phase dedicated to feasibility studies, which should be completed by the autumn. As, already in the 2021 in our country we will see the first hydrogen-powered trains, the new frontier of clean energy, as well as obviously the first technological infrastructures necessary for the supply of these vehicles.
The French group Alstom will take care of the supply and maintenance of the hydrogen trains, newly built or converted, while Snam will work on infrastructure development for production, transport and supply. The collaboration stems from the joint commitment of the two companies on hydrogen: Alstom has already launched the Coradia iLint in Germany, the first fuel cell train in the world, which has already been in service for a year and a half on a regional section, while Snam was among the first companies in the world to experiment with the injection of 10% hydrogen into the natural gas transport network.
“With this initiative – he comments the managing director of Snam Marco Alverà – we want to make a further contribution to the decarbonisation of transport and the development of a hydrogen economy in Italy. Hydrogen produced from renewables will become competitive with fossil fuels within a few years and will play a central role in the energy transition, particularly in industry, heating and heavy transport. Will be a pillar of the Green New Deal European Union and investments for the post-Covid restart. Snam is investing and innovating to make its network compatible with hydrogen, to encourage the development of new technologies and create an Italian supply chain because our country has the opportunity to be among the global leaders in the sector, reaping the environmental and economics of this climate leadership”.
“We believe in hydrogen and for this reason we have signed a partnership with Snam. Coradia iLint, the first hydrogen-powered train, is already in passenger service between the cities of Cuxhaven, Bremerhaven, Bremervörde and Buxtehudehe in Germany. We hope that the hydrogen train will soon become a reality in Italy too. Thanks to a partner like Snam, we will be able to respond to the market by offering a complete solution”, added Michele Viale, president and CEO of Alstom Italy and Switzerland.
