Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell in Copenhagen. (Credit: Hyundai Motor Company)
Hyundai Motor Company has recently delivered the first of its assembly line-produced ix35 Fuel Cell vehicles to the City of Copenhagen in Denmark. This hydrogen-powered SUVs were handed over by Hyundai Motor Europe, Hyundai Motor’s European sales subsidiary, during the opening ceremony of Denmark’s first hydrogen refuelling station.
The 15 ix35 Fuel Cell units are the first hydrogen-powered vehicles manufactured on a production line to be introduced in Europe.
Mr. Byung Kwon Rhim, President of Hyundai Motor Europe said, “Hyundai Motor is committed to hydrogen as the fuel of the future for Europe. Delivering assembly-line produced ix35 Fuel Cell is evidence that we have a realistic solution to the region’s sustainable mobility needs.”
The ix35 Fuel Cell produces no harmful tailpipe emissions—only water vapor—and so its use will help the city of Copenhagen achieve its aim of becoming carbon-neutral by 2025.
Since 2011, Hyundai Motor has deployed prototypes of its third-generation ix35 Fuel Cell in a wide range of initiatives to raise awareness of hydrogen’s benefits as an automotive fuel; to support the drive for establishing a pan-European refueling infrastructure; and to demonstrate the cars’ real-world practicality to public and private organisations.
For example, EU policy-makers have access to ix35 Fuel Cell vehicles—via the EU Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU) in Brussels—showing the market-readiness of Hyundai Motor’s technology. And, earlier this year, senior representatives from 100 European businesses learned about and tested the ix35 Fuel Cell at a Hyundai Motor event in Berlin.
Hyundai Motor has been a world leader in the development of hydrogen fuel cell technology ever since research into its first fuel cell began in 1998. The company’s proprietary fuel cell technology is developed at its Eco Technology Research Institute in Korea. Hyundai intends to build 1.000 ix35 Fuel Cell cars by 2015 at its Ulsan factory, also in Korea.
The ix35 Fuel Cell is equipped with a 100 kW (136 ps) electric motor, and can reach a maximum speed of 160 km/h (100 mph). Two hydrogen storage tanks, located between the vehicle’s rear axle, with a total capacity of 5,64 kg (12.43 lbs), enable the vehicle to travel a total of 594 km (369 miles) on a single fueling. Filling the storage hydrogen tanks to maximum capacity takes just a few minutes.
