concept render of the Vittal One, image: Talgo

Talgo joins with Repsol for hydrogen trains

Talgo

Spanish train manufacturer Talgo joins forces with hydrogen producer Repsol. Talgo is already developing a project to manufacture dual hydrogen-electric trains as part of the Basque Hydrogen Corridor initiative, launched in February this year. Repsol will use its logistics infrastructure to supply renewable hydrogen to the railway network.

Talgo has been developing a hydrogen-powered train for several years, the Vittal One. A first train will be on track next November to demonstrate and validate the concept in conditions similar to those of commercial operation. It will be ready approximately in 2023. It is a modular solution for medium-distance and commuter trains powered by hydrogen fuel cells, and will be Talgo’s first dual hydrogen-electric train.

Talgo’s hydrogen-powered trains will make it possible to de-carbonise railway lines, especially those of the secondary network that are not electrified.

Cooperation

The agreement between Talgo and Repsol was signed on 19 July at the train manufacturer’s plant in Las Rozas (Madrid) by Repsol’s executive director of Industrial Transformation and Circular Economy, Juan Abascal and the Chairman of Talgo, Carlos Palacio Oriol. In addition, the event was attended by the Chairman of Petronor, Emiliano López Atxurra.

Talgo will continue the design, manufacture, and commissioning of the new self-propelled trains for short and medium distances, while Repsol will offer up its renewable hydrogen generation infrastructure and the Company’s logistical means to supply the railway network.

This collaboration will promote the achievement of one of the objectives set in the Hydrogen Roadmap approved by the Spanish Government last October: to have two lines of hydrogen-powered commercial trains by 2030.

Hydrogen production

Repsol is the leading producer and consumer of hydrogen in the Iberian Peninsula and operates the largest hydrogen plant of Europe. The company uses this gas as a raw material at its industrial centers which are already evolving to become multi-energy hubs where renewable hydrogen is a strategic pillar in achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. Repsol announced in November 2020 that it wants to play a leading role in renewable hydrogen, to be at the forefront of the market in the Iberian Peninsula. To do so, it will have an installed capacity of 400 MW by 2025 and will exceed 1.2 GW by 2030.

Repsol will use organic waste to generate biogas at its industrial centers, which will be used to produce renewable hydrogen. It has announced the installation of two electrolyzers with a capacity of 100 MW in Cartagena and Petronor that will supply its complexes with renewable hydrogen.

Basque hydrogen corridor

In February, Repsol and Petronor launched the Basque Hydrogen Corridor, which brings together 128 companies including Talgo. it also includes the Hydrogen Valley Catalonia, coordinated by the Universitat Rovira i Virgili, other energy company Enagás, whose objective is to consolidate an integrated ecosystem in the region around the hydrogen value chain, the renewable hydrogen hub around the Escombreras Valley, in Cartagena; and the Hydrogen cluster of Castilla-La Mancha.

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Author: Esther Geerts

Former Editor RailTech.com

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