ULEMCo has reached an important milestone for use of hydrogen fuel in its fleet of test vehicles after 16 Ford Transits - adapted to run on dual hydrogen/diesel - clocked up more than 20,000 miles using hydrogen fuel.

The vehicles achieved ultra-low emissions of 59g/km of CO2, compared with 234g/km for the standard vehicles, equivalent to a saving of almost six tonnes of CO2 emissions to date.

The ultra-low emissions vehicle company, which champions the conversion of diesel vehicles for hydrogen fuelling, believes that this milestone supports the argument that hydrogen fuelled commercial vehicles have made the transition from the research and development stage to representing a valuable commercial option for future vehicle operation.

As more hydrogen filling stations are now becoming available, it says that the cumulative mileage achieved will increase significantly. 

ULEMCo is targeting its technology at fleet owners who need to reduce their CO2 emissions but have few practical options.

Vehicles in this sector need to have unrestricted range - a problem with current battery driven vehicles. They also need long working life and a high level of robustness, a package of features not available elsewhere.

By converting to dual-fuel use, it says that the range of ULEMCo equipped vehicles is actually increased, as the driver can switch between fuels as required.

“This milestone represents an important stage in our development of hydrogen powered commercial vehicles”, said Amanda Lyne, CEO of ULEMCo.

“It not only demonstrates the robustness and practicality of our solution, but it sends a powerful signal to fleet owners that this is an area they need to factor into their plans for the future.”