ALSTOM has confirmed that development of hydrogen-powered trains has been “temporarily paused” in France due to the withdrawal of French government funding for European hydrogen research projects, while the company’s CEO, Henri Poupart-Lafarge, says that hydrogen technology is “not yet mature.”
In an interview with French media outlet BFM Business, Alstom confirmed an internal document stating that certain hydrogen research and development programmes have been temporarily suspended in France.
An Alstom spokesperson told IRJ that the suspension concerns locomotive and regional train hydrogen fuel cell research and development projects underway in France.
“Our IPCEI projects in Italy and their funding remain fully intact, and Alstom will continue to support these contracts as planned, including maintenance as agreed with the customers for the Coradia iLint,” the spokesperson said.
In France, 12 Régiolis trains powered by hydrogen and developed in cooperation with CAF have been ordered by the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Occitanie, Grand Est and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions. This deal is unaffected as are orders for the Coradia Stream H design from South East Railway (two trains) and the North Milan Railway (FNM) in Italy. FNM awarded Alstom a framework contract to supply up to 14 hydrogen trains. Contracts for the supply and maintenance of Coradia iLint hydrogen trains for German regions are also unaffected.
Hydrogen has been seen as a zero-emissions replacement for diesel, and has been promoted since 2022 by the European Union (EU) which has authorised €5bn in support for research. The Coradia iLint train powered by hydrogen fuel cells has been developed and sold by Alstom in Germany and demonstrated in France, where several regions expressed interest and French companies have been involved in developing hydrogen traction technology.
However, the Coradia iLint has never run in trial service in France as hoped. The train has been beset by problems in Germany where Rhine-Main Transport Authority (RMV) was forced to withdraw its fleet of 18 trains following repeated technical issues with the hydrogen fuel cells.
Siemens Mobility has also experienced problems with its Mireo Plus H design, ordered by Bavaria and Berlin-Brandenburg, while initial enthusiasm for hydrogen in the automotive and airline sectors appears to be waning. Stadler introduced its inaugural Flirt H2 hydrogen train on a commuter service in southern California in September. It has also won a further hydrogen fleet contract from the state of California and contracts from narrow-gauge railways in Austria and Italy.
Alstom says it has completed a hydrogen fuel cell developed under the EU IPCEI programme and is continuing discussions with its hydrogen train customers in three EU countries. However, some research staff have been redeployed on other projects.
