As part of its global activities in the development and promotion of fuel-cell vehicles, Hyundai-Kia intends to join the Clean Energy Partnership (CEP) to promote Fuel-Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEV) across Germany.
Last year the German Federal Government, Daimler, EnBW, Linde, OMV, Shell, Total, Vattenfall, the NOW GmbH National Organization Hydrogen and Fuel-Cell Technology announced ambitious plans for major expansion by 2015. In Germany now there are over 30 hydrogen stations.
Hyundai-Kia has also joined North European Hydrogen Highway Partnership. The South Korean automaker will supply its Tucson ix FCEVs for operation in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Iceland.
Hyundai’s third-generation fuel-cell electric vehicle, the Tucson ix FCEV, is equipped with a 100-kilowatt fuel cell system and two hydrogen storage tanks (700bar).
The Tucson Fuel-Cell can travel 650 km (404 miles) on a single charge – a range equal to a gasoline-powered car. By comparison, the old ix35 FCEV only managed 370 km (230 miles). The new model gets gasoline equivalent fuel efficiency of 31 kilometers per liter, a 15-percent improvement over the previous version.
Hyundai says the Tucson ix FCEV can operate at temperatures of minus 25 degrees Celsius.