Electro Wholesaler Sonepar Focuses on Hydrogen

With a pilot project, Sonepar is testing the great hope for climate neutrality: Soon, hydrogen-powered delivery vehicles from the company will be on German roads. With these zero-emission trucks, a significant contribution to the decarbonization of transport logistics is to be made – a first in the industry.

(Düsseldorf) In the first step, Sonepar will deploy five hydrogen vehicles in Germany. One of four trucks with established technology from Hyundai was publicly presented for the first time at the Sonepar partner meeting in Bochum at the end of April. Starting May 8, deliveries to customers will begin with innovative drive technology. In the summer, a tractor unit from another vehicle manufacturer will follow for so-called night jumps between central warehouses and transshipment points.

Saving several hundred tons of CO₂

According to the Federal Environment Agency, commercial vehicles currently account for about a third of greenhouse gases in the local transport sector. The federal government’s climate protection program aims for one-third of the performance in heavy goods transport to be climate-neutral by 2030.

With just the first five vehicles of the pilot project, several hundred tons of CO₂ can be saved annually. This requires sufficient refueling stations with green hydrogen to be available. “There is no question that the density of corresponding hydrogen refueling stations needs to increase significantly. But we at Sonepar want to explore today what possibilities this drive form offers us,” says Christian Orth, Head of Transport Logistics at Sonepar.

But what about the range? It remains a critical point for alternative drives. “Many of our routes are typically about 300 kilometers long,” explains Christian Orth. And between two refueling stops, a maximum of 400 kilometers can lie according to the manufacturer. “That gives us a comfortable buffer,” says Orth. The seven hydrogen tanks of the trucks can be fully filled in about 20 minutes. Thanks to this quick refueling, fuel cell technology is considered an ideal solution for the future of heavy-duty transport.

Another Building Block in the Sustainability Strategy

In the coming months, Sonepar aims to gather experiences with the new drive in everyday operations. “Then we will decide how to further convert our fleet to H₂ trucks in terms of sustainability, while the transition to electric trucks continues in parallel,” says Christian Orth. For Sonepar, the pilot project is another building block within the sustainability strategy.

Photo: © Sonepar