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The Eco Performance Award 2023 is over, and the winners and finalists have been announced and honored. In a series, Loginfo24 presents the winners and finalists. Today, we feature Bächle Logistics GmbH from Villingen-Schwenningen, a subsidiary of Swiss Post, finalist of the Eco Performance Award 2023 in the category of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
(Munich/Villingen-Schwenningen) Bächle Logistics GmbH is setting new standards in transportation and is introducing Germany’s first hydrogen truck into cross-border regular service between Germany and Switzerland. Bächle Logistics operates in Germany as a subsidiary of Swiss Post at a total of 10 locations across the country, focusing on general cargo, partial loads, and freight transport, as well as warehousing logistics in both national and international contexts. Additionally, Bächle Logistics is a shareholder of CargoLine and is active as a system partner in further collaborations.
With around 650 employees and a fleet of approximately 300 trucks, Bächle aims to achieve CO² neutrality for large parts of its operations in the future. Hydrogen is an indispensable energy carrier in connection with the mobility transition in logistics. The switch to hydrogen as a replacement for fossil fuels represents a significant opportunity for our industrial location and is undoubtedly a guarantee of the future competitiveness of the industrial site.
The fleet of Bächle Logistics has been expanded with a state-of-the-art Hyundai XCIENT Fuel Cell hydrogen truck. The Green-Liner operates twice daily on the Villingen – Switzerland route. By using the hydrogen truck, approximately 0.68 kg/km of CO² is saved compared to a comparable diesel truck. This amounts to a planned annual usage of about 80,000 km, resulting in a savings of 54,400 kg of CO². Additionally, starting in June 2023, two 7.49t electric trucks from BAX will be put into operation.
Currently, Bächle Logistics is planning to establish charging and refueling infrastructure with its own hydrogen filling station at the Villingen site. The main challenge in using the CO² neutral truck is the lack of infrastructure for refueling and producing green hydrogen in Baden-Württemberg. Therefore, the use of the vehicle is only possible in conjunction with refueling infrastructures in Switzerland.
Feasibility Study for Hydrogen Production and Use
Bächle Logistics, together with a consortium of companies and experts, as well as the city of Villingen-Schwenningen, has initiated efforts to create the necessary infrastructure. The goal is to generate a feasibility study for hydrogen production and use in the Herdenen industrial area, thereby closing the infrastructure gap for this logistics-intensive region. Additionally, we are planning a photovoltaic system with 5-7 megawatts and corresponding energy storage, which we aim to expand with wind power. This will help identify potentials for green electricity generation for electrolytic hydrogen production.
About: Bächle Hugger
Bächle Hugger is the partner for national and international general cargo, partial load, and full load transport. Our company currently employs a total of 520 staff, operates over 172,000 m² of operational and storage space, has about 200 of its own trucks, and approximately 150 trucks in charter daily. Bächle Logistics GmbH has been officially part of the Climate Protection Alliance of Baden-Württemberg since 2022 as the first logistics provider.
Title photo: © Loginfo24 / Caption: Alexander Klee (left, Head of Fleet) proudly receives the finalist certificate of the Eco Performance Award from jury member and presenter Stephan Koesling (CEO Office at Toll Collect GmbH).
