Thai company aims to bring hydrogen-powered vehicles to the market

Take the transport sector and its emphasis on electric vehicles. Commercial electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Nex Point Plc is taking clean fuel one step further by signing a memorandum of understanding with two Japanese firms ‑ Toyota Group’s trading arm Toyota Tsusho and automotive components manufacturer Denso - to develop hydrogen fuel cell vehicle (FCEV) trucks and analyse the feasibility of commercial utilisation in Thailand.

Applying hydrogen to commercial vehicles helps boost their capacity for long-distance travel and greenhouse gas reduction in the transport sector, Nex Point’s CEO Khanist Srivajiraprabha said on Monday.

If successful, the project will expand into a larger-scale fleet to enhance the potential of the hydrogen fuel supply chain infrastructure in the country and reduce environmental impacts from the transport sector.

Khanist expects the project to help promote hydrogen as an alternative energy along with batteries. Applying hydrogen to commercial vehicles can boost its longest distance to 1,000 kilometres compared to 300 kilometres from batteries alone.

“Recharging only once could enable an FCEV to go from Thailand’s northmost point to the southern tip,” he said, adding that the collaboration with Toyota Tsusho also aims to deal with explosions triggered by the fuel.

Khanist admitted that the lack of hydrogen stations and high fuel production costs posed challenges in the transport industry transition. There is currently only one hydrogen station operated by state oil and gas company PTT in Chonburi province.

However, the Nex Point CEO believes that PTT and relevant agencies are ready to invest in hydrogen if there is a demand for the fuel.

He also advised the government to launch policies to sustainably support the development of the hydrogen ecosystem in Thailand. “Once Thailand has hydrogen stations and FCEVs, the fuel ecosystem will be completed,” he added.

Development timeline

According to Toyota Tsusho, the prototype of Thailand’s first FCEV truck is expected to be completed within the fourth quarter of this year.

After that, trials of the FCEV truck will be conducted for three years between May 2025 and March 2028. The vehicle is expected to take a role in Thailand’s transport sector from April 2028 onwards.

Toyota Tsusho will coordinate the development, supply hydrogen-related components and cooperate on vehicle evaluation. Denso will develop and furnish the specifications and also collaborate on the evaluation of the prototype, while Nex Point will be responsible for the prototype development, conversion and evaluation to meet specified standards.

“This project will deliver a better global environment for future generations of Thais,” said the company’s general manager Takahiro Arai, adding that he believes in Nex Point’s potential as a leading commercial EV manufacturer in Thailand.

Higashijima Hayato, Toyota Tsusho’s manager of function parts and eco solutions business department, confirmed that shifting from diesel to hydrogen can reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transport sector.

Shifting from diesel to grey hydrogen can reduce emissions by 60-70%, while shifting to green hydrogen can reduce emissions by 100%, he explained.

“Hydrogen is suitable for large vehicles and batteries are suitable for personal cars. So there is no need for them to compete,” he said.

Hydrogen policies

Hydrogen has been included in Thailand’s National Energy Plan to deal with weak points of some renewable energies, such as solar cells that cannot generate electricity during the nighttime, according to the Energy Policy and Planning Office.

The office has planned to develop infrastructure to boost the demand and production cost for blue and green hydrogen by 2030, such as setting up hydrogen stations, promoting research and development of carbon capture and storage (CSS), and improving laws and regulations to support fuel production and distribution.

However, high production costs pose a challenge in this transition because the price of hydrogen should not be higher than US$2 (72 baht) per kilogramme to compete with fossil fuel. The prices of blue and green hydrogen are $3-5 (109-181 baht) and $5-10 (181-363 baht) per kilogramme, respectively.

“Once technology is developed and its price drops, Thailand will be able to use hydrogen in the country,” the EPP)’s former office deputy director-general Sarat Prakobchat said last year.

Types of hydrogen

According to the World Economic Forum’s website, grey hydrogen is the most common form and is generated from natural gas or methane, through a process called “steam reforming”. This process generates just a small amount of emissions in the hydrogen-making process.

Hydrogen is labelled blue whenever the carbon generated from steam reforming is captured and stored underground through industrial CSS.

Green hydrogen is produced by using clean energy from surplus renewable energy sources, such as solar or wind power, to split water into two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom through a process called electrolysis.