Alstom has announced a passenger service demonstration project for its hydrogen-powered Coradia iLint train, in collaboration with the Government of Quebec, Chemin de fer Charlevoix, Train de Charlevoix, Harnois Énergies, and HTEC.
The Coradia iLint will transport passengers down the St. Lawrence River on the Réseau Charlevoix rail network between Parc de la Chute-Montmorency and Baie-St-Paul in the summer of 2023. Harnois Énergies’ green hydrogen, manufactured at its Quebec City facility, will power the train.
In order to show its leadership in the transition to a low-carbon economy and the establishment of ecosystems devoted to hydrogen, the province of Quebec will operate the first train with zero direct emissions in the Americas. This train will be powered by green hydrogen. Alstom and its partners will be better able to evaluate the next stages for the advancement of hydrogen propulsion technology and its entry into the North American market after this train is operated with passengers on board.
In 2018, the Coradia iLint made its commercial debut in Germany and has already covered more than 220,000 kilometers across eight European nations. The train is propelled by a hydrogen fuel cell, which produces only water vapor while in use, making the ride quieter for passengers and anyone around the tracks. The Coradia iLint set a record on September 15, 2022, by traveling 1,175 kilometers without stopping for fuel. Coradia iLint can accelerate and brake as well as a conventional regional diesel train, but without the noise and pollutants. Its top speed is 140 km/h. The combination of cutting-edge components in Coradia iLint stands out: clean energy conversion, adaptable battery energy storage, smart traction, and energy management. It enables safe, healthy, and environmentally friendly operations and is specifically designed for non-electrified lines. Customers in Europe have so far ordered 41 trainsets.
Alstom’s new innovation center in the Americas, which is focused on sustainable mobility solutions, has been given the initial commercial service contract for the Coradia iLint in Quebec. The creation of an ecosystem around Alstom’s emissions-free train solutions has reached its first major turning point with this. This center, which is based in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Quebec, was established primarily to develop future platforms with hybrid, battery, or green hydrogen propulsion that are tailored to the North American market. By utilizing the proximity to the more than 700 Alstom engineers who currently work in the city, the center hopes to hasten the decarbonization of the rail industry. The engineers at the center will collaborate closely on the Coradia iLint demonstration project with important figures in Quebec’s research and innovation community as well as with commercial partners in the province’s battery and hydrogen industries.
