Ballard and Linamar to develop fuel cell solutions

Ballard Power Systems and Linamar Corporation have formed a strategic partnership to co-develop and sell fuel cell powertrains and components for class 1 and 2 vehicles weighing up to 5 tons in North America and Europe.

With pollution regulations, zero-emission vehicle requirements, and low-emission zones in effect in many jurisdictions around the world, finding genuinely green end-to-end solutions that combine zero-emission activity with zero-emission fuel sources is becoming increasingly important.

There is an increasing demand for FCEVs that can run on long duty cycles without sacrificing payload and can be refueled quickly to maximize fleet utilization.

A fuel cell powertrain solution will be built in the first phase of work under a Framework Agreement, with Ballard supplying the fuel cell subsystem and Linamar providing the rolling chassis, tanks, enclosures, cradles, and other balance of plant needs, as well as final assembly.

Following the demonstration platform’s successful testing, Ballard and Linamar are considering forming a joint venture to sell and fund fuel cell powertrains with interchangeable rolling chassis for use in a variety of medium-duty class 1 and 2 vehicles, such as passenger cars, SUVs, light trucks, and commercial vans.