French multinational Alstom’s Coradia iLint – the world’s first hydrogen fuel cell powered regional train – has won the GreenTec Award 2018 in the ‘Mobility by Schaeffler’ category.

Alstom was presented with the award on Friday at its largest production site, in Salzgitter, Germany, during an advance award ceremony ahead of the GreenTec Awards gala to be held in Munich on May 13.

Alstom Germany and Austria MD Jörg Nikutta said the company is pleased about winning the award. With the Coradia iLint, Alstom is the first railway manufacturer in the world to have produced completely emission-free technology that is ready for series production.

“We have achieved an innovative mobility concept that is sustainable and competitive, which includes not only the trains and service, but also the infrastructure necessary for fuelling them.”

The Coradia iLint is a regional train that offers an alternative to diesel trains for operation on nonelectrified railway lines, which currently make up more than 40% of the railway network in Germany.

The train is powered by a fuel cell in which hydrogen is converted into electrical energy, while only emitting steam and water condensate. It will enter regular service on the Cuxhaven-Bremervörde route during this year.

GreenTec Awards initiator Sven Krüger, Schaeffler centre for innovation head Professor Tim Hosenfeldt and German Association of the Automotive Industry MD Dr Joachim Damasky handed the award certificate over to Alstom.

“Hydrogen technology shows new ways to carbon dioxide-free mobility in a sustainable and defossilised energy chain, especially in areas such as railway engineering and heavy goods transport. Alstom impressively puts this into practice with the hydrogen train Coradia iLint," said Hosenfeldt.

"Our sector is on the move towards sustainable mobility solutions. The example of Coradia iLint shows that our possibilities are manifold!” remarked Damasky.

"Fuel cells are a promising technology for further developing alternative drive systems in rail technology. Alstom's Coradia iLint project is a good fit for forward-looking, green mobility," added TÜV NORD Systems MD Silvio Konrad, who also attended the award ceremony.