South African companies Sasol and Imperial Logistics have entered into an agreement to explore options and solutions for decarbonising heavy-duty long-haul trucking, including through the use of fuel cell electric (FCE) trucks fuelled by green hydrogen.

Sasol has already announced its intention to play a leading role in the development of a green hydrogen economy in South Africa, and to produce green hydrogen to help decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors such as freight transportation.

In April, the energy and chemicals producer announced that it would partner with Toyota to jointly pursue the development of a proof-of-concept demonstration for a green hydrogen mobility ecosystem in South Africa.

In addition, it revealed that it was part of a consortium with Linde, ENERTRAG and Navitas that would bid to develop a sustainable aviation fuel plant, using green hydrogen, under the auspices of the German government’s H2Global auction platform.

Green hydrogen is produced by using renewable electricity and an electrolyser to split water into hydrogen and oxygen and its use is expected to expand materially as the cost of production falls on the back of a strong project pipeline and government support.

Imperial, which is one of Southern Africa’s major fleet operators, plans to reduce its carbon footprint by exploring a range of alternative truck technologies, including FCE trucks.

Imperial CEO Mohammed Akoojee said he welcomed the opportunity to work with Sasol to develop viable and greener supply-chain solutions.

“This strategic partnership with Sasol, a long-standing and valued Imperial client, helps cement our commitment to a just transition to a low-carbon economy, and is another step towards positioning Imperial at the forefront of alternative energy fleets,” he said.

Sasol executive VP: energy business Priscillah Mabelane described the partnership as another milestone in Sasol’s aspiration to play a leading role in the development of the country’s green hydrogen ecosystems.

It follows on from a memorandum of cooperation signed recently between Sasol and the State-owned Industrial Development Corporation to jointly develop an enabling environment to advance South Africa’s green hydrogen economy.

“Green hydrogen can help tackle various critical energy challenges and is positioned for rapid global growth as the pathway of choice to decarbonise, amongst others, the long-haul transport sector,” Mabelane said.