The transportation sector is increasingly turning to hydrogen fuel cells as a complement to battery-electric vehicles, particularly for heavy-duty and long-range applications. Multiple stakeholders are advancing fuel cell technology for buses and trucks across Europe and North America, with companies like Bosch and MAN conducting trials and deployments. In Spain, Bosch has supplied fuel cell modules for buses capable of traveling over 1,000 kilometers on a single refueling, while in Germany, fuel cell buses are becoming more established with Ballard technology powering approximately 410 of roughly 500 such vehicles in operation.
Infrastructure development is underway in the United States to support fuel cell vehicle deployment. California is seeing expansion in hydrogen fueling stations, including a facility in San Mateo County designed to serve up to 175 fuel cell buses and capable of dispensing 1,200 kilograms of hydrogen per hour. Orange County has commissioned a hydrogen fuel station at a bus depot to support an expected fleet of 50 buses, while a new commercial truck fueling station recently opened in Santa Fe Springs.
For fuel cell vehicles to achieve genuine sustainability, the industry must dramatically increase production of green hydrogen—hydrogen generated through renewable energy rather than fossil fuels. Current hydrogen supply chains rely primarily on natural gas, with coal playing a minor role. Researchers are exploring multiple pathways beyond water electrolysis, including biomass-to-hydrogen and plastic waste-to-hydrogen conversion. Recent studies highlight seaweed as a potential carbon-negative hydrogen source and demonstrate alkaline thermal treatment of plastic waste as an efficient recycling alternative that produces high-purity hydrogen while addressing the global plastic waste crisis. Industrial applications in refining, steelmaking, and chemicals manufacturing remain priority areas for green hydrogen deployment as the technology matures and costs decrease.
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