(Quebec) This is a first in North America: a passenger train powered by green hydrogen will run in Quebec under a pilot project announced by the Legault government on Thursday, in partnership with Alstom.
The French giant, which bought Bombardier Transportation three years ago, will put its Coradia iLint train, powered by a hydrogen fuel cell, into service on the Chemin de fer de Charlevoix from June, for a trial period three to four months.
Harnois Énergies will supply the green hydrogen, while HTEC Québec will help with the storage of this energy source and the refueling of the train.
The project is valued at nearly $8 million, $3 million of which comes from the government.
The Coradia iLint has been in service since 2018 in Germany. The country inaugurated the world’s first railway line running entirely on hydrogen last summer, thanks to the partnership with Alstom. The Coradia iLint is “zero emission” of greenhouse gases; it only emits water vapor and condensed water.
For the Legault government, this pilot project aims to contribute to Quebec’s energy transition.
The Chemin de fer de Charlevoix, which belongs to Le Massif Group, connects Quebec City to La Malbaie, a distance of 148 km.