Gaussin is making final preparations for its 100% hydrogen and electric H2 racing truck that will compete in the 2022 Dakar Rally Race starting January 1 in Saudi Arabia. Aramco is its title sponsor, with the world’s top oil company also having the option to subscribe for up to 20% of the common stock of Gaussin shares.

The racing truck’s high-performance design is engineered to withstand the extreme race environments of Dakar and is intended to demonstrate the performance and reliability of the hydrogen-electric powertrain developed by Gaussin. The data and information collected from the 2022 Dakar Rally will be used to further develop Gaussin’s range of road trucks scheduled for launch from 2022.

At the 2021 event, the Dakar organization presented its “Dakar Future” energy transition program, which aims to make the Dakar 100% “green” by 2030.

“By entering the first 100% hydrogen and electric truck in the Dakar, Gaussin intends to demonstrate the reliability and performance of its hydrogen road range in a difficult environment,” said Christophe Gaussin, CEO of Gaussin. “New technologies based on renewable energies are available and mature and should help accelerate the energy transition. For the Gaussin Group and its partners, this project, which has now become a reality, represents a technological achievement and the fruit of years of work and experience in zero-emission mobility.”

“By competing in the Dakar, Gaussin is laying the foundation stone for the energy transition we all want to see, and the Dakar is the ideal open-air laboratory for manufacturers,” added Yann Le Moenner, CEO of Amaury Sport Organization, the Dakar Rally organizer.

The racing truck previews the new range of Gaussin’s zero-emissions, 100% hydrogen and electric road trucks to be launched from 2022. Unlike the solutions currently available on the market, Gaussin says its hydrogen system has been developed for an ultra-light chassis designed around the hydrogen and electric powertrain.

The production truck range is based on the modular skateboard (see earlier Futurride article) earlier this year to be available in a long-distance hydrogen version with a refueling time of less than 20 min for an 800 km (497 mi) range, and in an all-electric version for short distances with a battery swap time of 3 min with a 400 km (249 mi) range. The zero-emissions road truck will be available in five models: road tractor, autonomous, distribution, construction, and racing.

The design of the range has been entrusted to the Italian company Pininfarina.

“We made sure the design faithfully represents the group’s values and roots: reliability, performance, and robustness,” said Pininfarina Chief Creative Officer Kevin Rice. “This defines Gaussin’s new signature, which is shared across all the vehicles in the range.”

The overall construction and design considered technical requirements linked to the hydrogen and electric powertrain, the operation of fuel cells, the junctions of the modular skateboard, and the latest technologies in materials and human-machine interfaces.

“We have leveraged our long experience in designing sustainable and intelligent mobility combined with our ability to create unique user experiences to shape the full Gaussin range of zero-emission road trucks,” said Silvio Pietro Angori, Pininfarina CEO. “We are sure that this new range of ecological, smart, and unique style trucks will write a new chapter in the history of zero-emission mobility.”

Gaussin says that the H2 racing truck is the most powerful hydrogen truck in the world, combining technology, power, and robustness designed with high-quality components to operate in extreme environments.

The truck features two e-motors of 300 kW each, 380 kW in fuel cells, 82 kW·h in batteries, and carries 80 kg (176 lb) of hydrogen. Its lightweight chassis is designed specifically for the performance and integration of the hydrogen-electric system.

It has a speed limit of 140 km/h (87 mph), complying with regulations, and a range of 250 km (155 mi) in race conditions. It can be “recharged” in 20 min with a specific hydrogen cooling station. Interestingly, it is registered for the road.

The H2 racing truck program was intense, taking just a year according to Gaussin. The result combines the use of high-quality components, input from dozens of experts in their fields, thousands of hours of development and testing, certification of components by control organizations, and vehicle approval. For example, the fuel cells were bench-tested under extreme conditions that go far beyond the usual tests performed by manufacturers for road operation.

The team took up the technological challenges of hydrogen propulsion to illustrate the Gaussin Group’s mission to develop clean mobility technologies with the goal of a world without fossil fuels. Its approach is part of a wider framework echoed during the 26th Annual UN Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP26) that concluded in Scotland last month.

For its part, oil group Aramco has set itself the goal of reducing its net emissions to zero by 2050.

“Saudi Aramco will achieve the ambition of being net-zero from our operations by 2050,” said Amin Nasser, Aramco CEO, at the Saudi Green Initiative summit held earlier this month.

 

Kevin Jost contributed to this article.