Hydrogen ride to The Hague

Almere up for hydrogen station in Flevoland: ‘Breaking the chicken-and-egg situation’

DEN HAAG - Waterstof tanken . ANP/ Hollandse Hoogte / Laurens van Putten
Ook in Flevoland willen ze waterstof kunnen tanken. ANP/ Hollandse Hoogte / Laurens van Putten

A column of 45 hydrogen cars left Almere on Saturday for The Hague to draw attention to a glaring shortcoming: Flevoland is the only province without a hydrogen filling station. “We need to break the chicken-and-egg situation”.

The debate on the position of hydrogen in the energy transition is still very much alive, and last weekend a group of entrepreneurs, hydrogen drivers and curious consumers in Almere made another push: they pleaded for a hydrogen station in Flevoland via a playful ‘protest march’ to The Hague.

The record-breaking drive, which included both rare BMW prototypes and the Netherlands’ first Hyundai hydrogen car, was intended to send a clear message, according to the organisers. Various media reported on it, including 1Almere.nl and NOS.nl.

A temporary camp of hydrogen enthusiasts, entrepreneurs and curious passers-by formed in the car park in Almere. Organiser Christopher Ivo of Sterk Lokaal Almere stressed that the action is about infrastructure being left behind. “We need to realise that there will be a hydrogen point in Almere or Flevoland. Now I have to go to Amsterdam, Utrecht or Amersfoort every time to refuel,” he told NOS.

‘Powerful signal’

Participants point out that hydrogen could become an important alternative as the power grid is increasingly burdened by electric cars. Yet only four hydrogen cars are currently running in Flevoland.

Also check out the podcast with Tanqyou and Fountain Fuel on hydrogen here: (article continues below the video)

According to Stefan de Raat of fuel supplier Van Staveren, this is a chicken-and-egg situation: without a filling station, the market will not grow, while hydrogen, he says, is “very important to meet our climate goals”. De Raat hopes to realise a first location this year or next.

On his LinkedIn page, De Raat calls the drive “a powerful and visible signal for sustainable and zero-emission mobility”. For him, it is especially important to show what is already possible. “By literally taking hydrogen onto the road, we make the possibilities concrete and tangible.”

The column’s message was clear: without refuelling infrastructure, hydrogen in Flevoland remains a promise that is difficult to get off the ground.

Read also:

This article was automatically translated from the Dutch language original to English (British).

Author: Luberto van Buiten

Source: MobilityEnergy.com

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