German rail operator eyes H2 container shipments

In co-operation with energy suppliers, DB Cargo said it has developed a solution for transporting seaborne hydrogen inland via rail.

“The German rail network is an environmental network with a route length of more than 35,000 kilometres. DB Cargo alone serves more than 2,100 interfaces, customer connections, terminals and inland ports,” said Sigrid Nikutta, head, DB Cargo.

“Green hydrogen needs green logistics and we can already offer that today,” 

Hydrogen focus

DB Cargo said it is currently working on a number of different hydrogen logistics solutions.

This includes being a partner in the non-profit company Reallabor Burghausen ChemDelta and delivering hydrogen trains for DB Regio, which are currently undergoing testing across Germany’s rail network.

The company is also developing new hydrogen containers to transport the fuel as a gas and is testing the logistics for pure hydrogen. However, it said that for the time being this would only benefit small-scale operations, such as hydrogen filling stations.

For now, as hydrogen arrives in Germany bound in liquids rather than in gaseous form, tank wagons that are already widely used by the chemical industry will transport the fuel.

DB Cargo said that carrying hydrogen via rail should fast-track the use of hydrogen on Germany’s energy mix, especially as a pipeline network to that end is not yet in existence.