It hopes to commercialize that locomotive and have it in operation within five years.īut battery and fuel cell research is expensive, and with a flood of investment already going into electric vehicles from existing automakers like GM and a wave of start-ups, Wabtec apparently doesn't see the value of developing its own tech in-house. With the pilot now done, Wabtec is working on a second-generation FLXdrive locomotive with bigger batteries that it says should cut fuel consumption and emissions by up to 30%. Wabtec said that the pilot program indicated its battery-electric locomotive delivered an 11% average reduction in fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of more than 6,200 gallons of diesel fuel saved and a reduction of about 69 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Here's why the partnership is a smart move for both companies, with the potential to pay off for shareholders down the line.Īlthough rail is considered a relatively cleaner form of transportation compared to trucking and air shipments thanks to feul efficiency, there is still a lot of room for improvement. But there is a lot in it to be excited about. It's early days in this partnership, and the companies aren't talking about financial terms for now. "By working with GM on Ultium battery and Hydrotec hydrogen fuel cell technologies, we can accelerate the rail industry's path to decarbonization and pathway to zero-emission locomotives by leveraging these two important propulsion technologies." "The rail industry is on the cusp of a sustainable transformation with the introduction of batteries and hydrogen to power locomotive fleets," Wabtec CEO Rafael Santana said in a statement. Right now the typical locomotive burns about 300,000 gallons of diesel per year, according to Wabtec, but the two companies hope over time to eliminate the need for fossil fuels completely. GM is partnering with Wabtec ( WAB 0.13%) to use the automaker's battery and fuel cell technologies on a new generation of freight locomotives. Now, it's hoping to extend the reach of its tech to eco-friendly railroad locomotives as well.
General Motors ( GM -3.42%) has been winning plaudits of late thanks to its aggressive push into electric vehicles.
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