Westport Fuel Systems Inc. ("Westport" or the "Company"), a leading supplier of advanced alternative fuel systems and components for the global transportation industry, welcomes the recent agreement between European legislators regarding the lowering of CO2 emissions in the European Union's (EU) heavy-duty road transport sector. The regulatory agreement sets forth revised corporate CO2 emissions reduction targets for new original equipment manufacturers' (OEM) heavy-duty vehicles at 45 percent by 2030, 65 percent by 2035, and 90 percent by 2040 as compared to a 2019 baseline, while ensuring that existing innovative technologies are preserved. These emissions reduction targets maintain a degree of flexibility for OEMs to comply using a portfolio of CO2 reduction solutions including low carbon fuels, hydrogen combustion, fuel cell, and battery electric technologies. Zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) are a central element of these CO2 regulations, and Westport's H2 HPDI fuel system solution is compatible with the ZEV threshold of 3gCO2/ton-km.
"As a key supplier of hydrogen and other alternative fuel system solutions, we are encouraged by the EU's revised CO2 emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles," said Dan Sceli, Chief Executive Officer of Westport Fuel Systems. "These new standards reflect ambitious decarbonization targets that can be achieved by utilizing a blend of new and current vehicle and fuel system technologies such as those in Westport's portfolio while also clearing a path to encourage future investment in the best and most affordable solutions to decarbonize heavy-duty transport."
Nadčge Leclercq, Senior Director of Government Relations and Market Development, added, "In establishing the overall fleet CO2 reductions targets, revising the zero-emission vehicle threshold to 3gCO2/ton-km, the legislature of the EU has added a degree of flexibility for both OEMs and their customers to continue on the road to decarbonization. This flexibility is much needed in a transport sector that must cater to a diverse range of operational requirements. While we regret the absence of a mechanism to account for the benefits of renewable fuels, expanding the fleet of vehicles that are able to utilize these low carbon fuels, including biomethane, is imperative to realizing true CO2 reductions across the heavy-duty vehicle sector."
Westport's clean mobility solutions are engineered for a diverse set of zero-emission vehicles with hydrogen fuel systems and components for both internal combustion engines (ICE) and fuel cell (FC) applications including:
• H2 HPDI™ fuel system – high efficiency hydrogen ICE technology allowing a wide range of truck configurations to comply with the ZEV threshold of 3gCO2/ton-km
• Engine management systems for spark ignited engines – engineered for monofuel hydrogen ICEs that are classified as a ZEV technology by regulatory definition
• Hydrogen components for fuel pressure management and regulation – a portfolio of components that are used commercially today in the growing market for hydrogen fuel cell and ICE vehicles
"Our current products and innovative technologies support long-term decarbonization by efficiently reducing CO2 emissions across different applications, delivering both environmental benefits and cost-effectiveness," said Scott Baker, Vice President of Global Engineering for Westport Fuel Systems. "Advanced products, such as our LNG HPDI fuel system on the road today, used with increasing shares of biomethane have in the past years and will in the coming decades continue to deliver growing CO2 reductions to the heavy-duty vehicle sector in Europe and will be supplemented with an expanding range of hydrogen products."
There is more work to be done as the commercial transportation sector continues its green energy progression to a more sustainable future. Westport is committed to working together with EU legislators, OEMs and fleets alike to create reliable solutions that meet required decarbonization targets and are tailored to unique application and operational needs.