Scottish Transport Minister Graeme Dey visited Arcola Energy’s rail engineering team, as the Scottish Hydrogen Train project reached its halfway milestone. 

The Transport Scotland, Scottish Enterprise and University of St Andrews backed project will see the demonstration of a deployment-ready hydrogen-powered train during the COP26 climate conference.

Arcola Energy is now at the halfway point in converting a former ScotRail Class 314 electric train to hydrogen fuel cell technology as part of a programme to demonstrate the role hydrogen-powered trains can play in decarbonising Scottish railways by 2035. 

A key objective of the project is to create opportunities for the Scottish rail supply chain through skills development and local industrialisation of the technology.

Dey said: “I have been impressed by the enthusiasm and professionalism of all involved in this exciting project. 

“The team is clearly demonstrating that hydrogen provides another available option to tackle the challenge of removing diesel as a source of power on our rail network.”

Rolling stock asset manager Angel Trains is supporting the project with an investment of more than £500k in a flexible refueller installation delivering green hydrogen. 

The Scottish Hydrogen Train project is the first rail project incorporating a dedicated green hydrogen refuelling infrastructure.