Kawasaki, Japan — Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC; headquarters: Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture; President and CEO Hartmut Schick) announces its participation in the Japan Hydrogen Association, established on December 7 to promote the creation of a hydrogen-fueled society.

The Japan Hydrogen Association was established for the purpose of accelerating the realization of a hydrogen-based society through cross-industry projects and inter-organizational working groups. The Japan Hydrogen Association will take a broad view of the entire hydrogen value chain, spanning sourcing, infrastructure, and practical applications. Explorations of hydrogen as an alternative energy source have been gaining traction globally, with Europe and Japan announcing the goal of effectively eliminating CO₂ emissions by 2050. Meanwhile, various issues must be addressed before the vision can be brought to fruition, including the need to buoy market demand and support cost reductions through technological innovation and subsidies. The Association aims to realize a hydrogen-based society by identifying these points of contention, collecting information and making proposals to the government to address these issues.

MFTBC remains committed to the Paris Agreement as a commercial vehicle manufacturer, and is accelerating efforts aimed at reducing the CO₂ emissions of its products. The company has presented its goal to start the mass production of fuel cell trucks by the late 2020s, and shift all new vehicles to “tank-to-wheel” CO₂-neutral models by 2039. MFTBC first unveiled the Vision F-CELL, its fuel-cell run light-duty concept model at the 46th Tokyo Motor Show in 2019, and also revealed a newly improved version of the same concept vehicle through test drives in June 2020. At the same time, Mitsubishi Fuso has also led the drive toward zero emissions in the commercial vehicles industry; a total of over 180 eCanter electric trucks that went on sale in 2017 are already being operated by customers in Europe, the United States and Japan.

Daimler Trucks, of which MFTBC is an integral part, is also taking decisive actions toward a CO₂ neutral future. Daimler Trucks revealed a fuel cell heavy-duty truck in September 2020, with plans to commence mass production in the latter half of the 2020s after conducting practical tests. Daimler is also setting the course for CO2 neutral transport through battery-electric drivetrains, with milestones such as the series production of the eActros and the eActros Long Haul planned for 2021 and 2024, respectively.

Through its participation in the Japan Hydrogen Association, MFTBC aims to accelerate the realization of a hydrogen-fueled society by teaming with other enterprises and local governments to build the social infrastructure required for the effective development, verification, commercialization of fuel cell commercial vehicles.