40 fuel cell-powered warehouse trucks planned for UK hydrogen project

THE €20 million EU-backed LtA programme aims to accelerate large-scale hydrogen adoption. Centred around the River Aire between Bradford and Leeds and positioned along a key transport route connecting Liverpool and Hull, the project focuses on real‑world deployment in one of the UK’s busiest logistics corridors.

As a programme partner, Intelligent Energy – working alongside Briggs Equipment UK, the UK distributor for Hyster-Yale Materials Handling – will deploy fuel cell‑powered forklift trucks equipped with its IE‑LIFT battery box replacement (BBR) units. The trucks will enter operation from June 2028 and will support warehousing across two major logistics hubs in the valley.

IE-LIFT is a drop-in replacement for traditional industrial battery tanks, integrating a fuel cell, buffer battery and hydrogen storage into a single compact unit. Refuelling takes around three minutes. IE’s systems are already in commercial use in demanding environments, including BMW’s manufacturing sites in Germany.

Each IE-LIFT system offers more than 30,000 hours of service life and integrates seamlessly into a wide range of standard forklift classes without compromising payload capacity or manoeuvrability.

David Fields, head of product line, IE-POWER at Intelligent Energy, said: “The US market has set the pace in hydrogen intralogistics, with fuel cell-powered forklift trucks operating at Walmart, Amazon and other major organisations over the past decade.

“Our fuel cells are proven to be robust, durable and efficient, following a successful deployment at BMW’s Leipzig plant since 2023.

“This project gives us the opportunity to deploy our IE-LIFT technology on home soil, and to demonstrate its value to operators across the UK and Europe.”

In addition to material handling, the project will support the rollout of more than 150 hydrogen passenger transport vehicles.