Macquarie Group to enter US hydrogen fuel cell electric truck market as financing partner in consortium including Hyundai Motor

• The consortium has been awarded grant funding to complete the deployment of 30 Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs) in North America
• Project marks Macquarie’s entry into the zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle market, leveraging firm’s experience in the mobility and energy sectors

Macquarie Group is part of a consortium along with Hyundai Motor and other parties that has been awarded grant funding to help deliver 30 XCIENT Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs) that will be deployed in early 2023 in Oakland, Calif. and the Port of Oakland area. 

The project, called NorCAL ZERO, which will be led by the Center for Transportation and the Environment, has been awarded grants from the California Air Resources Board and the California Energy Commission’s Clean Transportation Program and over $US6 million in cost-share funding from the Alameda County Transportation Commission and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. It combines the efforts of these groups and industry leaders to deliver across the program’s value chain.

Macquarie’s Specialized and Asset Finance division, part of its Commodities and Global Markets group, will own and lease the FCETs to the fleet operator, Glovis America. First Element Fuel will build and operate a high throughput liquid hydrogen fueling station with hydrogen fuel provided by Air Liquide.

"Macquarie has actively been investing in projects and platforms related to the transition to a lower-carbon future and we are particularly pleased to contribute to an effort that will put 30 zero-emission trucks on the road in Northern California,” said Julian Liddy, Senior Managing Director at Macquarie Group. “This project is an important milestone in our efforts to develop and progress similar zero emission vehicle rollouts around the world.”

"We are proud to fund this hallmark deployment of 30 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks and improve the air quality in Northern California," said Hannon Rassool, Deputy Director of Fuels and Transportation Division at the California Energy Commission. "These investments will support zero-emission trucks and infrastructure development and deployment as part of the US market ecosystem. Public and private project partners have come together to take a big step forward in decarbonizing freight and goods movement, as part of CARB and CEC's clean air initiatives."

About California Climate Investments

Zero-Emission Drayage Truck and Infrastructure Pilot Project is part of California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative that puts billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy and improving public health and the environment — particularly in disadvantaged communities. Learn more at caclimateinvestments.ca.gov.

About the California Energy Commission’s Clean Transportation Program

This project is funded in part by the California Energy Commission’s Clean Transportation Program, which invests up to $100 million annually to support California communities, increase access to zero-emission vehicle infrastructure, support innovation and accelerate the deployment of advanced transportation and fuel technologies.